Vol. 35 (2015), No. 10

The newsletter of the

Minnesota Herpetological Society

October Meeting Notice General Meeting will be October 2nd, 2015 October Speaker Emily Roberts & Terry Odegaard General Meeting & Elections November 13th, 2016 pp. 7-9 2015 Midwest Symposium November 6th-8th, 2016 page 5 Letter from the President page 4 State Fair Wrap-Up page 13

October 2015

Volume 35

Number 10

BOARD OF DIRECTORS President Misi Stine 952.217.1267 President@mnherpsoc.org Vice President Mike Rohweder 651.491.9089 VicePresident@MnHerpSoc.org

C/O Bell Museum of Natural History 10 Church Street Southeast Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55455-0104

Recording Secretary Nancy Haig 763.434.8684 RecSecretary@MnHerpSoc.org

Or you can still leave us a Voice Mail: 612.326.6516

Membership Secretary Lavania Beguhl 651.274.8511 MemSecretary@MnHerpSoc.org Treasurer Rae Jacobs Ruber 612.366.9337 Treasurer@MnHerpSoc.org Newsletter Editor Ellen Heck 612.750.1649 NewsletterEditor@MnHerpSoc.org Members at Large Rose Maunu MemberAtLarge3@MnHerpSoc.org Lois Hall 612.824.1447 MemberAtLarge4@MnHerpSoc.org Emily Roberts 715.808.4681 MemberAtLarge1@MnHerpSoc.org

Stay informed! Join us on our forums!

The purpose of the Minnesota Herpetological Society is to: • Further the education of the membership and the general public in care and captive propagation of reptiles and amphibians; • Educate the members and the general public in the ecological role of reptiles and amphibians; • Promote the study and conservation of reptiles and amphibians.

The Minnesota Herpetological Society is a non-profit, tax-exempt organization. Membership is open to all individuals with an interest in amphibians and reptiles. The Minnesota Herpetological Society Newsletter is published monthly to provide its members with information concerning the society’s activities and a media for exchanging information, opinions and resources.

General Meetings are held at Borlaug Hall, Room 335 on the St. Paul Campus of the University of Minnesota, on the first Friday of each month (unless there is a holiday conflict). The meeting starts at 7:00pm and lasts about three hours. Please check the MHS Voice mail for changes in schedules or cancellations.

Submissions to the Newsletter

Chris Smith 612.275.9737 MemberAtLarge2@MnHerpSoc.org

Ads or Notices must be submitted no later than the night of the General Meeting to be included in the next issue. Longer articles will be printed as time and space allows and should be in electronic file format if possible.

COMMITTEES

See inside back cover for ad rates. Submissions may be sent to:

Adoption Beth Girard 612.326.6516 Adoptions@MnHerpSoc.org Education Jan Larson 507.263.4391 Jan.SkunkHollow@Juno.com Fostering Rebecca Markwitz 612.326.6516 Fosters@MnHerpSoc.org WebMaster WebMaster@MnHerpSoc.org Cover by San Diego Zoo Global; all rights reserved Cartoons by Fran Frisch

The Minnesota Herpetological Society Attn: Newsletter Editor C/O Bell Museum of Natural History 10 Church St SE Minneapolis, MN 55455-0104 NewsletterEditor@MnHerpSoc.org

SNAKE BITE EMERGENCY HENNEPIN REGIONAL POISON CENTER 800-222-1222

© Copyright 2015, Minnesota Herpetological Society. Except where noted, contents may be reproduced for non-profit, non-commercial use only. All material must be reproduced without change. Proper credit will be given including the author/photographer and the Minnesota Herpetological Society Newsletter citing: volume, number and date.

November Meeting has been changed to the second Friday 13th General Meeting — Terry Odegaard and Emily Roberts October 2nd, 7:00pm; 6:30pm Social Hour Social hour begins at 6:30pm. This is a time for people to catch up before the meeting starts.

For those of you that were unable to attend the last meeting, the October meeting will be Halloween themed accompanied by usual activities-adoptions, speaker, and critters of the month. A little extra twist on critter of the month will be that we are encouraging children and their families to bring in their reptiles and amphibians (in appropriate holding containers) to present to the group which means giving a little speech about them. We will also be holding a costume contest for all ages, please keep in mind this is family friendly, and there will also be a couple games geared toward children with small prizes. If you were unable to attend the meeting please email me at beguhl2@hotmail.com to let me know if you and your family, how many children, will be attending no later than September 27 so I have as accurate of a head count that I can have. Thank you and we look forward to holding this special meeting.

Brian Crnobrna—Pampas del Heath Submitted by Nancy Haig

Brian is a long term member of the Minnesota Herpetological Society who is currently working as Herpetafauna Coordinator for Fauna Forever. His talk covered a major expedition to a trans- border natural resource management area between Bolivia and Peru. The areas studied were pampas, high-land islands of grasslands that are surrounded by dense rainforest. The pampas are unique because for part of the year they flood , the other part of the year they are dry grasslands. The way to the pampas is difficult, not just because they had to travel by river to a remote area but because it took over a year to obtain the proper permits to enter the area. The Madidi National Park on the Bolivian side of the Heath River has been surveyed before but the Bahuaha-Sonene National Park is on the Peruvian side. Peruvian parks have a no look –no touch policy to protect the areas so getting permission to conduct a study there is very time consuming.

The objectives of the expedition were: to find every species in the pampas; to expand the Peruvian list of species; and to compare the pampas species to the forest living ones. The visits were spaced out over three times, December 2011, July 2012 and September 2014 to cover a seasonal spread. The strategy was to: Cover the most known regions ( Pampa Juliaca); Explore the uninvestigated area ( Pampa Paujil); and Implement novel methods for rainforest surveying.

October 2015

The teams of Peruvian Biologists were familiar with ways to survey the rainforest, but the dry grasslands of the pampas called for a different style utilizing cover boards and point counts. They found several species, the Maned Wolf, the Pampas or Marsh Deer and Giant Anteaters that could cross over the Heath River and use the pampas. The reptiles and amphibians were not that mobile and although the habitat in the Bolivian and Peruvian pampas were similar, the river proved to be a strong barrier that they did not cross. Brian showed several slides where there were parallel sub-species, one type for the pampas and one for the rainforest and where some were found in Peru but not in Bolivia.

The highlights of the trips were finding unusual species that were seen only because of the seasonal spread of the expedition. Some of these are newly described and still being researched. The possibilities include a new Skink similar to the African species Mubuya but found in the Peruvian pampas,; a species of limbless lizard again similar to a Night Lizard found in Africa: and a species of Leptodactylus- a foam nesting frog. The final verifications and naming’s are still being reviewed and it may be a few years before the results are published. We were privileged to be included on the ground floor of these findings and thank Brian for sharing them with us. If you wish to learn more about the organization he works for check out their site - www.fauna forever.org Volume 35 Number 10

Letter from the President A critical component to the success of any organization is how it meets the needs of their “customers” and MHS like many organizations has more than one “customer. The term customer can be replaced with many different names like member, guest, client, audience members… the language that is used is often debated but it all boils down to the people who’s needs MHS is trying to meet. This is the definition of customer, according to the book, Five Most Important Questions: Enduring Wisdom for Today’s Leaders, by Peter Drucker: “Your customer (is) one who values your service, who wants what you offer, who feels it’s important to them.”

I would define our primary customers as our members, potential members, those we want to become part of our organization. Our secondary, or supporting customers, are those members of the public that reach out to us in some capacity regarding reptiles and amphibians. Whether they are guests that want to learn more about these animals at a hands-on event, someone who is looking to rehome an animal they can no longer care for, someone who wants to help a turtle cross the road, or a municipality that has encountered an animal in the course of their work that needs advice and/ or assistance with that animal.

It is important for all of us to think about how we are representing the organization when we interact with all of our customers. The thing we receive the most feedback about is how our members treated someone along the way. MHS volunteers are greatly appreciated and we typically received very positive feedback! On occasion, we can do better, however. Please remember that we always want folks to walk away feeling heard, respected, and more knowledgeable about herps. if someone walks away feeling disrespected we have lost the opportunity to fulfill our mission of education, conservation, and promotion of the hobby we all love so much!

As I mentioned last month, I will be scheduling times to meet and have coffee and conversation with our membership outside of the general meetings. I am trying to come up with a cool name for these jam sessions, so if you have ideas please share them. At our first meeting I would like to discuss the strategic plan and feedback we have gotten along the way. Please also bring up any other MHS topic you would like to discuss. Our first coffee and conversation meeting will be held at a board members home, please RSVP to president@mnherpsoc.org and I will share the address with you. The date is October 5th from 6:30pm-8:00pm. We will have coffee, tea, water and treats.

Thank you for your commitment and passion for MHS and herps--today and as we move towards the future!

Misi Stine President Did you attend the 2015 MHS Field Survey?

There were a few items left at the last MHS Field Survey at Beaver Creek St. Park: a water bottle, air mattress pump, umbrella, and more. Please email me at Reptilia74@aoldotcom (more contact info for me on the MHS website - Homepage>Get Involved>Field Survey!). Describe to claim. Unclaimed items will no longer be available after the October MHS meeting.

Thank you, Jeff LeClere October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

2015 Midwest Herpetological Symposium

Not only is it the 30th Anniversary of MWHS, but also MAHS’s 5th Anniversary!

Over the next few months we will be nailing down more details as to speakers, events, and the general goings on of the weekend, so make sure to stay tuned!

What we do currently have is when and where. The symposium will be in the second weekend of November the 6th, 7th and 8th.

We will be hosting it at The Monona Terrace, 1 John Nolen Dr, Madison, WI 53703. This is a beautiful building and overlooks Lake Monona in Madison.

We have also secured a block of discounted rooms at the adjoined Hilton (9 E Wilson St, Madison, WI 53703) ph (608) 255-5100. We have a block of rooms for the discounted rate of $159/night. This hotel is right downtown with tons of amazing restaurants near by, and incredible views of the lake and capital building. To book a room click ->HERE<- or call (877) 510-7465 and use the booking code: MHS We are excited to have this opportunity and have some incredible speakers we are lining up, along with some great sponsors and donations for the auction. This will be an event you wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to miss!

For any questions, please contact Ryan McVeigh at pres.mahs@gmail.com, or Rebecca Wyman at VP.mahs@gmail.com. http://madisonherps.org/midwest-herp-symposium/

Because the Symposium conflicts with our November Meeting, the meeting will be held one week later to allow everyone the opportunity to attend.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

In Memory of Karl Herman 1962 -2015

Karl Hermann was a founding member of the Minnesota Herpetological Society and served as a member at large on the first Board of Directors in 1981. He had a life-long dedication to reptiles and participated in many educational programs as well as working with and breeding large reptiles. Karl passed away peacefully, after a long battle with cancer, on August 21, 2015. Monty Krizan of Monty’s Traveling Reptile Show, gave a tribute of his long time friend at the September General Meeting.

Monty met Karl 39 years ago while he was keeping Burmese pythons and Karl would come and help clean cages. At the time, Karl was being treated for cancer and receiving Chemotherapy but that didn’t stop him from working with Monty and caring for the animals. Over the years their friendship grew and through the 1980’s they shared housing facilities where they started breeding large reptiles. Karl was the main caregiver and Monty credits him with the successful breeding of “Tiger” Reticulated Pythons, a very large but very tame python that is the favorite of many zoos. As part of his tribute Monty brought several of Karl’s favorite animals for a hands-on photo shoot. On display were a Tiger Retic, Albert – Monty’s American Alligator and Karl’s Anna Banana- a very large Green Anaconda. If you missed the meeting, you missed out on a great experience. If you didn’t know Karl, you missed out on knowing a great herper and an amazing person.

Memorial donations can be made to the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org) Looking for Herp Assistance Volunteers!

Are you an experienced keeper of a particular type of herp? Are you willing and able to provide answers to others? We are looking to re-introduce the herp assistance program and need people willing to offer advice for all types of reptiles and amphibians. We are also looking for people who specialize in breeding (herps, that is) cage building, etc. Volunteers will be listed in the newsletter and on the website with a phone number and/or email address that people seeking advice can call you on. Please contact Ellen NewsletterEditor@mnherpsoc.org if you are interested in helping.

We are also looking for someone to handle the rodent orders and pickup. The position includes taking the orders, maintaining the inventory (freezers are provided), ordering the rodents, picking them up and delivering them to the meeting. Time spent is 3-5 hours a month. Contact Misi Stine at President@mnherpsoc.org or Nancy Haig at RecSecretary@MnHerpSoc.org for more information.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Elections and Annual Meeting The MHS elections will be held at the annual meeting November 13th, 2015 in Borlaug Hall on the U of M Campus. In order to vote, you must be a member in good standing and present at the meeting. No proxy votes will be accepted. In order to run for a board position, you must be a member in good standing and at least 18 years of age at the start of the term—January 1, 2016.

The Minnesota Herpetological Society is a VOLUNTEER-DRIVEN organization that only exists because of the commitment of its members. I strongly encourage you to consider taking an active role in keeping MHS the vital organization it has been for last 32 years. If you are interested in running for an office, or if you know someone who may be, please feel free to contact me at your earliest convenience by phone (763-434-8684 ) or email (recsecreatry@mnherpsoc.org).

This year’s elections will be held on Friday, November 13th. Want to know more?

According to the Minnesota Herpetological Society By-Laws …

MHS Administration. MHS shall be administered by a Board of Directors comprised of the elected officers, and four active members at large, all of whom are eighteen (18) years of age or older and whom shall be members of MHS in good standing.

Officers. The officers of MHS shall be President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Membership Secretary, Treasurer, and Newsletter Editor, all of whom shall be members of MHS in good standing.

Term of Office. The officers and members-at-large elected at the Annual Meeting of MHS as hereafter provided, shall serve for a period of one (1) year commencing January 1. Board of Directors may serve only four (4) terms consecutively.

President. The President shall perform the duties of such office including chairing monthly membership meetings and Board of Directors. The President shall appoint all special and standing committee chairs subject to the approval of the Board of Directors. Also, the President may establish such ad hoc, standing and special committees as may be required to further the work of MHS. Vice President. The Vice President shall preside in the absence of the President, serve as program coordinator, and perform such duties as designated by the President.

Recording Secretary. The Recording Secretary shall keep the minutes of the meetings of the Board of Directors and of the proceedings of all the meetings of the members in appropriate books.

Membership Secretary. The Membership Secretary shall give and serve all notices of MHS, shall keep the names and residences of the members, and maintain membership notices.

Treasurer. The Treasurer shall be responsible for all funds and assets of MHS, payment of authorized accounts, present financial reports at Board of Directors meetings and the Annual Meeting, and submit the records for audit.

Newsletter Editor. The Newsletter Editor shall edit and produce the Newsletter of the Minnesota Herpetological Society on a monthly basis.

If you are interested in running for any position, contact Nancy Haig RecSecretary@MnHerpSoc.org or any board member. If you have questions regarding a particular position, feel free to contact the current MHS member who holds that position or join us at a board meeting. See page 11 for time and location.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Official Notice of Elections The November Meeting of the Minnesota Herpetological Society is also the Annual Membership Meeting and the Election of the Board of Directors for 2016. All current members are eligible to vote on election night. The process will involve confirming your current status and being given a ballot as you arrive at the meeting. The ballot will be read, nominations will be accepted from the floor and changes to the ballot noted. Only members that are present at the Annual Meeting may vote. The election committee will collect the completed ballots and count the totals. The Recording Secretary will then announce the final results at the meeting.

The election committee consists of the Recording Secretary and at least two MHS members that are not running for office. I am looking for volunteers to assist in confirming voters and handing out the ballots, collecting the ballots and counting them.

The current ballot is: President – Misi Stine Vice – President –Jim Soos Recording Secretary- Nancy Haig Membership Secretary- Lavania Beghul Treasurer – Rae Rueber Newsletter Editor- Ellen Heck Member at Large (4 openings) Lois Hall Rebecca Markowitz Chris Smith If you would like to run for a Board position or be part of the election committee, please contact me at RecSecretary@MnHerpSoc.org or talk to me at the October General Meeting. To have your name put on the ballot I will need to know by the October meeting. Thanks -Nancy Meet the Candidates Elections are just around the corner and we want the membership to have a chance to get to know the candidates better. We have asked everyone who is running as of the deadline for the October Newsletter to write a little something so you can get to know them better: Candidate(s) for President: Misi Stine I have had the honor to serve on the board for the last two years, currently I am serving in the role as President and I would like to continue to serve in that role in 2016. The reason I am running again is because I genuinely believe in the mission of the organization and I would like to continue the work I started this year on the strategic plan. I enjoy our members and all that I am learning from them and with them.

Candidate (s) for Vice President: Jim Soos I am currently running for Vice president for the Minnesota Herpetological society. I would like to bring my years of experience to the society as I was the former Newsletter Editor in 2008-2009. I want to help guide the society in the direction in Education and Conservation and bring in a good mix of Guests to our meetings. I thank you for your time.

Continued next page

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Meet the Candidates Candidate(s) for Membership Secretary: Lavania Beguhl I would like to continue to serve MHS as membership secretary. I appreciate being surrounded by like minded people and increasing my knowledge of reptiles and amphibians. In a few years I will be applying to vet school and I would like to serve until that then because once I am in I will have to step down and take a less active role in MHS. Candidate(s) for Treasurer: Rae Rueber I am running for my second term as treasurer. I have been the como cottage chair person for four seasons. I come into this position with several years of accounting experience as well as a four year degree in accounting. I wish to serve another year as treasurer because I believe that the educational work that the organization does is important. I also want to set an example for the younger volunteers at Ren Fest and encourage them to get more involved with the organization as a whole.

Candidate(s) for Recording Secretary: Nancy Haig I have been a member of the MHS since 1984 and enjoy serving on the Board of Directors. If elected this will be my second year as Recording Secretary. It has been a learning experience for me and I have tried to record the actions of the Board and share them thru the newsletter reports. 2016 promises to be an exciting year with major strategic goals being put into place. I hope to be able to continue with the transparency of the Board activity and keep you informed and involved.

Candidate(s) for Newsletter Editor: Ellen Heck I have been a member since 1997. Although I started with RenFest, I have served on the board for a number of years in various capacities, including recording and membership secretaries.

Candidate(s) for Member at Large: Lois Hall I would like to continue serving as a Member at Large on the MHS Board of Directors in order to further the strategic planning process initiated this year. With around 30% of amphibians and reptiles critically endangered worldwide, there has never been a more important time to educate society about herps and the need for better conservation practices to protect them. An effective strategic plan will help MHS accomplish its mission in this regard.

Rebecca Markowitz I am Rebecca Markowitz and I am running for a Member at Large position on the MHS Board of Directors. I have held this position two times in the past. I have also been and Adoption Committee member for several years and am the current, as well as first, Foster Coordinator. I am very proud to be a member of the MHS and I want to be a part of this organizations current and future success.

Chris Smith I'm a professional wildlife biologist by day, with a bachelor's degree in wildlife management and a master's degree in conservation biology - both from the University of Minnesota. My work generally focuses on amphibian, reptiles, and terrestrial invertebrate conservation and research. After hours I continue to devote time to herp conservation and education and serve several herp-related organizations, including MHS. I hope to continue to serve MHS as a member of large in 2016.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Upcoming Hands-on Event Schedule 3M Teacher’s Workshop—Friday October 2nd 3pm-6:30pm . 3M Center Bldg 224, Maplewood, MN 3M Super Science Saturday—Saturday October 3rd 11am-3pm . 3M Center Bldg 224, Maplewood, MN Sherburne Nature Center—Saturday October 3rd 10am-3pm . Sherburne Nature Center, 17076 293rd Ave, Zimmerman, MN Chuck and Dons: Mahtomedi—Saturday October 3rd 11am-1pm. Mahtomedi, MN Chuck and Dons: Northfield—Saturday October 17th 2-4pm. Northfield, MN Chuck and Dons: Hudson—Saturday October 24th 2:30-4:30pm. Hudson, WI Chuck and Dons: Mahtomedi—Saturday November 7th 11am-1pm. Mahtomedi, MN Chuck and Dons: Mahtomedi—Saturday December 5th 11am-1pm. Mahtomedi, MN

Here’s the deal- Bring your herp(s) to one of the shows listed above, and talk about them. That’s it! You don’t have to be an expert, you’re not giving speeches. Most of the time you will find that people are more than open to hearing about our misrepresented critters.

Contact Jan at Jan.SkunkHollow@Juno.com for details or if interested in signing up. Or sign up on the website.

From Soup Pot to Freedom A woman shopping in a Malaysian market came across a 33 lb Asian giant soft shell turtle. After buying it for about $165 she brought it to a wildlife rescue. The turtle required a little TLC but wes eventually released back into the wild. http://news.mongabay.com/2015/08/endangered-turtle-destined-for-soup-pot-gets-new-start/ New Population Discovered of Near-Extinct Turtles By the early Twentieth Century, the world had pretty much given up on the Arakan forest turtle (Heosemys depressa), named after the hills where it was found in 1875 in western Myanmar. Then the species was rediscovered in a Chinese food market in 1994, but, alas, the individual was dead and ready for the cooking pot. Fifteen years later, however, conservationists with the the Wildlife Conservation Society for the first time documented living individuals in the wild. Now, this Lazarus reptile —which has been dubbed one of the 25 most threatened turtles on the planet —has more good news: researchers have documented an entirely new population where no one expected. http://news.mongabay.com/2015/02/locals-lead-scientists-to-newpopulation-of-near-extinct-reptile/ Field Herping Finds The Reptile Report’s page of this year’s field herping finds from around the world. Lots of pictures, lots of herps! http://thereptilereport.com/this-years-field-herping-finds/

The November Meeting will be held one week later, Friday the 13th. Elections will be held at this time.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

FUNDING FOR PRAIRIE RESEARCH offered by

Prairie Biotic Research, Inc. We Are

Prairie Biotic Research (PBR) is an all-volunteer, Wisconsin nonprofit established in 2000 to foster basic biotic research in prairies and savannas. One way we do this is through a competitive Small Grants Program that funds grants up to $1000 to individuals for the study of any grassland taxon anywhere in the USA. We support both natural history and experimental science.

We are especially eager to support independent researchers (those lacking institutional support), but anyone having a U.S. Social Security number may apply. Since 2002, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve awarded 211 grants worth $202,881 to people in 34 states to study insects, plants, mammals, reptiles, slime molds, mycorrhizal fungi, spiders, snails, amphibians, birds, fish, invasive species, effects of management, and the human dimensions of conservation. Many of these grants supported graduate student research.

In 2016, we expect to fund at least 15 grants of up to $1000 each with the donations we have received, including some restricted by donors to support research in IA, IL, MI, MN, ND, SD, or WI.

To Apply for a Grant

Visit our newly redesigned website (prairiebioticresearch.org) to learn more, to find our proposal form, instructions, and a sample researcher agreement form that winners of this competition must sign. Check out the history and overview files in the Small Grants section of the website to see what sorts of proposals have won funding in the past. Several winning proposals from past years are available as models on our website. Review the reports submitted by researchers of past years. Those who won funding in 2015 are ineligible for this funding in 2016, but those who won funding longer ago are welcome to submit proposals to further that same work or to support a new project. In past years, we required submission of hard copy proposals, but not any more. Beginning this year, we want you to submit your proposal electronically, as a pdf file attached to an email. We must receive your proposal via email by December 20, 2015.

Become a Supporter

Please make a donation to support our work; you can now do so using Visa or Mastercard through PayPal on our newly redesigned website. We cannot give away money that we donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have. Any amount is welcome. PBR is volunteer-run so our overhead is very low.

You may specify that your entire tax-deductible donation be given to researchers through our Small Grants Program, or to expand our research endowment that produces income we give away annually through this program. Please help us to help others!

We Foster Curiosity!

Michael Anderson, Craig Brabant, Rebecca Christoffel, Linda Duever, Jaime Edwards, Brick Fevold, Joshua Kapfer, Kerry Katovich, Douglas LeDoux, Victoria Nuzzo, Ron Priest, Dennis Schlicht, Steven Sullivan, Scott Swengel, Andrew Williams, Daniel Young, who comprise the Board of Directors and Scientific Advisors of Prairie Biotic Research, Inc.

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Minutes of the MHS Board of Directors Meeting Sept 12, 2015 Notice of Adjourned Meeting Attending: Misi Stine, Mike Rohweder, Nancy Haig, Lois Hall, Chris Smith.(5) Not attending,: Lavania Beguhl, Rae Rueber. Ellen Heck, Rose Maunu, Emily Roberts.(5) Visitors: Jeff LeClere, Rebecca Markowitz, Jim Soos.

Meeting was called to order at 6:06 pm 10 Board Members, 6 must be present for a Quorum. A quorum was not met.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:07pm.

A workshop with discussion followed the adjourned meeting, no actions were taken.

Because the September Board Meeting was adjourned the Minutes for the August 8, 2015 MHS Board Meeting could not be approved. Board Minutes need to be approved before they can be published.

Snake Sheds Wanted Eden Bio-Creations (https://edenbiocreations.com/ ) has asked if MHS members would be willing to give snake sheds of all sizes, and species to them to produce their shed textile products, like cell phone covers. In return MHS would receive a donation for each product sold using our members snake sheds. Here is a video on the program: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J59mMc92xZU#t=119 For those of you willing to share your sheds with MHS for this program a box will be made available at the monthly meetings, starting in October, to collect them for this group. Here is what we need when you bring in your sheds: 1. each shed is placed in it's own Ziploc baggie, and labeled with the species 2. be sure that the shed is does not have any large chunks of feces on it 3. All sizes of sheds are accepted, 4. Please feel free to submit even if torn (include all the pieces), as they can be put back together.

If you have any questions about this please direct them to Lois Hall at MemberAtLarge4@MnHerpSoc.org October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

The 2015 Great Minnesota Get Together Submitted by Beth Girard

The 2015 Minnesota State Fair closed on September 7th.

For the twelve days of its run, MHS provided eight species of native snakes and five species of native turtles for display in the Minnesota DNR Building. This represented another year in a long-standing partnership with the DNR, one that began in 1983 when MHS began exhibiting native animals there.

The snake enclosures and the large aquarium with the turtles (map, wood, painted, snapping, and spiny softshell) continue to be quite popular! We would like to thank all of the Daily Investigators who worked diligently to keep the enclosures clean and the animals comfortable. For many, this included trips during the day to replace the water in the snake bowls with COLD water to cool the snakes down and lessen their stress levels. Many thanks as well to Jim Gerholdt for allowing us to display his timber rattlesnake and Terry Odegaard who loaned us his North American racer, his map turtle and his spiny softshell turtle.

MHS enjoyed an even greater presence this year with the addition of stage programs and a hands-on event. On September 3rd, the focus at the DNR’s state fair building was Reptiles of Minnesota. We set up two canopies and fair goers were welcomed to interact with mostly native reptiles between noon and 5pm in the grassy area outside the Nature Store. Six MHS volunteers participated with live animals, artifacts, and the desire to help others learn more about these amazing creatures! In a letter of thanks from the DNR’s Education Coordinator, Dawn Flinn, she stated that the “Final Fair attendance was 1,779,738 and we know about 500,000 of those people visit our building and grounds each year, wow! Big thanks to you, your staff and volunteers for making it happen!”

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

MHS Reports and Announcements September 2015 Adoption Report

Treasurer's Report for Aug 2015

Sixty-three animals were available at the September 11th meeting. Forty-one animals were surrendered to the Adoption Program during the month, however, two were held back. One animal, a blue-tongue skink, needs medical attention for a respiratory infection and is in Special Care until it is healthy. The second animal, a North American Wood Turtle, which is listed as “Threatened” in Minnesota, was held so it could be “adopted” by an individual with the necessary permits. Thirty-nine surrendered animals and 24 returned fosters were available for adoption at the meeting. The list included some interesting species, such as a bamboo ratsnake, a trinket snake, a three-foot long American alligator and two toad-head agamas. Twenty-four animals were adopted, sixteen were outsourced, and twenty-five remain in foster care.

prepared by Raelene Rueber

The North American Wood Turtle was surrendered to midAugust so we were able to use her in the MHS exhibit at the state fair. She had been purchased on-line as a hatchling in 2012 by someone who was not aware they needed to have a permit from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to possess one. Wood Turtles have been listed as a threatened species in Minnesota since 1984. I spoke with several MHS members who are permitted to possess this species in an attempt to find the best possible placement for “Lucy”.

Permits are issued for taking only under certain conditions: - for scientific study, - for educational programs, - to enhance propagation or survival of the species, to prevent injury to people or property, or when the social and economic benefit of the taking out weigh the harm caused by it We were able to place “Lucy” with a member who has three male NAWTs. He will use her in a breeding program, and another member was given one of the three males to use for educational programs. A win-win! For additional information about permits for Endangered Species in Minnesota, go to http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/nhnrp/ endangered_permits.html

Beginning Balance

$21,988.73

Income: Raffle Donations-Pubic Donations-Hands On Donation-Ren Fest Membership Rodent Sales Cash adjustment Interest on Savings Total Income

$92.50 $189.01 $200.00 $590.95 $560.00 $747.00 $15.00 $0.30 $2,394.76

Expense: Adoption/Vet Program Field Survey Rodent Costs Ren Fest Paypal Fees Media/Website Total Expense Cash Increase/Decrease

Ending Balance Placement of Cash Holdings Checking

$3,394.43

Savings

$17,486.55

Paypal

$296.02 $190.00 $21,367.00

Cash on Hand

If you are one of the amazing people fostering animals for MHS, please remember to let the Adoption Chair Total (adoptions@mnherpsoc.org) know if you will be returning an animal to a meeting for placement. We want to be sure adequate display enclosures are ready.

If you have fostered an animal and found a home for it, please let the Adoption Chair (adoptions@mnherpsoc.org) know so the individual can be marked as “adopted” or “outsourced” (adopted by someone outside the MHS membership) in our records!! We appreciate everyone who has worked hard fostering animals, as well as those of you that have found homes for those animals while in your care!!

October 2015

$60.00 $50.00 $486.54 $1,288.99 $48.97 $7.04 $1,074.95 $3,016.49 -$621.73 $21,367.00

Board Meeting

The board meeting will be held 6pm October 3rd in the community meeting space at Uptown Heating and Plumbing; 400 Cedar Lake Road S, Minneapolis, 55405.

Everyone is welcome to attend the board meeting. We encourage you to come check it out.

Volume 35 Number 10

Quarantine Suggestions (Editor’s Note—this was run last month as well, but we consider this to be such an important topic we are running it again) Miller, R.E. 1996. Quarantine protocols and preventive medicine procedures for reptiles, birds and mammals in zoos.

Rev. Sci. Tech 15(1): 183-189 QUARANTINE PERSONNEL Ideally, a keeper should be designated to care only for quarantined animals; otherwise, a keeper should attend quarantined animals only after fulfilling responsibilities for resident species. Equipment used to feed and clean animals in quarantine should be used only with these animals. If this is not possible, then equipment must be cleaned with an appropriate disinfectant (as designated by the veterinarian supervising quarantine) before use with post-quarantine animals. Institutions must take precautions to minimize the risk of exposure of animal handling personnel to zoonotic diseases which may be present in newly-acquired animals. These precautions should include the use of disinfectant footbaths, the wearing of appropriate protective clothing and masks (in some cases), and minimizing physical exposure in some species (e.g. with primates, by the use of chemical rather than physical restraint). A programme of tuberculin testing and surveillance must be established for zoo/aquarium employees, to ensure the health of both the employees and the animal collection.

QUARANTINE PROTOCOL During the quarantine period, certain prophylactic measures should be instituted. Individual faecal samples, or representative samples from large numbers of individuals housed in a limited area (e.g. birds of the same species in an aviary or frogs in a terrarium), should be collected, on at least two occasions, and examined for gastrointestinal parasites.

Treatment should be prescribed by the attending veterinarian. Ideally, release from quarantine should be dependent on obtaining two negative faecal results at a minimum interval of two weeks, either initially or after parasiticide treatment.

In addition, all animals should be evaluated for ectoparasites and should receive appropriate treatment, if necessary.

Vaccinations should be updated as appropriate for each species (1). If the animal arrives without a vaccination history, it should be treated as being immunologically naive and should be given an appropriate series of vaccinations. Whenever possible, blood should be collected and sera stored in a freezer (not frost-free) at either - 70ÅãC or - 20ÅãC. Such sera could provide an important resource for retrospective disease evaluation. The quarantine period also presents an opportunity to identify permanently all unmarked animals, when anaesthetized or restrained (e.g. tattoo, ear notch, ear tag).

Also, whenever animals are restrained or immobilized, a complete physical examination, including dental examination, should be performed. Complete medical records of all animals should be kept, and should be available for consultation during the quarantine period. Necropsy should be performed, under the supervision of a veterinarian, on all animals which die during quarantine; representative tissues should be submitted for histopathological examination.

QUARANTINE PROCEDURES Evaluation of faecal samples for parasites is required for each species. Ideally, at least two negative results should be obtained from samples taken with a minimum 14-day interval, although other protocols are necessary for some parasite infestations. As noted above, all appropriate vaccinations should be performed. Recommendations and suggestions for appropriate quarantine procedures for several animal groups are presented below.

This is extremely important. ALWAYS work with newly acquired animals last.

Rubber gloves are cheap! Discard between use (don’t try to re-use them).

October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Online Classifieds In addition to ads in the newsletter, MHS provides online classifieds via the forums. A valid login (provided to current members) is required to both post and read ads. http://www.mnherpsoc.org/forums/members/classifieds October 2015

Volume 35 Number 10

Minnesota Herpetological Society Membership Application New

Name

Renewal

Address

Membership #

City, State, Zip Phone

Type Check #

Email

List in MHS Directory? Yes No Contact information only? Yes No

Herp related interests

Active Memberships: Sustaining ($60/year)

Contributing ($40/year) Basic ($20/year)

Corresponding Memberships: Commercial ($25/year, 2 business card ads/year) Required check info. Drivers Lic #

State

DOB

Please enclose the proper payment with your application. Make checks payable to MINNESOTA HERPETOLOGICAL SOCIETY. Membership is for 12 months from the date of approval. A receipt will be sent only upon request.

Mail To: Minnesota Herpetological Society, C/O BELL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, 10 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455 Please allow 6-8 weeks for processing.

Rodents!

Order your MHS Rodents today!

Ordering by phone? See the new phone number below.

Mice

Weight

Price

Pinkies

2-3 grams

$7/dz

Fuzzies

5-7 grams

$7/dz

Hoppers

8-11 grams

$8/dz

Adult

25-30 grams

$10/dz

Jumbo Adult

45+ grams

$14/dz

Rats

Weight

Price

Small Adult

50-60 grams

$18/dz

Med. Adults

125-150 grams

$22/ 10 rats

Large Adult

200-240 grams

$17/ 6 rats

may be resubmitted.

Jumbo

250-350 grams

$16/ 5 rats

Submissions: All advertisements should be submitted to the MHS Membership Secretary at the general

For pickup at monthly meetings only. Orders may be placed via: 1. At the meeting for the following month 2. Online at www.MnHerpSoc.org

Orders MUST be placed 10 days in advance of the meeting to guarantee availability. We no longer keep an inventory of rodents on hand, so if you attempt to place an order after the deadline, there is no way to fill it.

Advertising Policies MHS Ad Policy: The MHS assumes NO RESPONSIBILITY regarding the health or legality of any animal, or the quality or legality of any product or service advertised in the MHS Newsletter. Any ad may be rejected at the discretion of the Newsletter Editor. Due to space limitations, unpaid and complimentary advertisements are subject to occasional omission.

Classified Ads: All active members are allowed a classified ad, run free of charge as space permits. Ads may be run three (3) consecutive months, after which time they

meeting or mailed to: Minnesota Herpetological Society, C/O Bell Museum of Natural History. 10 Church St. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455. Deadline is the night of the General Meeting for inclusion in the next newsletter. Make checks payable to: Minnesota Herpetological Society.

Advertising Costs Size Cost Business Card Sized $5/month or $55/year* 1/4 Page $10/month or $110/year* 1/2 Page $20/month or $220/year* Full Page $40/month or $440/year*

MINNESOTA HERPETOLOGICAL SOCIETY C/O BELL MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 10 CHURCH STREET SE MINNNEAPOLIS, MN 55455-0104

Next Meeting:

Save the dates!

Friday October 2nd - 7:00 pm Room 335 Borlaug Hall, U of M St. Paul Campus

Friday November 13th—General Meeting & Elections Friday December 4th—General Meeting Saturday December 5th—Banquet

MHS Voice Mail:

MHS Web Page:

612.326.6516

www.MnHerpSoc.org

https://www.google.com/maps/place/1991+Upper+Buford+Cir+Borlaug+Hall,+St+Paul,+MN+55108/data=!4m2!3m1!

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