SWCHR BULLETIN Volume 5, Issue 1 Spring 2015

ISSN 2330-6025

Conservation – Preservation – Education – Public Information Research – Field Studies – Captive Propagation

The SWCHR BULLETIN is published quarterly by the SOUTHWESTERN CENTER FOR HERPETOLOGICAL RESEARCH

PO Box 624, Seguin TX 78156 www.southwesternherp.com

email: admin@swchr.org ISSN 2330-6025

OFFICERS 2015-2016

PRESIDENT Toby Brock

VICE PRESIDENT

Gerry Salmon

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Gerald Keown

BOARD MEMBERS AT LARGE

Tim Cole Orion McElroy

D. Craig McIntyre Benjamin Stupavsky Robert Twombley

Bill White

BULLETIN EDITOR Chris McMartin

ABOUT SWCHR Originally founded by Gerald Keown in 2007, SWCHR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit association, governed by a board of directors and dedicated to promoting education of the Association’s members and the general public relating to the natural history, biology, taxonomy, conservation and preservation needs, field studies, and captive propagation of the herpetofauna indigenous to the American Southwest.

THE SWCHR LOGO

There are several versions of the SWCHR logo, all featuring the Gray-Banded Kingsnake (Lampropeltis alterna), a widely-recognized reptile native to the Trans-Pecos region of Texas as well as adjacent Mexico and New Mexico.

ON THE COVER: Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake, Crotalus mitchellii pyrrhus, Yuma County, AZ (Bill White). With this photograph, Bill won the SWCHR 2014 H. F. Koenig Award for Excellence in Herpetological Photography. BACKGROUND IMAGE: Elephant Tusk, Big Bend National Park, TX (Chris McMartin)

COMMITTEE CHAIRS

AWARDS AND GRANTS COMMITTEE Gerald Keown

COMMUNICATIONS COMMITEE

Gerald Keown

ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS COMMITTEE Toby Brock

NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE

Gerald Keown

MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE Toby Brock

CONSERVATION COMMITTEE

Robert Twombley

JOINING SWCHR For information on becoming a member please visit the membership page of the SWCHR web site at

http://www.southwesternherp.com/join.html. ©2015 Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research. The SWCHR Bulletin may not be reproduced in whole or in part on any web site or in any other publication without the prior explicit written consent of the Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research and of the respective author(s) and photographer(s).

http://www.southwesternherp.com/join.html

SWCHR Bulletin 1 Spring 2015

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A Message from the President, Toby Brock 2 The Verdant Enigma—Forgotten Allegations of the Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis) from the Edwards Plateau of Texas (Serpentes: Colubridae), Tom Lott 3

Maintaining Chuckwallas (Sauromalus ater) in East Texas (Lacertilia: Iguanidae), Graham Criglow 6

Predation on a Long-nosed Snake, Rhinocheilus lecontei, by a Common Raven, Corvus corax (Serpentes: Colubridae), Robert Twombley 10

Captive Brumation in North American Desert Lizard Species, Joel Reep 11

My Time in the New Mexico Herpetological Society, Josh Emms 13

A CALL FOR PAPERS Are you a field herpetologist or a herpetoculturist working with species native to the American Southwest? Do you have a paper or an article you have written for which you would like to find a permanent repository? Want to be assured you will always be able to share it with the world? Submit it to the SWCHR Bulletin for possible publication. Submitted manuscripts from SWCHR members, as well as non-members, will be considered. To be accepted for publication, submissions must deal with herpetological species native to the American Southwest. Such topics as field notes, county checklists, range extensions, taxonomy, reproduction and breeding, diseases, snake bite and venom research, captive breeding and maintenance, conservation issues, legal issues, etc. are all acceptable. For assistance with formatting manuscripts, search ‘scientific journal article format’ on the internet and tailor the resultant guidance to suit. Previously published articles or papers are acceptable, provided you still hold the copyright to the work and have the right to re-publish it. If we accept your paper or article for publication, you will still continue to be the copyright holder. If your submission has been previously published, please provide the name of the publication in which it appeared along with the date of publication. All submissions should be manually proofed in addition to being spell checked and should be submitted by email as either Microsoft Word or text documents. Send submissions to swchrbulletin@swchr.org.

mailto:swchrbulletin%40swchr.org?subject=SWCHR%20Bulletin%20Submission

SWCHR Bulletin 2 Spring 2015

A Message from the President

In this issue of the Bulletin, the first of Volume 5 (yes, it’s the fifth year of the SWCHR Bulletin!), we have some very interesting articles spanning a variety of herp-related issues. Tom Lott gives us a detailed look at the history, both natural and unnatural, of the elusive smooth green snake in Texas. We have a great article about keeping chuckwallas outdoors in Grimes County, Texas, by Graham Criglow. Joel Reep gives us his experienced take on captive brumation for a couple species of southwestern lizard species. We have a very interesting field observation of predation on a long-nosed snake by a common raven, from Robert Twombley. Finally, Josh Emms details his beginning in herping, through his present experience in the New Mexico Herpetological Society. There are at least a couple events in which SWCHR plans to participate, which are coming up soon. The first is the Texas Rattlesnake Festival, a great event in which we participated during its inaugural event last year. It is a family oriented “no kill” event focused on dispelling the myths and false information widely believed about rattlesnakes, and also to counter the cruel and environmentally unsound rattlesnake roundups which still occur within the state. There are live snake displays and presentations from both herpetologists and citizen scientists. This year’s Texas Rattlesnake Festival will be held on April 11th and 12th at the Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas. The other major event is Snake Days in Sanderson, Texas, which is in its fourth year. It will be held at the same location as last year’s event—the St. James Hall at 209 E. Hackberry, and will run from June 12th through the 14th. This is a great event for herpers of all levels, ages, and interests. The weekend’s focus is on improving relations between herpers and law enforcement, and on a day of presentations by herpetologists. There are also great activities in which to participate, including a silent auction; a trash collection contest, a catered dinner after the Saturday presentations, and a photography contest sponsored by SWCHR. Also, on Friday, the first day of the event, SWCHR will host its annual Rendezvous—Texas at the courtyard of the Desert Air Motel, from 10 AM until 3 PM. This is a free meet-and-greet for SWCHR members and anyone interested in talking to us about the Association, or just talking herps and herping. We will be offering free BBQ lunch and drinks as long as the food lasts. It was a somewhat odd winter throughout the U.S., including the Southwest, which saw extremely warm temperatures throughout the region for much of the season. In the part of south Texas where I live, late winter/early spring has been extremely wet, with new rainfall records in some areas for the month of March. Although I have not been out to do any real herping yet this year, I have seen a few common local herps out and about. Those of us who keep collections of native southwestern herps may have warmed their animals back up from brumation by now (if you brumate them), and may also be seeing some breeding. I wish all of our members the best of luck in their field herping activities and their captive endeavors this spring, and I would also like to invite and encourage you all to share your experiences in the Bulletin.

SWCHR Bulletin 3 Spring 2015

The Verdant Enigma—Forgotten Allegations of the Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis)

from the Edwards Plateau of Texas (Serpentes: Colubridae)

by Tom Lott

Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis) from Ontario, Canada (Photo by “atrahamrepol;” licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic)

Throughout much of its contemporary North American range the Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis) can be abundant at certain times and under certain conditions. However, it was probably never abundant in Texas—at least within the time that “modern” man has been there. During the most recent North American glaciations (none of which extended farther south than southern Illinois), when the climatic features of what was to become the State of Texas were certainly more boreal than they are today, it is possible that O. vernalis was a common element of the fauna, much as it remains in most of the northern United States and southern Canada. The generally accepted post-Ice Age scenario involves the more cold-adapted biological associations south of the last glaciation retreating northward as the climate subsequently warmed, leaving some populations behind, much like peripheral puddles that form when a pond dries up. Such remnant populations, when, or if they are eventually discovered, are said to be “relictual.” There is little doubt that the remaining populations of the Smooth Green Snake in Texas are but relicts of a formerly much wider distribution. Troubling, however, is the seeming reality that the Texas populations are apparently the only remaining “peripheral puddles” of Opheodrys vernalis to be found anywhere south of the

latitude of the final Pleistocene glaciations (excepting, of course, the montane populations in the Southwest that persist in areas that are “elevationally” boreal). Portions of the intervening areas (especially eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri) would appear to constitute much more ideal habitat for the species than coastal Texas, but no unequivocal, documented specimens of O. vernalis exist from these areas. The known history of the Smooth Green Snake in Texas is rather controversial, however, filled with erroneous identifications, undocumented sightings, and once-extant but now tragically lost specimens. Currently represented from the state by only 6 indisputable museum specimens (two of which may have vanished), a couple of tentative fossil records from central and far west Texas, and 4-6 unvouchered sight records likely corresponding to actual specimens that somehow either never made it into collections of record or were so placed but are now irretrievably lost. Additionally, the acknowledged expert on this species, the late Arnold B. Grobman (1918-2012), maintained throughout his lifetime that all legitimate Texas specimens of Opheodrys vernalis “were established via human agency” (Grobman 1941, Walley 2003), despite the fact that this species has never been popular with local herpetoculturists. Curiously, Grobman’s rather dogmatic pronouncement was adopted by Bryce C. Brown (1950), who succeeded Strecker as The Authority on Texas Herpetology, even though Brown’s thesis advisor at Texas A&M College, William B. Davis (1949) had personally collected (and published on) an O. vernalis found near Sealy, Austin County, a year before Brown's magnum opus was published. All of the known, verified Opheodrys vernalis specimens collected in Texas have been found in coastal prairie, habitat hardly considered typical for the species. The most recent examples were road casualties discovered in the 1960s, which would make half a century since a specimen from the state has been brought to the attention of science. Admittedly, this is a small, cryptically-colored, and secretive snake, but still, some of the known specimens have come from relatively populous areas of the state; the locality of one of the later specimens, near Hobby Airport in Houston, has now been swallowed up by the state’s largest city. The Alleged Helotes, Bexar County, Texas Specimens But perhaps the most controversial and yet tantalizing Texas “record” for the species rests almost entirely upon the authority of one individual, Albert J.B. Kirn (1885-1950), an avocational naturalist who resided in the community of Somerset, in southwestern Bexar County, for the last twenty-seven years of

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/en:Creative_Commonshttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.enhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en

SWCHR Bulletin 4 Spring 2015

his life. A self-taught, “broad spectrum” biologist who concentrated in ornithology, Kirn authored or co-authored numerous papers in various fields of natural history during his lifetime (Messerly 1998). Later in life, he occasionally published anecdotal herpetological notes in the journal Herpetologica and corresponded with Lawrence M. Klauber and Cornell herpetologists Albert and Anna Wright. Somewhat surprisingly, however, he never personally went to print with his discovery of preserved Smooth Green Snakes, allegedly from the village of Helotes, Bexar County, at the southern edge of the Edwards Plateau just northwest of San Antonio. The presumed Helotes specimens were first mentioned in J. Walker Davenport’s booklet, Field Book of the Snakes of Bexar County, Texas, and Vicinity (Davenport 1943), which stated, “This snake is not considered a native of this part of the country but Mr. A. J. Kirn found three pickled specimens of O. vernalis in the collection of specimens by the late Gabriel Marnoch, labeled Helotes, Texas. Several collectors report having seen this snake in the Helotes region but none have been brought into the [reptile] garden.” The Reptile Garden, which Mr. Davenport operated, was part of the Witte Memorial Museum in San Antonio. At one time one of the largest fund raisers for the museum, the Reptile Garden exhibited many local snakes in a large concrete pit from which daily shows were performed for the benefit of paying spectators, including the opportunity to sample the culinary adventure of fried rattlesnake. To fill their pit, the Reptile Garden paid local collectors to bring in snakes from the countryside. It is not surprising that commercial collectors would tend to concentrate on larger, heavier species given that their remuneration was based on the total weight of snakes they caught. Also, since such collectors probably were not especially concerned about the subtleties of identifying small, relatively “worthless” species, it is doubtful that many of them would have appreciated the differences between the very similar and locally abundant Rough Green Snake (Opheodrys aestivus) and the Smooth Green Snake. Gabriel Wilson Marnoch (1838-1920) (the “Marnock” spelling seems to appear only in the herpetological literature), the hypothetical collector of the specimens in question, was the son of an immigrant Scottish physician who settled in the Helotes area during the 1850s. An ardent naturalist, Marnoch collected the type specimens for forms that E.D. Cope would describe as “Lithodytes latrans” (Barking Frog), “Syrrhophus marnocki”" (Cliff Chirping Frog), “Eumeces brevilineatus” (Short-lined Skink), “Eutaenia cyrtopsis ocellata” (Eastern Black-necked Garter Snake) as well as the type of the Texas Banded Gecko (Coleonyx brevis), later described by Leonard Stejneger. Marnoch seems to have done most of his collecting in the immediate vicinity of his home

at Helotes, but is known to have obtained some specimens from an area on the Guadalupe River, about 22 miles distant from Helotes (T. Vermersch, pers. comm.). The only other published reference to these specimens is contained in a portion of a letter from Kirn to Albert and Anna Wright, which they subsequently included in their Handbook of Snakes (Wright and Wright 1957): “Letter from Kirn, Somerset, Tex., May 6, 1946: ‘Did I ever tell you that there are two smooth-scaled snakes, Opheodrys v. blanchardi (?) in the collection at St. Mary’s Univ., San Antonio? They are from the Marnock collection, and the jar is labeled “Green snakes, Helotes.” There is no label on the specimens.’” Interestingly, the number of snakes involved curiously changes from three to two. This is apparently the last published reference to even the possibility that these specimens might represent a genuinely relictual population of this species in the Texas Hill Country; herpetologists writing on the fauna of Texas since then have ignored these accounts of the seemingly lost specimens. John K. Strecker, in his “An Annotated Catalogue of the Amphibians and Reptiles of Bexar County, Texas,” published in the Bulletin of the Scientific Society of San Antonio in 1922, noted that “He [Marnoch] did some exchanging but at the time of his death [1920], less than fifteen per cent of his collection was foreign material and most of this representing generic groups not found in Texas.” This of course opens the possibility that Marnoch's specimens could have been obtained by trade from another collector residing within the traditional range of O. vernalis, and possibly presents a logical explanation for how they ended up in the natural history collection of Saint Mary’s University. According to Strecker (1922), “After her husband’s death, Mrs. Marnock presented a portion of his collection to the Scientific Society of San Antonio and sold the balance to the Baylor University Museum,” which Strecker curated. Upon its dissolution, the collections of the Scientific Society were presumably also donated to St. Mary’s University, where Kirn discovered the Green Snakes in question. Since there were apparently no O. vernalis among the Marnoch specimens obtained by Strecker (although the superficially similar O. aestivus was represented [Strecker 1922]), it remains conceivable that some of the specimens donated to the Scientific Society might have originated from outside the area, possibly considered exotic natural history curiosities by the Marnochs. Unfortunately, Saint Mary’s University no longer maintains a natural history collection. According to Emma H. Messerly, who wrote an account of Kirn's ornithological work in Oklahoma, his extensive ornithological collections, including his field notes, etc., were also donated to Saint Mary’s University upon his death in 1950. By the early 1960s, however, the St.

SWCHR Bulletin 5 Spring 2015

Mary’s natural history collection (presumably including Marnoch's donated specimens as well) was in disarray and was itself subsequently donated to the “Natural Science for Youth Foundation,” which “distributed the specimens among their affiliate museums” (Messerly 1998). Consequently, it would appear that Marnoch’s three (or two) Smooth Green Snake specimens purportedly from Helotes are now thoroughly lost to science—a shame, for if they were extant a count of their ventral scutes could possibly determine whether they belonged to the appropriate subspecies (O. v. blanchardi), as do all unequivocal Texas specimens of O. vernalis (if they instead had counts characterizing the nominate subspecies [O. v. vernalis], this would constitute evidence that Marnoch had indeed obtained them elsewhere).

Gabriel Marnoch's homestead as seen from the bluff across Helotes Creek, near Helotes, Texas. Photo by the author, April 1961. The admittedly sparse fossil evidence from the Edwards Plateau would appear to indicate that two different species of Opheodrys (O. aestivus and “O. sp. indet.”) inhabited the area during the late Pleistocene (Wisconsin) (Holman 1969). Furthermore, with the exception of large tortoises, the herpetofauna of this period appears to have consisted of currently extant species that continue to occupy the Plateau or nearby areas (Holman op.cit.). Even though distinguishing between fossil vertebrae of the two species of Opheodrys is difficult and likely prone to subjective error (Holman and Richards 1981), the fact that there are only two currently existing species of Opheodrys increases the likelihood that O. vernalis may have persisted in relict populations on the Edwards Plateau into recent times. Habitats on the Edwards Plateau superficially resemble those currently occupied by O. vernalis in the montane western portion of its current range and the more mesic areas of the Plateau are well-known for harboring relictual Pleistocene flora and fauna. At any rate, the existence of a population of O. vernalis on the Plateau is no more improbable than that of those that have been found in the coastal prairies. The Helotes area of northwestern Bexar County has undergone extensive developmental pressure during the last fifty years and is now contiguous with the metropolis of San Antonio. Less

than two miles from Marnoch’s old homestead is a large (6A) high school that serves the residents of the area. If O. vernalis had ever occurred in this region, it is likely long gone, considering the attention this iconic locality has historically received from herpetologists. If so, it would join the ranks of a considerable number of other snake species known to have once been found there but which apparently are no longer: e.g., Prairie Kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster), Common Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula), Milk Snake (Lampropeltis triangulum), Western Hog-nosed Snake (Heterodon nasicus), and the Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis), among others. Literature Cited

Brown, B. C. 1950. An Annotated Check List of the Reptiles and Amphibians of Texas. Waco: Baylor University Studies.

Davenport, J. W. 1943. Field Book of the Snakes of Bexar County, Texas, and Vicinity. San Antonio: Witte Memorial Museum.

Davis, W. B. 1949. “The Smooth Green Snake in Texas.” Copeia 1949(3): 233.

Grobman, A. B. 1941. “A Contribution to the Knowledge of Variation in Opheodrys vernalis (Harlan), with the Description of a New Subspecies.” Misc. Publ. Mus. Zool. Univ. Mich. 50: 1-38.

Holman, J. A. 1969. “The Pleistocene Amphibians and Reptiles of Texas.” Michigan St. Univ. Mus. Publ. 4: 163-192.

______ and R.L. Richards. 1981. “Late Pleistocene Occurrence in Southern Indiana of the Smooth Green Snake, Opheodrys vernalis.” Journal of Herpetology 15: 123-125.

Messerly, E.H. 1998. “Albert J.B. Kirn and His Work in Oklahoma.” Bull. Okla. Ornith. Soc. 31(2): 9-20. Strecker, J.K. 1922. “An Annotated Catalogue of the Amphibians and Reptiles of Bexar County, Texas.” Bull. Sci. Soc. San Antonio 4: 1-31. Walley, H. D. 2003. “Liochlorophis, L. vernalis.” Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles, 776.1-776.13. Wright, A. H., and A. A. Wright. 1957. Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Ithaca, NY: Comstock Publishing Co.

SWCHR Bulletin 6 Spring 2015

Maintaining Chuckwallas (Sauromalus ater) in East Texas (Lacertilia: Iguanidae)

by Graham Criglow

The Common Chuckwalla (Sauromalus ater) has never been extremely popular in herpetoculture. A majority of the animals that are available in the pet trade are wild collected adults (from Nevada) which usually arrive full of internal parasites, and thin from sitting at a wholesaler’s facility. Without prompt treatment and proper setup, many of these animals sadly perish. Chuckwallas do have a small, devoted following in both the United States and abroad. With proper understanding of their basic needs, chuckwallas will not only thrive but reproduce under captive care. A handful of breeders produce a limited number of captive bred babies every year. Once established, these captive-bred young are ideal for someone interested in keeping this species. Like many field herpers, I make yearly pilgrimages to the American southwest. With close observation you begin to understand their habitat, diet and needs. As keepers, it is our responsibility to provide a healthy environment for the animals in our care. After keeping animals most of your life, you realize that if you “listen to” (and observe) the animals, they’ll “tell you” what they need. It is a giant puzzle that requires many pieces to complete. Years ago while living in Southern California I was introduced to a man who kept a majority of his animals (birds and reptiles) outdoors. At the time I kept snakes in melamine slide racks on paper towels. Seeing Beaded Lizards (Heloderma horridum) being kept outside (in a walk-in chain link cage), with buried PVC pipe burrows and natural sunlight, blew my mind. Seeing wire chameleon cages nailed to trees with fruit tossed on top to attract insects, which the chameleons greedily ate their fill, really took it to another level. Inside his home, a Burmese Python was coiled around her clutch of eggs. I asked why he didn’t pull and incubate the eggs. His answer was simple. “Why? She knows what to do.” Even though I had kept reptiles from a very young age, this new-to-me style of keeping really made me think. The late Bert Langerwerf truly understood this concept. I have read everything I can find by, and about, him and his keeping methods. Pictures of the facilities of his company, Agama International, are inspiring. He was a true pioneer in our hobby and I encourage others to research his philosophy of animal husbandry.

Chuckwallas can thrive and breed indoors. Dr. Doug Dix of Deer Fern Farms (www.deerfernfarms.com) has perfected this method and proves over and over. He consistently produces quality captive bred chuckwallas yearly (along with many other lizard species). Cage Design Gus Rentfro of Brownsville, Texas, developed the outdoor enclosure style I utilize for keeping chuckwallas. Large space, properly constructed rock piles, varied diet, and natural sunlight all come together in the design to equal success. A basic frame is built utilizing cheap landscape timbers, 1” x 6” boards, and corrugated plastic roofing pieces. The design can be adapted to about any size needed but I feel (because of the wall height) that 8’ x 8’ should be a minimum. I’ve built them in both 8’ x 8’ sizes and a single 10’ x 8’ size. I lack impressive building skills—period. I use mainly hand tools, a cordless drill and a circular saw. If I can build them, so can you! I start by picking a site which will have good drainage and lots of sunlight.

Site selection is crucial. Here, building materials are inventoried near a site chosen for sunlight exposure and excellent drainage. Photo by the author. Then I dig a trench about eight to twelve inches deep (or deeper if you choose) around the outer edges of where the enclosure will go. After that I build each of the four sides separately (they will be connected once I have them set in place). At this point, building multiple enclosures simultaneously does not take too much extra effort.

SWCHR Bulletin 7 Spring 2015

In this phase of construction, a perimeter trench has been dug and the side pieces are positioned in preparation for joining them with screws. Photo by the author. Next, the side pieces are screwed together.

The framework for the sides has been screwed together. It is easier to perform basic landscaping at this time, because heavy rocks and materials can be moved into place through the open sides instead of trying to lift them over the top when the corrugated side paneling is in place. Photo by the author.

We live in USDA Zone 8b (Grimes County, Texas), with winter low temperatures usually getting into the high teens Fahrenheit at their worst. Chuckwallas can take the cold in our area. Where our weather starts to get questionable for chuckwallas is the wetness. We all know that “cold and wet” is not a winning combination for desert lizards. To solve this, I dig down until I hit clay. In our area (or at least on our property), that is around 30” to 36.” In the middle of the enclosure I dig a reasonably-sized hole to my clay level. A cheap bag of pea gravel or lava rock gets dumped into the hole to aid drainage. I then place concrete cinder blocks in the hole, butting them against each other to create underground “hallways”. Chuckwallas like to WEDGE themselves into places so I put fist-size pieces of rock in the “hallways” to provide a tighter fit for the animals (and hopefully a greater sense of security). I usually build two levels of concrete cinder block hallways. The open hole around the cinder blocks is filled with rubble and rock. At this point I begin stacking rock on top of the underground chuckwalla “bunker.” I have a rock addiction. I cannot drive down a road without looking at rocks and trying to fill up my truck with them. I stop at roadsides and pick up leftover trash concrete rubble in anticipation of a future cage or chuckwalla rock pile. On the surface it is best to provide at least a few stacked flat rocks. You can glue small tiles or rocks to these flat rocks as spacers (you do not want to be trying to catch an animal and accidently crush them by having a rock collapse). Like in nature, chuckwallas love to wedge themselves into cracks and fissures. My animals use these cracks to thermoregulate during the spring, summer and fall.

Construction of the subterranean “bunker.” Although more functional than aesthetically pleasing in these views, the finished bunker will be covered with more attractive natural stone. Photos by the author.

SWCHR Bulletin 8 Spring 2015

A view of the finished “bunker” and the corrugated sides which have now been attached to the wooden frame. Photo by the author. Next, cut the corrugated plastic roofing sides. I tried doing this with a circular saw but failed, producing huge chips and cracks; a handsaw is your friend here. I usually cut the pieces approximately 48” long. Remember that part of this will be below ground level. From ground level, I strive to get my side walls around 36” tall. Again, all of this is up to the builder—the design leaves much room for mistakes or adaptations to fit your needs. I like to start putting the panel pieces in place about midway on one side. Notice in the pictures the way the corrugation runs (vertically). This makes a slick surface the lizards cannot climb. You can see from the pictures that the corrugated plastic goes on the inside of the enclosure, and the 1” x 6” boards to which it it is screwed are on the outside. Only secure one side of the sheeting because when you place the second piece in position, you want to overlap two “waves” of the corrugation. Once it is overlapped, you can then screw it down. This will create a smooth/slick transition between siding pieces on which the lizards cannot get a foothold. Gus made a great point to use a minimum number of screws to further discourage any areas that might give the lizards a foothold. I prefer to use hex-head corrugated roofing screws with rubber washers to attach the sides. They are usually sold next to the roofing sheets in the

hardware store. They are more expensive, but will not crack the siding when tightened down—you will get the hang of it quickly. The siding is flexible. You bend it to make the corners—again, when you are actually building the enclosure you will understand. The ditch in which the sides are sitting is then backfilled with gravel/rock. I buy “bull rock” from my local landscape supplier by the cubic yard. It ranges mainly from golfball- to fist-size pieces. The gravel/rock backfill discourages digging and is critical to keeping the lizards in the enclosure. I feel that these medium sized rock pieces discourage escape attempts even more (compared to pea gravel) because it is harder for the lizards to move them.

A view of the completed enclosure. The smooth surface of the corrugated material discourages climbing, but attention must be given to securing the seams to ensure it is completely “escape-proof.” Photo by the author. Spineless prickly pear cactus (Opuntia sp.) grows great in our area and gives the chuckwallas more basking site options. Be careful that growing pads do not get too close to the enclosure’s edges to allow the lizards an easy escape. We prune back pads as needed and feed them to our tortoise colonies. Additional Notes and Lessons Learned I successfully keep a reverse trio (two males, one female) of Blue Spiny Lizards (Sceloporus cyanogenys) in with one group of our chuckwallas. From time to time I toss crickets in with them, but they mainly feed on insects that naturally make their way into the cage. I tried keeping a trio of Collared Lizards (Crotaphytus sp.) with the chuckwallas a few years ago with mixed results. They required more food (insect) supplementation and can jump much further (i.e. escape) than the chuckwallas.

SWCHR Bulletin 9 Spring 2015

Another view of the finished enclosure. Large, flat stones make an excellent feeding platform. At least two chuckwallas can be seen, giving a sense of scale. Photo by the author. I had concerns with birds occasionally snatching a lizard but to date, no such event has happened. I built a PVC frame covered with bird netting, but it was a failure. Netting began to sag and the lizards ended up entangled in it. I work out of town for half the month so my wife cares for the animals in my absence. She found multiple entangled lizards and we decided to remove the netting. We have three of these cages built with three different chuckwalla localities. The eldest of the groups has been kept outdoors in the above described set up for over three years now. This year my goal is to install a corrugated plastic roof covering the cages. They are doing fine, but I feel they would do even better if I could divert a majority of the rain we get during the winters. The open sides would then be enclosed with mesh wire to both prevent the possibility of escapes and/or predators. The design is still a work in progress. Captive Diets There is a lot of information on lizard diets online and in books. I did not try to reinvent the wheel with my feeding style.

Chuckwallas are often given a captive diet with a high water content from grocery store vegetables. Runny stools are commonplace. I like to see solid, fibrous stools, like you would observe on rock outcroppings in nature. I usually start with a “mixed salad green” base that I hand-chop. A head of endive is usually added to the mix. Sometimes shredded carrots and finely chopped yellow squash also make their way into the mix. From here I’ll add some natural (i.e. plants from my yard) items such as dandelion flowers and leaves, rose petals, grape leaves and hibiscus flowers/leaves if I have access to them. To make it more “natural” and increase the fiber content, I grind up Zoo Med “Natural Grassland Tortoise Food” pellets and sprinkle liberally over the mix. It is made with chopped grasses, dandelion greens, yucca, and other plants to provide long-stem fiber, and does not contain artificial preservatives, colors, or flavors. Maybe twice a week I add a pinch of high quality reptile multivitamins—my favorite is Repashy SuperVeggie.

Captive chuckwallas can be fed a variety of vegetables and flowers, both commercially available and native. Photo by the author. Gus Rentfro wrote the following about chuckwalla diets: “Chuckwallas thrive on a (comparatively) low-nutrient, high-bulk diet. While some will accept insects, a strict vegetarian diet is recommended. Typically, the diet is composed of 80% leafy vegetables and 20% other items such as fruits or flowers.

SWCHR Bulletin 10 Spring 2015

Chuckwallas do best on a varied diet. Some recommended food items available almost anywhere are: romaine lettuce, collard greens, mustard greens, kale, chard (the tops), and turnip greens. Many types of wild leaves and shoots can also be safely fed, such as dandelions and mulberry. Roll up tough greens into a cigar shape and slice the roll into sections, 1/4 inch wide for small chucks and about 1/2 inch wide for adults. All types of squash can be fed, as well as carrots and an occasional apple. Shred these items on a flat manual grater. Other favorites are frozen (thawed) sweet peas and French-cut green beans. “Chucks require little moisture in addition to what they get in their diet; water bowls will usually be ignored. Also, do not feed the thick watery bases of lettuce and similar vegetables; they will cause watery stools. Feed growing chuckwallas as much as they will consume in about a four-hour period five or more times per week; adults can be fed a little less often. Calcium and vitamin supplements should be given once each week, especially to indoor colonies.” The next paragraph Gus wrote brings up a very good point that is often overlooked in herpetoculture, and is just one more piece to the successful captive husbandry puzzle: “Neonate Sauromalus frequently fail to thrive unless given access to the feces of an adult, which they consume in order to start the colonies of beneficial bacteria in their gut needed to fully digest their food. Wild-collected chuckwallas can be problem pets and sometimes fail to acclimate.” Final Thoughts Chuckwallas can make very interesting and rewarding captives if properly cared for. There is much more to these amazing lizards than most hobbyists realize, but they require more care than many are willing to give. I am always thinking of ways to improve our setup, and picking others’ brains on their keys to success. The learning never ends. Acknowledgment A special thanks needs to be given to Gus Rentfro for his friendship and shared information over the years involving chuckwallas, boas, field herping and so much more.

Predation on a Long-nosed Snake, Rhinocheilus lecontei, by a Common Raven, Corvus corax

(Serpentes: Colubridae)

by Robert Twombley Herein I report the first known predation on a Rhinocheilus lecontei (Long-nosed Snake), by Corvus corax (Common Raven). Other animals that have been known to prey on R. lecontei include large centipedes (Scolopendra sp.), large snakes (Lampropeltis sp.), owls (Bubo sp.), hawks (Buteo sp.), armadillos (Dasypus sp.), skunks (Mephitus sp.), foxes (Vulpes sp.), and coyotes (Canis latrans) (Easterla 1975; Fitch 1949; Tennant 1984; Ernst and Ernst 2003).

Long-nosed Snake, Rhinocheilus lecontei photographed after the two Common Ravens (Corvus corax) departed and the snake was collected. The 20-dollar bill provides a sense of scale and indicates the snake is approximately 30 inches total length. Photo by the author. The predation took place at 10:15 am on January 12, 2015 in the Western Mojave Desert, Apple Valley, California, USA (elevation 3062 ft). This occurred during mild winter weather conditions. The temperature at the time was 50 degrees Fahrenheit (with the high temperature for the day reaching 57 degrees Fahrenheit), and relative humidity was 87%. The previous two days’ weather (January 10 and 11) was rainy. The C. corax was first observed on the ground 63 feet away from me, near a Yucca schidigera (Mojave Yucca). The C. corax was actively engaged in pecking at the R. lecontei and jumping 4 to 6 inches (estimated) into the air, with a total of six such jumps being witnessed. Each time the C. corax jumped into the air it would emit a series of small repeated squawks (two to three per jump). This behavior lasted for three minutes, and was immediately followed by the C. corax flying 47 feet away to perch

SWCHR Bulletin 11 Spring 2015

on a branch of a Yucca brevifolia (Joshua Tree) with the R. lecontei looped within its beak. The C. corax stayed on the Y. brevifolia branch for one minute before flying 236 feet to alight on the ground with the R. lecontei. Seconds after landing on the ground, an additional C. corax flew to the location. The two C. corax were observed to fight for a short time (less than 30 seconds). This was followed by the two C. corax walking back and forth near the R. lecontei for four minutes, and picking at it twice during this time before flying off and leaving the R. lecontei, which expired. The dead snake was collected and photographed in a different location to accompany this article. References Easterla, D.A. 1975. “Giant Desert Centipedes Prey upon Snake.” Southwestern Naturalist 20:411. Ernst, C. H. and Ernst, E. M. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books. Fitch, H. S. 1949. “Study of Snake Populations in Central California.” American Midland Naturalist 41:513-579. Tennant, A. 1984. The Snakes of Texas. Austin: Texas Monthly Press.

Captive Brumation in North American Desert Lizard Species

By Joel Reep

It is commonly known in herpetoculture that a cooling or brumation period can be useful, or even necessary, to help initiate breeding behavior in the springtime. It helps provide the “setting events” necessary for spermatogenesis in males and ovulation in females. It is also known to increase the appetites of animals that had begun to lose their interest in food during the fall months. Some say it is necessary for the overall health of the animals and will indefinitely increase longevity. Many of these statements hold true for North American desert species. By cooling the animals down, they are able to cycle naturally and experience similar conditions to what nature would provide. Even in some of the hottest and most arid landscapes, temperatures can dip down to near freezing over the winter

months, and it is important to mirror those variables as closely as possible in captive collections.

A pair of Eastern Collared Lizards (Crotaphytus collaris) fresh out of their brumation period. The otherwise brilliant colors of this species are muted from the winter cooling but will soon return. Photo by the author. I have developed a system with my animals which I feel both mimics the cooling these reptiles might experience in the wild and is gradual enough to be safe for individuals which are acclimated to captivity. For the sake of accuracy, I am talking specifically about Eastern Collared Lizards, Aquaflame Collared Lizards (both are Crotaphytus collaris, with Aquaflames being a morph derived from southwestern Oklahoma animals), Yellow-headed Collared Lizards (C. collaris “auriceps”), and Desert Horned Lizards (Phrynosoma platyrhinos). Each animal involved in this process is captive born and bred. Around the end of November, unless a waning interest in food is noticed earlier, I stop feeding the animals. I leave both the heat lamps and UVB lamps on for several days to keep the lizards’ metabolisms running at full capacity to digest the remaining food in their gut. This takes less time with horned lizards, because they digest their small food items much more rapidly. After seven days without food for the collared lizards, and four to five days for the horned lizards, I turn off the heat lamps, leaving only the UVB lamps on. I let this take effect for roughly another week, and there is a noticeable change in the behavior of the animals. They seek shelter, digging into the sand and largely ignoring the outside world. It is evident that they are ready to hibernate. Another important aspect of preparing for brumation is the photoperiod. During the summer, the lizards are accustomed to 14 hours of light and 10 hours of darkness. As soon as I stop feeding, I switch the lights to an equal 12 hours each of darkness and light. When I turn off the heat bulbs I ensure the UVB lights are timed to come on for only 10 hours per day leaving the remaining 14 hours of darkness. The temperature in the lizards’ enclosures with only UVB lights this time of year is about 75 degrees Fahrenheit.

SWCHR Bulletin 12 Spring 2015

Once the lizards have shown they are ready to enter brumation, I have the “hibernaculum” set up and cooled. Bear in mind that this system works in my colder climate in Idaho, whereas those in more southerly locations might need supplemental cooling. The hibernaculum is a spare bedroom on the bottom level of my house which shares two walls with the exterior. I tape off the vents in the room, and the temperature is a very steady 52-57 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the entire winter. This brumation chamber is on the far end of that level of the house, whereas my reptile room is on the opposite end. I set up 28 quart Sterilite tubs (with ventilation holes) by filling them with washed play sand about 3 inches deep. I provide a water dish for all lizards and a hide for only the collared lizards. The horned lizards will normally burrow into the sand.

An F2 captive-bred female Desert Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma platyrhinos) from Nevada stock. Horned lizards will generally burrow into the sand in their brumation tubs, so a separate hide is not needed. Photo by the author. At first, I place the tubs on the concrete floor of the reptile room where temperatures will be about 73 degrees. Then, over the course of several days, I move them three or four feet closer to the other end of my house where the hibernaculum is. Each time I move the tubs, the lizards will experience a temperature drop of about two degrees. An infrared temperature gun is extremely helpful for this process because I can monitor the gradient from one end of that level of the house to the other. After about three or four days of moving the lizards in their tubs down the hallway toward the brumation room, their ambient temperature just outside the brumation room door is about 60 degrees. The next step is to open the door to the brumation chamber and place them just inside with the door closed. Usually it is about 57 degrees just inside the door because it is closest to the warmth of the interior of the house, while the outer walls are the coldest on the edges of the room opposite the door. I continue the process of moving the lizards a few feet closer to the outer edge of the brumation room every day until they are touching the outside wall, sitting on the floor. Here

they have reached their final brumation temperature of around 54 degrees. The temperature will vary from 52 to 57 degrees throughout the three-to-four-month hibernation period. The last step is to cover their tubs with a sheet so that they are more or less deprived of direct light.

A stack of brumation tubs making their multi-day trek from the summertime end of this level of the house to the “brumation chamber” at the opposite end of the hallway. Photo by the author. During hibernation it is important to remember to offer water aside from what is in the water dish. I personally use a pipette to provide my lizards with hydration, and they recognize it as a source for water. Even in their sluggish state during brumation, they will often accept a few drops of water. I would encourage keepers not to spray their animals down; rather drip some water on the tip of the lizard’s nose, so they do not get wet or experience spikes in humidity which could cause respiratory distress. Aside from offering water and changing their water dish, there is nothing to do but check on them every couple weeks and wait until spring.

Though the “brumation chamber” is kept cooler by sealing off the vents, there is still plenty of ambient light which could disrupt the lizards’ brumation, so sheets are used to cover the translucent tubs. Photo by the author.

SWCHR Bulletin 13 Spring 2015

Around the beginning of March, I start reversing the process. The first step is to clean out the lizards’ vivariums where they will reside during their waking months. Since I use washed play sand, the substrate is often wet when it is opened and dumped into the vivariums, so it is necessary to turn on the heat lamps in order to remove the moisture from the sand until it is completely dry. Once the vivariums are ready for occupancy, I move the lizards inside their tubs gradually up to the hibernation room door, then slowly down the hall toward the reptile room, a few feet (which equals a couple degrees warmer temperature) each day until they have reached the reptile room four days later. The next step is to put the lizards in their respective environments and provide only UVB light for 10 hours per day. Some people recommend having the UVB bulb alone on the lizards for a week before turning on the heat bulbs but with my method, the lizards have already been acclimating to warmer temperatures and have already been getting secondary light through their translucent tubs for several days. With my method, after only two days of UVB light alone, it is prudent to add the heat lamps and provide 12 hours of light and 12 of darkness. The lizards will start feeding the day after their heat lamps are turned on. After another week of 12/12 lighting, I resume their summertime 14 hour daylight regimen at which point the lizards are eating with gusto and many are shedding. Breeding behavior generally starts within three weeks of having normal photoperiod and temperatures, and I often have eggs by April and hatchlings by May.

Though visibly thinner from the three-to-four-month cooling period, this Yellow-headed Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus collaris “auriceps”) readily feeds on a Banded Cricket (Gryllodes sigillatus) shortly after being warmed back up. Photo by the author. There are many ways to provide captive reptiles with conditions that are sufficient to make long term, healthy life possible. The more a keeper knows about what the species’ requirements are and what conditions they are likely to experience in their home

range, the more success one will have with mimicking them in captivity. As more research in the field and in captive collections is done, we can understand the nuances which make these magnificent creatures tick, and more precisely deliver the variables they need for optimal husbandry, propagation, and longevity.

My Time in the New Mexico Herpetological Society

by Josh Emms

I have always had a fascination with herps. My first memory of herping was trying to catch lizards with my dad and brother in the median of Interstate 40 during the 1986 charity event “Hands Across America.” After that my brother and I would look for lizards in our yard and every once in a while we would actually catch one. We would catch “sand-diggers” (Side-blotched Lizards, Uta stansburiana), “blue-tails” (New Mexico Whiptails, Aspidoscelis neomexicanus) and very occasionally a “horny toad” (Round-tailed Horned Lizard, Phrynosoma modestum). One spring we went to visit my dad’s good friend in St. David, Cochise County, Arizona. We caught several lizards and I even had my first encounter with a rattlesnake. I never actually saw the snake, for which I was secretly glad because it meant that it did not get killed. I never liked the idea of killing an animal for no reason. Jumping ahead, as a boy scout on my first campout with my troop, I caught a Wandering Garter Snake (Thamnophis elegans vagrans). I was very excited and kept telling everyone I was going to take it home and keep it as a pet. My scout leader convinced me I should let it go, but I think deep down I knew my mom would have nothing of it. A few years later I convinced my mom to let me have one. I brought it home on the condition that if it got out, we would let it go. The snake got out several times, but my mom never made good on her threat. That snake eventually escaped and never returned. I did not keep another snake for a long time after that due to life experience. I served a two year mission for my church and spent four years getting my degree in history at Brigham Young University’s Hawai’i campus. I had watched a lot of nature shows, one of my favorites being “Snake Wranglers.” I loved watching Jim Harrison, Jesus Rivas and Bryan Fry, among others. Little did I know I would get to meet one of them! An episode with Jim Harrison got me interested in actually looking for snakes. After I had moved back to New Mexico and got a place of my own, I got a few snakes: two Rosy Boas (Lichanura

SWCHR Bulletin 14 Spring 2015

trivirgata), a Carpet Python (Morela spilota) and a Ball Python (Python regius). We were looking for a new roommate, and a guy named Alan came and asked if it was okay that he had snakes. Of course we said it was fine, and then he said they were rattlesnakes! We got talking and I showed him my collection and he never moved in, but we became friends. He always said he would take me out to look for snakes, though I never got a chance to do so. One day, I got some bad news. Alan had been out camping and was cutting some firewood from a dead tree and a big branch fell on him and killed him instantly. I decided then that I needed to start looking for snakes, to remember him. I had gotten married a few weeks earlier and also got a job, with training in Oklahoma City. I had spare time and it was summer, so I herped. I was addicted. I saw a Black Ratsnake (Pantherophis obsoletus), a couple of Ring-necked Snakes (Diadophis punctatus) and several lizards, including some very colorful Collared Lizards (Crotaphytus collaris), turtles, and frogs. I finished my training in Oklahoma City and went back to New Mexico and settled into my new marriage. In the winter, I changed jobs and had some days off during the week. One day I ended up at the American International Rattlesnake Museum in Albuquerque. I talked to the curator there, Bob Myers, and asked him if there was a herp society for the area. He said there was and that it met right there at the museum! I went to one meeting and was hooked! The New Mexico Herpetological Society (NMHS) was founded in October 1963. I met some of the founding members and joined in 2009. At the first meeting I attended, they talked about outreach events they did and even talked about field trips. The field trips really intrigued me. The first fieldtrip they had after I had joined was to a small town called Nara Visa, in the northeastern part of the state. While on the trip, I did not find a single snake, but I photographed several that had been found by other members. I caught a large Great Plains Skink (Plestiodon obsoletus) and an Ornate Box Turtle (Terrapene ornata ornata), as well as several toads. I barely missed finding the “big find” of the trip myself. I flipped almost every rock in the area and left. Then Dave Burt flipped the one rock I had not and found a Blotched Water Snake (Nerodia fasciata), a county record! Another was sighted later in the trip. Over the years NMHS has found a few records and also has done some good survey work. Scott Bulgrin, the current president, works in the Environmental Department at Sandia Pueblo, just north of Albuquerque. The society has done herpetofaunal surveys for them for the past ten years. We have worked in the “bosque” (woodlands) and the plains, and now are moving into the foothills of the Sandia Mountains this spring.

We are also starting a survey with the Valle de Oro Wildlife Preserve in Albuquerque’s South Valley. We did a walking survey last summer and will do some pitfall traps this year. We are very excited to help out this new preserve. My family has grown since joining NMHS. We now have two children who both go herping with us. My wife, Nikki, was quite indifferent to snakes when we got married, but has been hooked ever since we took that trip to Nara Visa back in 2009, She has even gone herping by herself! We look forward to many more years with NMHS and hope to see and document many wonderful trips and surveys in the future. I have since become the newsletter editor and also the webmaster for our website (http://nmherpsociety.org). I also helped put together a video slideshow for the 50th anniversary of the society. We also have had several speakers in our meetings spanning the globe. We have monthly meetings and usually a presentation afterwards. The speakers range from society members sharing their photos to people from around the world. We have had Charlie and Lori Painter speak about King Cobras (Ophiophagus Hannah). John Tashjian has presented several times to the society, Bill Love has shared his amazing photography skills, and Doug Hotle has presented about how he has helped with endangered species. The list goes on and on. We even had Jesus Rivas come speak to us about anacondas (Eunectes murinus)! One of the most important things the society does is its educational outreach programs. We conduct many outreach programs with live animals. We have participated in the Festival of the Cranes at Bosque del Apache for several years. There are people who come back to see us every year at that event. It is amazing to see people change their attitudes toward snakes in a matter of minutes. Last year we were invited by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish to participate in their annual outdoor expo. This was a great event. My family and I appeared on the news to promote it. I was told the NMHS was the most talked about booth throughout the expo! The expo was three days long and open to school field trips on Friday and to the general public on the other days. The official estimate of attendance was 4,183 for the three days. We have been invited back for next year and we have some exciting things planned for the expo. NMHS has been a great ride. We love going on the field trips, reaching out to the public and getting to know other people with our quirky hobby. I look forward to many more years in the society and to meeting many more people. If you are ever in Albuquerque on the first Thursday of the month, stop in at the Rattlesnake Museum and join us for a meeting!

SWCHR CODE OF ETHICS

As a member of the Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research, I subscribe to the Association’s Code of Ethics. Field activities should limit the impact on natural habitats, replacing all cover objects, not tearing apart rocks or logs and refraining from the use of gasoline or other toxic materials. Catch and release coupled with photography and the limited take of non-protected species for personal study or breeding use is permitted. The commercial take and sale of wild-caught animals is not acceptable. Collecting practices should respect landowner rights, including but not limited to securing permission for land entry and the packing out of all personal trash. Captive-breeding efforts are recognized as a valid means of potentially reducing collection pressures on wild populations and are encouraged. The release of captive animals including captive-bred animals into the wild is discouraged except under the supervision of trained professionals and in accordance with an accepted species preservation or restocking plan. The disclosure of exact locality information on public internet forums is discouraged in most circumstances. Locality information posted on public internet forums usually should be restricted to providing the name of the county where the animal was found. When specific locality data is provided to one in confidence, it should be kept in confidence and should not be abused or shared with others without explicit permission. Other members of the Association are always to be treated cordially and in a respectful manner.

SWCHR PO BOX 624 SEGUIN TX 78156

The Verdant Enigma—Forgotten Allegations of the Smooth Green Snake (Opheodrys vernalis) from the Edwards Plateau of Texas (Serpentes: Colubridae)Maintaining Chuckwallas (Sauromalus ater) in East Texas (Lacertilia: Iguanidae)Predation on a Long-nosed Snake, Rhinocheilus lecontei, by a Common Raven, Corvus corax (Serpentes: Colubridae)Captive Brumation in North American Desert Lizard SpeciesMy Time in the New Mexico Herpetological Society