Fenced-in desert tortoises rebound after huge decline
Desert tortoises suffered a “catastrophic decline” over two decades due to habitat degradation, extensive predation, disease and a lack of sufficient ...
reptiles
JWM: Gopher tortoise translocations deemed a “remarkable success”
Translocating gopher tortoises to a barrier island in Georgia has resulted in a “robust and secure” population two decades after major efforts. “If you do it ...
More than half of turtle species in the world face extinction
More than half of the nearly 500 species and subspecies of turtles and tortoises in the world are threatened with extinction. According to a review published ...
DNA reveals multiple rattler populations in British Columbia
Hundreds of genetic samples have revealed multiple distinct populations of western rattlesnakes in the northern part of their range in British Columbia. “Western ...
Recovering Georgia loggerheads face feral hog predation
Loggerhead sea turtle nests on Georgia’s Barrier Islands are experiencing improved survival rates, but invasive swine are the major predators affecting them. ...
Introduced lizards squeeze out native reptiles on Saipan
Thousands of miles from the West Coast of the U.S. mainland lies the tiny island of Saipan, a tropical island rainforest often known solely for the World War II ...
Storing sperm helps female sea turtles remain monogamous
Many female loggerhead sea turtles stay monogamous during mating seasons, likely by storing sperm, research reveals. Female loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) ...
Northern snakes face increasingly unstable winters
A threatened population of massasauga rattlesnakes in Canada is facing increasingly unstable conditions at the northern end of their range. Massasaugas (Sistrurus ...
JWM: Reptiles may benefit under grouse conservation umbrella
Conservation measures aimed at improving sagebrush environments for sage-grouse are also benefitting native reptile species. “There’s convincing evidence that ...
Prescribed fires burn turtles but may help egg-laying females
Prescribed fires may kill individual box turtles, but the aftermath produces favorable plots for egg-laying females. “The fire does create this challenging ...