Hello everyone and welcome to Episode Ninety Seven!  And while we’re at it, I hope you all remain safe and healthy out there.

I just got back from a great herping trip to Suriname.  You may remember my conversation with Dick and Lieke back in episode 79 and it was fun to go visit and see how they operate herp tours there, and the answer is they do very well.  I was with a small group and we saw a lot of fabulous herps.  At any rate I am back home for just a few days, allowing me to get this time sensitive episode assembled and in your ears, so to speak.  I return to Peru in just a few days to assist Josh Holbrook with his tropical ecology class, so the next episode will come out in early June.

SMP Patrons! I want to thank James Burnham for his contribution to the So Much Pingle podcast, via Patreon. Much appreciated, James, thank you so much.  And as always, I am grateful to all the show’s patrons who help to keep the show moving forward. And if you’re out there listening and you would like to kick in a few bucks, it’s easy to do, you simply go to the So Much Pingle Patreon page. You can support the show for as little as three bucks a month – less than a fancy cup of coffee! You can also support the show via one-time contributions via PayPal or Venmo (please contact me via email to [email protected]).

Oh yeah. If you’ve been with the show from the early days or you’ve worked through the back catalog of episodes, you may recall me talking with Dr. Emily Taylor way back in Episode 12.  Well Emily is back with some exciting topics and it’s always a pleasure to talk with her and catch some of that vibrant energy she has. And below are some links for books and cams and papers:

Order link for the California Snakes book and other merchandise

Project Rattlecam website, and Project Rattlecam on YouTube

Link to Savannah Weaver and colleague's paper on Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizards. Open access.

Link to paper "Effects of relational and instrumental messaging on human perception of rattlesnakes" Open access

Thanks for listening everyone! And as always, please keep the comments and suggestions coming, and please take time to rate the show on your podcast platform! The show email is [email protected], and there’s also a So Much Pingle group on Facebook, for discussion, comments, feedback, suggestions, herp confessions, tips for herping better, etc.

-Mike