The ‘Wrangler’ Writes...
iHerp Australia
Snake Catching and the Serpents of
The expo season is upon us,
to Thailand for the first time, I pointed out to my friend
unusual
the terrible condition of the elephants’ feet. We had to
white lun
and this provides a wonderful
give the elephants pedicures according to a strict set of
people in
Issue
11 | Mar - Apr 2019
rules, and it amazed me that in Thailand, where elephants Professo
opportunity to catch up with old
are part of the culture, this is not done.
scientist
others.
friends, make new ones, find out
iH: Did you keep any reptiles in those days?
As fate w
what’s going on in the reptile
PK: When I was about ten years old I got some Greek
prepared
Land
Tortoises
-
they
were
my
first
reptiles.
As
a
it wa
graduate who and
community, and perhaps acquire Janne Torkkola is a sleep deprived zoology/genetics
teenager, on weekends I used to catch a tram to the
violently
outskirts
of
Stuttgart
where
there
were
a
number
of
ponds.
option
w
Citizen Cane.
some great new animals. It’s also operates Controlling
I caught endemic
lizards
and snakes,
and legless and mother c
a snake removal service in Brisbane
and
enjoys
writing
lizards,
as
well
as
frogs
to
feed
my
snakes.
I
bought
a
During
m
Should you kill
time for another great instalment
baby alligator from a pet shop and a juvenile African
Australia
Rock Python
from limited
a dealer who turned
up at the
zoo. I
who I ha
that Cane
Toad? podcast in his
science
very
spare
time....
of iHerp Australia, your FREE conducting a wildlife
think it cost me about 50 or 60 Deutsche Marks (the
convince
equivalent of about AUD 175).
got on th
online reptile resource!
It's
2:00
am
on
a
warm,
early
summer
morning
in
The phone rings and Interview:
I'm instantly Peter
awake. After
years
of
Krauss.
iH: When did you complete your apprenticeship?
iH: Whe
Brisbane. There's fog on the road, and steam rises from
late night call-outs for snakes,
various
A life lizards,
full of turtles,
incredible
We are very fortunate in this
mammals or birds, adventures
and sometimes – just
bizarre
questions at the asphalt to condense on the windshield, so I'm
and
reptiles.
issue to lead off with an article
constantly adjusting the airflow, temperature, and wipers
even more bizarre hours, it's become kind of an autono-
from one of Australia’s best-
Snake switch
Catching
and
to see clearly enough to negotiate
the empty streets. I’m
mous response to take a breath,
on
the
bedside
g n i e e s n o p u , n a e b b i r a C s d r i B
y l l a r e d e f d e t c e t o r p e r a s t n e d i s e r
e h t r e d n u y l t c e r i d t a f s u o n i t a l e g
known scientists, Professor Rick Shine. For years,
the s Serpents
g n i s p a l l o c s n o e g i P d e p a n - y l a c S
e l t r u T a e S n e e r of
G e h South
t , ) n o r t s a l p f o t c A s e i c e p S d e r e g n a d n E e h t y b
driving
towards
the
industrial
suburb
of Wacol, southeast
lights, grab a pen and pad, f o and
try
not
to
sound
overly
n i g r i V e h t y b y l l a c o l d n a , 3 7 9 1 t A . d o o f f o k c a l m o r f d n u o r g e h t n o
e b o t r a e p p a y a B s ’ n e g a M
Rick and his team have been researching the
East
f o h c a e b n i a m e h t , y a B s ’ n e g a M
d n a d e r e g n a d n E s d n a l s I
s i n o i t a Queensland.
l u p o p e h t d n a , g n i v i r h t
of
the
city
centre.
Inside
a
warehouse,
the late-shift staff
sleepy or grumpy while seeing
what
comes
next.
This
. 0 9 9 1 f o t c A s e i c e p S s u o n e g i d n I - c e h 5 . 7 2 ( s e r c a 8 6 , s a m o h T t n i a S
d e r e g n a d n e r i e h t e t i p s e d , e l b a t s
effects of the Cane Toad on our native wildlife,
- u t r i v s a w t a t i b a h e m i r p f o ) s e r a t
g n a d n e y l l a c i t i r C . s u t a t s d e t s e v r a h y l l a i c r e m m o c r e g n o l o N
have
spotted
a
small,
brown-coloured
snake
in the
time it's a call-out, possibly for d a e r e venomous
snake.
, e n a c i r r u h e h t y b d e t a r e t i l b o y l l a
s e l t r u T a e S
l l i b s k w a H y l h g i h a ( e e p i l a c d n a t a e m r i e h t r o f
What’s
New?
and investigating possible control measures. Their
o s l a e r a ) a t a c i r b m i s y l e h c o m t e r E (
, w o l l e y - t h g i l f o r e y a l d e t e v o c - ) s e r a t c e h 2 . 2 ( s e r c a e v i f g n i d u l c n i
bathroom.
5 1 , s m l a p t u n o c o c h t i w d e t n a l p
Ben’s Reptiles 101: 26
ground-breaking research and extraordinary results
, s d n a l t e w f o ) s e r a t c e h 7 . 6 ( s e r c a
4 . 2 ( e r c a - x i s s u o i g i t s e r p a d n a
‘To have and to hold’.
make for compelling reading. Incidentally, Rick has
. s e e r t c i t o x e f o m u t e r o b r a ) e r a t c e h
d
e
r
e d i s n o c s a w d n a l f o p i r t s s i h T
Handling Captive Reptiles.
a terrific new book out that we have reviewed in this
g n i w e i v r o f s e l a c o l t s e b e h t f o e n o
g n i y d u t s d n a s p r e h l a c o l e h t
o t g n i d r o c c A . e f i l n a i v a c i m e d n e
issue.
A Good Book. 29
e h t e c n o o s l a s a w y a b e h t , d n e g e l
d n a e t a r i p e h t r o f t n i o p g n i r o o m
‘Cane Toad Wars.’
Next we chat with Peter Krauss about his amazing
, e k a r D s i c n a r F r i S r e d a r t e v a l s
s p i h s t u o d e t u o c s e h e c n e h w m o r f
lifelong involvement with reptiles. Initially trained as a
. r e d n u l p r o f e p i r
iHerp at LARGE. 30
zookeeper in Germany, Peter worked at Melbourne
Revamped Reptiles
t n e l l e c x e n a l l i t s s i y a b e h t , y a d o T
s e l t r u T a e S n e e r G t o p s o t e c a l p
a Hit at Kellyville.
Zoo, was subsequently curator at the Australian
d n a g n i h s i u g n a l , ) s a d y m a i n o l e h C (
1.
a e s f o s w o d a e m e h t n i g n i d e e f
c i t a u q a d n u o r - r a e y e s e h T . s s a r g
Reptile Park under Eric Worrell, and after moving
BioSupplies – 32
.
3
more than a million
to Queensland made a living out of catching Cane
.
2.
Toads and achieved a number of breeding firsts.
a c i R o crickets
t r e u P n i l l a f d n every
a l s e k a m month!
a i r a M e n a c i r r u H . 1
. a r a z z i v a l y b e g a m I . 7 1 0 2 r e b m e t p e S n i
‘Nocturnal, small and brownish in co
Plus, Janne Torkkola takes us snake catching in
e h t n i a i r a M d n a a m r I y b Your
d e s u a c Pic.
n o i t c u r t s e D . 2
34
. s o i l l e D s a l o k i N y b e g a M . s d n a l s I n i g r i V S U
the Brisbane suburbs, and Vickie Lillo investigates
1. A harmless juvenile Carpet Python (Morelia sp
‘Forest Guardian’.
d e r e v o c e r e v a h s d n a l s i e h t h g u o h t l A . 3
2. A weakly-venomous Brown Tree Snake (Boig
the impact of hurricanes on the herpetofauna of
s e n a c i r r u h e h t f o s t c e f f e d e n i b m o c e h t , t a h w e m o s
. o l l i L e i k c i V y b e g a m I . e l b i s i v y l r a e l c l l i t s e r a
irregularis).
the Caribbean. Kit Prendergast has contributed
s e l t r u T a Legitimising
e S l l i b s k w a H d e r e g n Latin.
a d n e y l l a c i t i r C . 4
e g a m I . s The
f e e r y b Lasting
r a e n e h t n o Legacy
d n u o f y l t n e u q e r f e r a
a fascinating analysis of the methods of snake
‘BOA CONSTRICTORS
. n h e u K e l l e b a s I y b
have a ‘safety first’ policy, and are
t n i a S f o of
h c a Carl
e b n i a m Linnaeus.
e h t s i y a B s ’ n e g a M . 5
4. the most SAFETY
locomotion (there are seven in all), and of course,
t s e b e h t f o e n o d e r e d i s n o c s a w d n a , s a m o h T
Ben Dessen is along; this time to examine 3.
which of
. s d r i b c i m e d n e d n a s p r e h l a c o l e h t w e i v o t s e c a l p
CONSCIOUS of snakes. ’
The Eye of the
. y d e Storm.
n n e K n a I y b e g a m I
our scaly friends will tolerate human handling!
Herps and Hurricanes
3. Burton’s Legless Lizard (Lialis burtonis) can often be mistaken
Lastly, for those considering learning a second
in the Caribbean.
as a snake by members of the public.
language, I have put together a piece on the 4. ‘father
A highly-venomous young Eastern Brown Snake (Pseudonaja
Limbless
Locomotion.
textilis).
As juveniles, these snakes
are primarily
nocturnal lizard
of modern taxonomy’, Carl Linnaeus. A little
bit of
hunters. All images courtesy Janne How
Torkkola.
serpents
have
Latin can get you a long way in garnering important
adapted
to
life
without
legs.
information from species names, and reptiles are
no exception. The more you dig, the more you
discover about the astonishing achievements of
this intrepid Swedish scientist.
. 5
We hope you enjoy this issue, and will return with
a special on ‘venom’ in May. Meanwhile, if there is
John McGrath
Facebook:
a reptile expo in your area, we recommend you get Publisher:
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along and experience the latest the hobby has to IT & Marketing: Andy Round
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offer.
South East Queensland.
CONTENTS
4
4
12
12
20
20
Unlimited by a legless lifestyle.
Climbing steep surfaces poses challenges for any animal:
the entire body weight must be continually lifted, in
addition to preventing slipping (and potentially fatal
consequences). Despite lacking grasping limbs, claws or
the adhesive toe pads present in other arboreal animals,
snakes from diverse lineages have independently evolved
to be remarkable climbers. Snakes use muscular gripping
forces to climb, as do primates, but have a distinct advan-
tage because their entire body can be used (rather than just
the hands, feet and sometimes the tail), enabling them to
grip branches spanning a wide range of diameters.
36
If snakes are climbing rough, relatively horizontal
surfaces with adequately-spaced irregularities, they can
shimmy up without needing to use their body for
additional grip. But when climbing smooth, steep,
cylindrical structures, snakes use a type of concertina
locomotion involving periodic static gripping: looping the
body around a branch one to three times, stretching
forwards, then looping around again and dragging the
lower part of the body up behind. This ‘friction-gripping’
concertina locomotion prevents slipping, but requires the
application of considerable force, and involves a lot of
stop-starting. Energy expenditure is high, and progress
relatively slow.
Given the energetic cost of using muscular forces to gr
inclined, cylindrical surfaces, and that snakes have con
erable control over the size and orientation of their grip
one would expect some economisation in that a minimu
amount of exertion would be used. Yet a study in 2014
found that this was not the case; rather, snakes have a
policy of ‘safety first’ and will grip the substrate with a
safety factor often exceeding three. Of the five species
examined, Boa Constrictors, the species least specialise
for an arboreal existence, were the most safety consciou
with safety factors of five recorded. Nevertheless, the
extra force may represent an overall energy saving, be-
cause it minimises the risk of slipping backwards, whic
may be energetically costly given that any ground lost
must be recovered.
44
44
50
Happy Herping!
John McGrath
Social Media: Vince Pintaudi
Additional Design:
Rachael Hammond
Next Issue: May 2019.
Website: www.iherpaustralia.com.au
50
Advertising Enquiries:
[email protected][email protected]
On the cover: Professor Rick Shine remembers
growing up in Brisbane, ‘If you encountered a
Cane Toad, the only socially acceptable response
was mayhem!’ Image by Matt Greenlees.
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