#SciFri: Zoo Knoxville
Today marks a year since the beginning of the first Global Amphibian and Reptile Disease (GARD) conference, held in Knoxville, Tennessee. I travelled to Knoxville alone (as I usually do for international conferences), visiting the United States for the first…
#SciFri: Herpetofauna Workers Meeting 2023
It sure has been a hot minute since I last posted on this blog! Sorry that it has been since July, I’ve been busy with wrapping up my PhD, and then taking a break from everything afterwards so that I…
#SciFri: ARC-BHS Joint Scientific Meeting 2021
It’s a shame that we are still yet to return to in-person conferences, I’m still looking forward to that day. However, with the ongoing uncertainty of the Omicron variant, and COVID transmission this winter (despite the fact most people have…
#StevesLibrary: Stolen World
Whenever you next walk into a pet shop that stocks exotic animals, take a look at the reptiles that stare back at you from their vivariums. It is very likely that you’ll find species such as the royal python (Python…
#SciFri: The potential for damage from the JNCC 7th Quinquennial Review
Something happened this week but it’s taken a few days to sink in. There was news from the Amphibian and Reptile Groups UK (ARG UK), that the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) was recommending the removal of protections to species…
#SciFri: May Project Update 2021
It’s that time of year again when I make my annual pilgrimage to Norfolk, in the attempt to catch as many grass snakes as I can. You’ll be glad to know that I have made it here nice and early…
#SciFri: Herpetofauna Workers Meeting 2021
The Herpetofauna Workers Meeting (HWM) has been a staple event for herpetologists in the UK since the first event back in the 1980s. This year’s HWM (on the 6th and 7th February) was the 34th that have been held between…
#SciFri: Why you should create a garden pond
Since 1950, we’ve lost a vast number of ponds from the British landscape. Not only has development been increasing since this time to house our ever growing population, farmland ponds have also disappeared. The farm landscape used to be dotted…
#SciFri: Reflecting on 2020, the year everyone wants to forget
For many people, this year has been quite a trying and stressful time. I fully sympathise with this view given the delays and isolation caused by lockdowns, in the attempt to curb the spread of COVID-19. To me, it has…
#SciFri: Why are there so few herpetologists in the UK?
As a herpetologist working in the UK, it has always struck me just how few of us there are. This stretches through the realms of professionals such as ecologists or academics to students with a focus on amphibian or reptile…
