Tucson Herpetological Society

UngulateNerd92

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10+ year member
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Since I have moved to Tucson, Pima County, Arizona in 2018, I have been member of the Tucson Herpetological Society. Their mission statement is as follows;


"Dedicated to the conservation, research, and education concerning the amphibians and reptiles of arizona and México"


On the last Monday of every month, they host a lecture presented by a different biologist or ecologist.


Earlier this evening from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm, I attended one of their lectures entitled "Fauna del Noroeste: A non-profit dedicated to research and conservation in northwestern Mexico" which was presented by Dr. Anny Peralta-Garcia, who is a co-founder of that organization. The lecture (which all THS lectures have been for the past year or so) was hosted on the second floor of the University of Arizona's Environment & Natural Resources Building. I really enjoyed this lecture and I am looking forward to the next one.


For the past year, the Tucson Herpetological Society records their lectures and shares them on their YouTube channel, which there are links to below;

Long-term Research on
the Effects of Urbanization on
Snakes and Lizards by Matt Goode, PhD -
School of Natural Resources,
University of Arizona:


Phylogeography of the
Western Banded Gecko
(Coleonyx variegatus) by Dean H. Leavitt, PhD
- San Diego Mesa College:


Lizard Abundance, Rattlesnake Removals, and Human-wildlife Interactions in Phoenix:
Using Long-term Ecological and Social Data to Study Urban Herpetofauna by Heather L. Bateman, PhD - College of Integrative Sciences and Arts,
Arizona State University:


C. w. obscurus & C. W. Painter: 30 Years of Research on the Animas Mountains Snake Community by Andrew T. Holycross, PhD - Mesa Community College & Arizona State University:

Providing Habitat for Aquatic Species in a Changing Climate by Dennis Caldwell:

Lizard Like a Rock - New Insights on Ditmars' Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma ditmarsi) by Tom Van Devender, Wade Sherbrooke, Dale Turner, Guillermo Molina-Padilla, and José Abel Salazar-Martínez:

Life and Death of the Flat-tailed Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma mcallii) by Anthony Pawlicki
- Biologist, Goode Lab, University of Arizona:


Harnessing the Power of Community Science to Understand the Behavior of a Secretive Misunderstood Animal by Emily Taylor PhD - Professor, Biological Sciences at California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo:

20 Years of Research on a Sonoran Desert Icon:
The Desert Tortoise by Taylor Edwards, PhD
- Conservation Geneticist, University of Arizona -
2012 Jarchow Conservation Award recipient:


Banana Republics and Smuggling Priests:
Antivenom in America from the 1890s Through World War 2 by Leslie V. Boyer MD - Professor Emerita of Pathology,University of Arizona College of Pharmacy:


Long-term Studies of Herpetofauna on the Metropolitan Edge; Conservation Insights from the Sonoran Desert by Brian K. Sullivan, PhD - School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences Arizona State University:
 
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Towards the end of the lecture "Phylogeography of the Western Banded Gecko (Coleonyx variegatus)" presented by Dr. Dean H. Leavitt. You can hear my voice. I asked the question about the fossil Coleonyx material excavated in Florida and which museum it was deposited at.

You can also hear my voice asking a question in the lecture, "Lizard Abundance, Rattlesnake Removals, and Human-wildlife Interactions in Phoenix:
Using Long-term Ecological and Social Data to Study Urban Herpetofauna" presented by Dr. Heather L. Bateman. I asked about urbanization and increasing drought conditions of Maricopa County potentially effecting the IUCN conservation status of certain species and I also asked about the establishment of captive breeding programs for certain taxa.

Yeah, now you guys know what my voice sounds like, slightly demystifying myself to those of you that only know of me from this forum.
 
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Here is the recording of the last Tucson lecture I attended, "Fauna del Noroeste: A non-profit dedicated to research and conservation in northwestern Mexico"

As you will hear towards the end, I asked about whether they have collaborated with the organization Mossy Earth.
 
Tonight at 7:00 pm, I'll be attending a lecture hosted by the Tucson Herpetological Society entitled "Invasive/Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles in Arizona" which will be presented by Randy Babb. I am looking forward to it. If anyone is interested in attending tonight's lecture virtually through zoom, here is a link;

Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting
 
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Tonight at 7:00 pm, I'll be attending a lecture hosted by the Tucson Herpetological Society entitled "Invasive/Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles in Arizona" which will be presented by Randy Babb. I am looking forward to it. If anyone is interested in attending tonight's lecture virtually through zoom, here is a link;

Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting

This lecture has finally been uploaded.

 
Here are more lectures from the Tucson Herpetological Society that I forgot to post here;

Southern African Endemic Herps by Randy Babb:


The Endangered Mud Turtle that Survives in the Driest River in Mexico: Sonoyta Mud Turtle by Miguel Angel Gregeda & Michael Bogan - University of Arizona:

Traditional Knowledge and Conservation of Sea Turtles of the Comcaac (Seri) by Gary Paul Nabhan - Desert Hill Laboratory at Tumamoc Hill, University of Arizona:

Bangladesh: Critters, Conservation, and Controversy by Scott Trageser - The Biodiversity Group:
 
Tonight, I attended another lecture hosted by the Tucson Herpetological Society. "A Brief History of
Amphibian & Reptile Conservation at
Arizona Game & Fish Department" This lecture was presented by Thomas R. Jones who served as the Amphibians & Reptiles Program Manager at the Arizona Game & Fish Department. It was a great honor meeting him! I learned a great deal from his lecture! This lecture was held in a building on Tumamoc Hill known as The Boathouse which is a part of the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill. The Boathouse was built in 1910 (two years before Arizona's statehood) and it's construction was funded by Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie and is one of the world's oldest continually operating research laboratories. It was quite fascinating being inside such a historic building. I have walked past this building on numerous occasions during my hikes up Tumamoc Hill, but I have never been inside that building before. Though I have done this before, I was fascinated looking through the glass at the plants exhibited in the greenhouse adjacent to The Boathouse. Holding our meeting there tonight made for an intriguing change of scenery. I definitely enjoyed tonight's lecture and I am looking forward to our THS lecture next month.

You can learn a bit about The Boathouse in this video below;
 
Tonight, I attended another lecture hosted by the Tucson Herpetological Society. "A Brief History of
Amphibian & Reptile Conservation at
Arizona Game & Fish Department" This lecture was presented by Thomas R. Jones who served as the Amphibians & Reptiles Program Manager at the Arizona Game & Fish Department. It was a great honor meeting him! I learned a great deal from his lecture! This lecture was held in a building on Tumamoc Hill known as The Boathouse which is a part of the Desert Laboratory on Tumamoc Hill. The Boathouse was built in 1910 (two years before Arizona's statehood) and it's construction was funded by Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie and is one of the world's oldest continually operating research laboratories. It was quite fascinating being inside such a historic building. I have walked past this building on numerous occasions during my hikes up Tumamoc Hill, but I have never been inside that building before. Though I have done this before, I was fascinated looking through the glass at the plants exhibited in the greenhouse adjacent to The Boathouse. Holding our meeting there tonight made for an intriguing change of scenery. I definitely enjoyed tonight's lecture and I am looking forward to our THS lecture next month.

You can learn a bit about The Boathouse in this video below;

Here is the video recording of this lecture;
 
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