previous poems posted (original collection)
amphisbaenians
amphisbaenians
autotomy
beneficial snakes
broad-headed skinks
brown anoles
Carolina anoles
crocodilians
(second collection)
Eastern glass lizards
eviction notice
fence lizards
five-lined skinks
geckos (on the ceiling)
gila monsters
going green
CURRENT CONTENTS:
Herpetophobes
Herpetophobes
Leaping lizards
Painted turtles
Red-eared sliders
Reptile fantasy
Skink-busting
More to follow
Authors' Note:
ophidiophobia: an extreme or incapacitating fear of snakes
herpetophobia: a similar anxiety disorder extending to all reptiles
The reptilian suborder Serpentes was previously known as Ophidia, a term derived from ophis, Greek for 'snake'.
Authors' Note: 'Leapin' Lizards' was a classic idiom used to express surprise, long before it was suspected that birds had evolved from reptiles!
Authors' Note: With four regional subspecies, the painted turtle, Chrysemus picta, has a range covering almost the entire United States and a part of Canada; it is North America's most common turtle.
The verse's tale, based on a recent experience by the author dealt with an attractive female belonging to the eastern subspecies, although her accent was definitely southern.
 |
| midland painted turtle (in Ontario), scurrying home |
Authors' Note: Most commonly, we think of asymptomatic carriers as humans who can transmit a microbial infection, but have no symptoms themselves; such diseases as typhoid and salmonellosis are well-known to be transmitted by carriers.
Similarly, pets may harbor organisms that cause human disease, although the animals themselves don't become ill. Salmonella bacteria are commonly found on the skins of certain lizards and most turtles. The red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta), a reptile native to the US, has attained notoriety in this regard; as children's pets they are cute, easy to care for, and inexpensive. Combined with their penchant for taking over ponds from native turtles, these traits underlie their status as an invasive species whose sale is now banned in many countries around the globe.
Similarly, pets may harbor organisms that cause human disease, although the animals themselves don't become ill. Salmonella bacteria are commonly found on the skins of certain lizards and most turtles. The red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta), a reptile native to the US, has attained notoriety in this regard; as children's pets they are cute, easy to care for, and inexpensive. Combined with their penchant for taking over ponds from native turtles, these traits underlie their status as an invasive species whose sale is now banned in many countries around the globe.
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