Reptile Living Room

A cop, a biologist, and a reptile breeder walk into a bar…it sounds like a recipe for some pretty interesting stuff doesn’t it? While it may have not happened that way, it definitely makes for some of the best damn reptile television that I have ever seen! I am of course speaking of Python Hunters on NatGeo Wild and Shawn Heflick specifically. The show is honest, funny, and serious in each and every episode. If you’ve ever been field herping then you will have a very special affinity to this show as the Python Hunterscrew pulls no punches when it comes to conservation and other topical issues which embroil the Florida Everglades. If you have not watched this show then you are truly missing out on great television that’s all there is to it.//

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Andrew Wyatt CEO & President of USARK takes a moment to explain to us where the reptile community stands in the current battle waging in Washington D.C. with the constrictor ban. He also explains some the aspects of the ban where Gordon Roda writes a ‘scientific paper’. I will leave it at that you just have to hear it for yourself folks. Please support USARK and their fight as they take the flag of our community to the hill. They need your support, we’re not talking lip service here get out the wallet and donate!

Randy continues our Fear of Snakes series this week providing his insights and experiences as well as talking a little bit about venomous snake ownership and more. So come along with us as we explore the fascinating world of snakes in an attempt to discover what draws some people and repels others.

Reid of SoCal Reptiles was gracious enough to take time out his busy schedule to sit down with us and talk a little  bit about SoCal Reptiles and what the team over there is working on when it comes to breeding projects as well as how they have expanded their horizons to include more than tortoises. Come along as we learn what it takes to work with tortoises and the other species that Reid is working with.

Dr. Rulon Clark of San Diego State University is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biology and his research interests include behavioral ecology and more. What attracted me to his work specifically was the research he’d published regarding rattlesnakes and their social lives as well as their ability to choose sites which would most benefit them when it came to ambush sites. I had the opportunity to interview about his work and current projects and to say that they are fascinating would be an understatement so grab your lab coats folks and settle in. You are about to learn some incredible aspects regarding rattlesnake life!

To say that Gary Rolfe is a reptile keeper would be an understatement. He is a force unto himself that has become one one of the best known reptile people in the United Kingdom. I met Gary through the social networks and we became quick mates through our passion for reptiles. In this interview, Gary reveals not only his sense of humor which makes him immediately well liked by anyone who meets him but also how he got ‘accidently’ started within the world of reptiles. He also tells us in depth behind the scenes of what happens around the Northampton Reptile Centre. They are one of if not the only reptile shop I know of that only sells captive bred reptiles. So join us won’t you as we get a behind the scenes tour of the life of Gary Rolfe and the Northampton Reptile Centre.

In this interview we got to speak with Carl Barden of MedToxin Laboratories about his work that he is doing to save lives. You see Carl and his team milk live venomous snakes for their venom and from their work at the MedToxin Laboratories antivenin is created. So we wanted to know, not only how Carl got started but what it’s like to work with venomous species on a daily basis. Well we got the answers and whole lot more. Carl’s work doesn’t end there though oh no, he also runs the Reptile Discovery Center!

We caught up with Ryan Jarosek of Jarosek Park Reptiles at the Las Vegas Reptile Expo this past week and he talked with us in this exclusive interview about how his wonderful wife Lisa conned him into getting Pictus Geckos! Just kidding she showed them to Ryan and well, the rest you have to hear for yourself.

David Manly is a biologist and freelance science author who writes for blogs such as Scientific American which is where I came across his excellent story on venom. But not only does he write for Scientific American but he’s also got his own blog The Definitive Host. So come along with us as we discuss the Fear of Snakes with David and he gives us his insights.

Dr. Katie MacKinnon sits down in the Reptile Living Room with us to continue

our discussion on the Fear of Snakes and shares with us some of her personal insights as an anthropologist. She explains to us some of the primate behaviours she’s personally observed in the wild when primates encounter snakes. For more information on Dr. MacKinnon and her work you can find her here Saint Louis University and also Midwest Primate Interest Group.