The ‘Wrangler’ Writes...
Well, we’re into the breeding
season again, and good luck to
all those hoping for big things.
The first expo of the summer is
also rapidly approaching, with
the WAHS event being held at
the Claremont Showgrounds
on Saturday 9th and Sunday
10th November. There is also a
special dinner, and speakers are
rumoured to include Rob Bredl,
Peter Krauss and Neville Burns.
As usual, it promises to be great,
so get along if you can.
Speaking of our good friend
Peter Krauss, this issue kicks
off with some of his observations on aggression
and cannibalism. Peter is a keen student of reptile
behaviour, and has some interesting insights
to share on the topic. Then Chris and James
Haberfield have contributed an in-depth analysis
of the husbandry of the Mangrove Monitor. They
have enjoyed consistent success with this species,
so this is invaluable information for keepers of
varanids.
Next, we talk to one of the real characters of the
hobby, Nigel Sowter. Nigel is renowned for his
collection of Tiger Snakes (and books, mugs, and
fridge magnets....), and no wonder considering
the amazing variety of forms in his possession.
Ben Dessen offers some tips on how to break into
a career with animals, and we revisit one of our
favourite conservation projects - Gnaraloo, on the
coast of WA - only to find that the state government
has failed dismally in the management of feral
pests.
Plus Ben Cooper remembers growing up in the
Territory, and developing a love for the local carpet
pythons, and Callum McKercher takes us frogging
with all the advantages of the latest apps. Neville
Burns comes face-to-face with a massive death
adder, and Vickie Lillo visits one of only a handful
of turtle hospitals in the United States. Hopefully
there’s something for everyone!
Finally, in a break from normal scheduling, our
next issue will be published on Friday 5th December
2019. It’s a special Xmas issue, with some wonderful
features, so don’t miss it.
Happy Herping!
John McGrath
iHerp Australia
Issue 15 | November 2019
CONTENTS
Aggression &
Cannibalism in Reptiles.
4
4
Peter Krauss reflects on some
rather brutal behaviour.
12
Captive Husbandry of the
Mangrove Monitor
will only call from mud chambers in soaks alongside
(Varanus indicus).
rainforest streams.
12
Another more recent book that is also worth checking out
is Scott Eipper and Peter Rowland’s A Naturalist’s Guide
to the Frogs of Australia.
Every aspect of keeping a species
With such a wide range of life history traits it is
important to know 1.
the habits
and
requirements
the to
Guide
books
are extremely
after
that
they can be of
prone
Brown
Snakes.
I remem- helpful, however there is one
high on many herpers’ wish
lists.
species
in your area before biting
venturing
out
into
the
field.
part of
amphibian
that they can’t quite
each other’s tails and legs off. vital bered
John
Cann had identification
a
There are as many guide books
on who
the market
as to there
communicate
useful
manner - frog calls. This gap has
Anyone
has tried
raise are
a
good video in of a one
snake
frog species; I would recommend
book with
a
addressed
recently
by the free citizen science
clutch of a bearded
dragons
together been eating
another,
so I asked
comprehensive introductory
section
that
covers
FrogID.
would
know
that
they topics
are liable to mobile
him app
about
it while Released
compil- in 2017, this has made frog
such as life histories, biology,
anatomy
and
habitat
identification
easier
than
do the same thing. And if you keep a
ing this article. He said ever, and is one of the best
associations. Distribution maps
another
particularly
for amateur
froggers.
FrogID contains an
bunch are
of baby
Antaresia
together resources
this incident
occurred
in
helpful feature as they help and
focus
search
for you are
put your
in a few
pinkies,
Gundagai quite a few
amphibians. For identification
value
and the The hatchling
asking
for trouble.
years back. Apparently,
sheer amount of information
it contains,
I to cannibalise
pythons
are likely
the owner or perhaps the
have found Tadpoles and Frogs
of Australia
each other,
but because the ‘food’
manager of the local meat
by Marion Anstis to be the items
best guide
date,
are too to big
for their digestive
works arrived home to
however it is impractical to systems,
take into
a field
they
will regurgitate their
observe a large Eastern Brown
had had the story checke
setting. For the purposes of siblings
field identifica-
after a day or two. In each
Snake in the act of swallowing a Red
it is supposed to be true
tion, I would recommend Field
Guide
to
the
case you lose not one snake but
-bellied Black Snake. The man went
that most elapids can ha
Frogs of Australia: Revised Edition by
two, as the culprit is also likely to die to get his camera, but when he
venom of other elapids w
Michael J Tyler and Frank Knight. While this
soon afterwards.
returned the black snake had
effect.
book is a little old, it has all the common
three were sold; we later found out that the
‘female’
was
So,
once
again
we
started
our
hunt
for a female. Next we
extricated itself and was crawling
species found in Australia, with information
in fact a smaller male and the ‘pre-mating behaviour’ we purchased a ‘guaranteed’ sub-adult female from
Of course, observed
none of
these
examples
away!
Mulga with
Snakes,
was
actually
one
male
exercising
his
domination
Queensland
that
was
a
beautiful
monitor
distinct or King Br
about their habitat occupancy, species
would occur
wild,
as
over in
the the
other.
Nevertheless,
we like a challenge so we
yellow spots and about 60cm total Snakes,
length. However,
its notoriou
are also
descriptions and distribution maps. recommenced our search for a compatible pair.
time to
as a John.
female ‘The
was short lived, because as soon as we
newborns or hatchlings quickly
‘Surely not,’ I said
cannibalistic.
Once in the
We subsequently purchased two pairs of proven breeders removed it from its travel container,
it tried to bite and
disperse in of different
but
brown snake must have spat it out.’
an unknown directions,
age. We
I used to take tourists on
one male elapids
and housed
combating sold
amongst
is
But John was adamant that the
remaining trio together
were travelling on the ba
obviously the
well
documented -
black snake had survived to make
in the same enclosure we
soon and
as we
from Pine Creek to Kakad
particularly
snakes
good ‘As
its escape,
told removed
me that he the ‘guaranteed’
had black
kept the
previous and Eastern
‘The Tiger Sanctuary.’ 24
What’s New?
Ben’s Reptiles 101: 36
Interview: Nigel Sowter.
‘Living the Dream.’ Pursuing a
Career Working with Animals.
24
female from its travel container, it tried to bite
and popped its hemipenes.’
Mangrove Monitors. This
proved to be a mistake as
the male killed the
‘foreign’ female within a
few weeks. Then the
second female escaped by scratching a hole through the
wall of the enclosure (also the wall of our reptile room)
and made her way outside into our backyard. The larger
male was caught attempting to escape through the same
hole, but it was too big to do so. It was mid-July and we
live in the hills east of Melbourne so it was very cold
outside. About a week later our dog Mera (who is half
dingo) alerted us to something interesting in the garden
and, lo and behold, there was the female curled up under
Above left: Green Tree Frog
some leaves. We slowly warmed her up, but she had
developed a respiratory infection. Antibiotics were
(Litoria caerulea) from
administered and she seemed to recover temporarily,
Coombabah Lakes
however she died about three months later. We were
they
don’t
get any
sun,
so male.
I put them in tubs
devastated,
and winter
left with
a lone
Conservation Area. This
What’s Up?
Turtles Threatened as WA
Govt scores EPIC FAIL!
38
3 .
43
Ben Cooper remembers
common
species has taken to
A Northern Territory
Tail!
living alongside humans.
in the garage for the remaining three months. I
don’t give them any heat, so that’s my way of cool-
ing them. Keeping snakes outside is like keeping
Above right: Eastern Sedge birds in an aviary; they look better outdoors and are
Frog (Litoria fallax) from easier to manage. You don’t want to bring them
back inside after that.
popped its hemipenes. Definitely a male - both in attitude
and reproductive anatomy. We returned the monitor to the
seller, and about a month later saw an advertisement
online for a beautiful ‘blue’ sexed sub-adult female, again
from Queensland. By this time we were getting better at
sexing these monitors, and were pleased to confirm on
arrival that she was in fact a female, about 70cm long. We
were concerned about putting her with our much larger
male (remembering it had already killed a female) so we
decided to sell him and look for a sub-adult specimen. We
contacted the seller of the yellow male that we had
returned and promptly repurchased him. Finally, after five
years, there were signs of promise, as we now had a
young sub-adult pair of Mangrove Monitors.
46
Carbrook Wetlands. Small
growing up near Darwin.
species of frogs are often best
Plus I like a challenge, and getting juvenile elapids
located by relying upon their to start feeding is always a challenge. Everyone
should learn how to raise a baby elapid, just to
calls.
appreciate them more.
Right: Graceful Tree Frog
(Litoria gracilenta) from
iH: What are your secrets to getting them to feed?
Karawatha State Forest; one
NS: I’ve had a lot of success with ox heart - not as
of our most photogenic
a staple, long-term diet, but just to get the snakes
species.
feeding by themselves. I only tried it initially
All images by Callum
because I used to keep fish (Oscars) and I fed it to
them. I assume it must be the blood in it that makes
McKercher.
Frogging for First-Timers.
Developing a
Fascination for Frogs.
46
it attractive, and it seems to work better fresh rather
than out of the freezer. I believe a few other people
are now using ox heart or chicken heart.
52
Neville Burns investigates
The Melrose Monster!
an ‘exponential adder’.
The Georgia Sea
Turtle Center.
I’ve also had a lot of success with juvenile Tiger
Snakes using feeder fish from aquarium shops. Ron
Waters introduced me to mouse drumsticks, but I
worry about the bone; fish are nice and slimy. Then
once the young snakes get to their first shed they
are ready to take a scented pinky.
For me, Red-bellied Black Snakes are the worst. I’ve
tried everything to get them to take their first pinky,
but force feeding is a last resort. Having said that,
1. An early photo of the outdoor pits taken in
December, 2010. Image by Nigel Sowter.
2. A beautiful male Bruny Island Tiger Snake. Nigel i
hoping to breed this locality one day. Image by Vin
Pintaudi.
3. Male Mount Gambier Tiger Snake. Specimens from
this region are well known for their striking colour
and patterns. Image by Nigel Sowter.
4. A couple of Lowlands Copperheads. Nigel has abo
ten specimens of various colours, but is yet to bree
the species. Image by Nigel Sowter.
54
54
“It’s all about rehab,
education and research.”
‘While assisting in the meticulous
counting of turtle eggs, the
Publisher: John McGrath
[email protected]
IT & Marketing: Andy Round
[email protected]
Social Media: Vince Pintaudi
Additional Design:
Rachael Hammond
Website: www.iherpaustralia.com.au
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/iherpaustralia/
was way out and we put them into the sea. We were
all cheering.” Charlotte goes on to admit, “Basically,
I’ve been in love with turtles my whole life!”
Dr Steen leaves us in the capable hands of
Alejandra Rios, who goes by ‘Ale’, and leads the
tour. Run by the education
‘Turtle Ladies of Charleston behind-the-scenes
centre, the additional fee for this introspective
session provides vital funding for the GSTC. We
Postal
Address:
County’
dug down into the sand saunter towards the Treatment Room.
12 Haines
Street
Mitcham,
“This is the fish 3132
bowl – you can see us and we can
and rescued
hatchlings
that Victoria,
see you,” Alejandra jokes. At the moment, with all
available personnel busy preparing for possible
Advertising
Enquiries:
were
trapped.’
evacuation due to Hurricane Dorian, the sparkling-
clean operating room is devoid of patients. Ale gives
Diagnostic x-rays revealed her injuries were
us a run-down of the procedures. First, the
[email protected]
attributed to yet another disastrous encounter with
veterinary team will give a new arrival an initial
marine craft. ‘Amelia’, a River Cooter (Pseudemys
physical examination. Blood analysis, x-rays and
[email protected]
concinna) is being treated for a busted carapace.
other diagnostic tests follow. Since a distressed
turtle does not vocalize pain, its level of discomfort
Staring, cover:
mesmerized, into
a tub of
recently-hatched
must Gecko
be gauged by range of mobility, level of
On the
The
Chameleon
tortoises, Charlotte Austin, of Augusta, GA, comes
activity and appetite. Tramadol, with its opioid
here every year for the ‘awesome experience’.
properties, and meloxicam, a nonsteroidal,
(Carphodactylus
laevis)
a unique
species
Three years ago, she laboured
alongside the is
‘Turtle
anti-inflammatory
drug, are both used for daily pain
Ladies of Charleston County’, donning gloves and
management, while lidocaine, a local anaesthetic,
in the meticulous counting
of turtle eggs.
sedative dexmedetomidine
from assisting
a monotypic
genus,
and and
is the endemic
to are used for
Digging down into the sand, the women rescued a
more intensive wound care.
couple of hatchlings that were trapped. “The tide
the rainforests
of the Wet Tropics.
Image by Michael Cermak.
Disclaimer:
The opinions expressed in our published works are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions of iHerp Australia or its editors.
The information contained has been obtained by iHerp Australia from sources believed to be reliable. However, neither iHerp Australia nor its authors guarantees the accuracy or completeness of any information
published herein and neither iHerp Australia nor its authors shall be responsible for any errors, omissions, or claims for damages, including exemplary damages, arising out of use, inability to use, or with regard to
the accuracy or sufficiency of the information contained in iHerp Australia publications.
All rights reserved.