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Reptile and Amphibian Study
Merit Badge
1
Created by Robert ‘Scorpio’ Carlin, T2319 Eagle, 2020
T2319 Reptile & Amphibian Merit Badge Counselor OPA Tom Schmeltzer
Requirements1. Describe the identifying characteristics of six species of reptiles and four species of amphibians found in the
United States. For any four of these, make sketches from your own observations or take photographs. Show markings, color patterns, or other characteristics that are important in the identification of each of the four species. Discuss the habits and habitats of all 10 species.
2. Discuss with your merit badge counselor the approximate number of species and general geographic distribution of reptiles and amphibians in the United States. Prepare a list of the most common species found in your local area or state.
3. Describe the main differences between (a) Amphibians and reptiles (b) Alligators and crocodiles (c) Toads and frogs (d) Salamanders and lizards (e) Snakes and lizards
4. Explain how reptiles and amphibians are an important component of the natural environment. List four species that are officially protected by the federal government or by the state you live in and tell why each is protected. List three species of reptiles and three species of amphibians found in your local area that are not protected. Discuss the food habits of all 10 species.
5. Describe how reptiles and amphibians reproduce. 6. From observation, describe how snakes move forward. Describe the functions of the muscles, ribs, and belly
plates. 7. Describe in detail six venomous snakes and the one venomous lizard found in the United States. Describe their
habits and geographic range. Tell what you should do in case of a bite by a venomous species.
Requirements8. Do ONE of the following:• (a) Maintain one or more reptiles or amphibians for at least a month. Record food accepted, eating methods, changes in
coloration, shedding of skins, and general habits; or keep the eggs of a reptile from the time of laying until hatching; or keep the eggs of an amphibian from the time of laying until their transformation into tadpoles (frogs) or larvae (salamanders). Whicheveryou chose, keep records of and report to your counselor how you cared for your animal/eggs/larvae to include lighting, habitat, temperature and humidity maintenance, and any veterinary care requirements.
• (b) Choose a reptile or amphibian that you can observe at a local zoo, aquarium, nature center, or other such exhibit (such as your classroom or school). Study the specimen weekly for a period of three months. At each visit, sketch the specimen in its captive habitat and note any changes in its coloration, shedding of skins, and general habits and behavior. Discuss with yourcounselor how the animal you observed was cared for to include its housing and habitat, how the lighting, temperature, and humidity were maintained, and any veterinary care requirements. Find out, either from information you locate on your own or by talking to the caretaker, what this species eats and what are its native habitat and home range, preferred climate, average lifeexpectancy, and natural predators. Also identify any human-caused threats to its population and any laws that protect the species and its habitat. After the observation period, share what you have learned with your counselor.
9. Do TWO of the following: • (a) Identify at night three kinds of toads or frogs by their voices. Imitate the song of each for your counselor. Stalk each with a flashlight and
discover how each sings and from where. • (b) Identify by sight eight species of reptiles or amphibians.• (c) Using visual aids, give a brief talk to a small group on three different reptiles and amphibians.
10. Tell five superstitions or false beliefs about reptiles and amphibians and give a correct explanation for each. Give seven examples of unusual behavior or other true facts about reptiles and amphibians.
Background• The study of Reptiles and Amphibians is called Herpetology• Paired together because of Carl Linnaeus• You will sometimes hear reptiles and amphibians referred to as
“herps”, and looking for them as “herping”
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
• Vertebrates• Lay hard shelled, cleidoic, and amniotic eggs• Keratinized scales• Coldblooded (Ectothermic)• Composed of Squamates (Lizards and
Snakes), Turtles, Tuataras, and Crocodiles (and Birds! More on that later)
What are the Defining Characteristics (Synapomorphies) of Reptiles?
Yes!• Genetically, birds are just advanced crocodiles• You can see the phylogeny below• It’s a bit too complicated to go into with this, so I
would recommend using Google Scholar to do your own research into it
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Are Birds Reptiles?
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
• Vertebrates• Ectothermic• All living amphibians
are classified as Lissamphibia
• Most lay soft-shelled eggs, some give live birth
• Composed of Salamanders, Frogs, and Caecilians
• Smooth, wet skin• Require moisture
What are the Defining Characteristics (Synapomorphies) of Amphibians
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
• Snout shape and teeth• Only 2 species of True
Alligator (American and Chinese)
• Several other species of Caiman, which are in the family Alligatoridae
• 14 species of true crocodiles, plus 2 species of Gavialidae (Gharial and Tomistoma)
What is the difference between Alligators and Crocodiles?
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
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Difference Between Alligators, Crocodiles, Caimans, and Gharials
Chinese Alligator(Alligatorsinensis) sinensis)
Saltwater Crocodile (Crocodylus porosus)
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
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Difference Between Alligators, Crocodiles, Caimans, and Gharials
Spectacled Caiman (Caiman crocodilus)
Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus)
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
What is the difference between Frogs and Toads?
• Skin• Habitat• All toads are frogs, but not all frogs are toads
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
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Anuran Phylogeny
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
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What is the difference between a Salamander and a Lizard?
• Lizards are Reptiles• Salamanders are Amphibians
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
What is the difference between Snakes and Lizards?
• Genetically, not much actually
• Snakes have an unfused jaw and no eyelids, hips, limbs, or external ears
• Both are Squamates• Lizards have limbs,
hips, eyelids, fused jaw, and external ears
Requirement
3
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Legless Lizards • Are what their name says, lizards without legs• However, they still have external ears, a fused
jaw, and eyelids• Also have dorsolateral fold, which neither snakes
nor lizards have
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Frogs Reproduce?• Use external reproduction• Male fertilizes eggs as the female lays them• All amphibians have larval stage before
metamorphosizing into adults• Picture shows 2 frogs in amplexus
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Salamanders Reproduce?
• External Reproduction (Sort of)• In some cases they reproduce like frogs• Other cases the male leaves a spermatophore for
the female to pick up later• Some species guard eggs, some don’t
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Caecilians Reproduce?
• Internal Reproduction• Some lay eggs (oviparous)• Some have live birth (viviparous)• After birth, the mother produces a nutritious skin
layer that the larvae scrap off and eat
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Turtles Reproduce?
• Internal Fertilization • Most species do not guard their eggs, but some do
(Burmese Mountain Tortoise)• Reptile gender is dependent on temperature that
the eggs incubate at, warmer temperatures produce females, cooler temperature produce males
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Squamates and Tuataras Reproduce?
• Internal Reproduction• Some are oviparous (lay eggs), some are viviparous
(live birth), and some are ovoviviparous (eggs develop in the mother’s body and then hatch inside of mother)
• Some species guard their eggs and occasionally young, but some don’t
• Squamates are also able to reproduce with parthenogenesis
• In doing this the female basically clones herself so that she does not need a male to reproduce
• Interestingly, while most lizards and snakes can only produce female offspring through parthenogenesis, Komodo Dragons can only produce males
• This is due to Komodo dragons having opposite sex chromosomes as humans, so 2 identical chromosomes produces a male, not a female.
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Parthenogenesis
Requirement
5
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Crocodilians Reproduce?
• Internal Reproduction• Females will guard the eggs and young• Females make large mounds of decomposing
plants to guard the eggs and to help incubate them
Requirement
6
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How do Snakes move?
• Concertina movement is also called accordion movements. The snake fixes one loop in one position and moves the other forward, pulls the first loop forward, then repeats
• Serpentine movements is a long continuous motion
• Sidewinding is basically the snake throwing part of its body forward
• Sidewinding is only seen in desert habitats
• Caterpillar motion is used by large, heavy bodied snakes and uses the muscles around the ventral scales
• 4 Major type of locomotion• All types involve either the ventral scales or the muscles around
their vertebrate
• Around 460 species of reptile and amphibians
• Most species are in the Southeast US
• At the Southeast fall line the number of amphibians goes up
Requirement
2
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
US Reptiles and Amphibians
• Southeast has the greatest diversity of salamander out of anywhere on the planet
• One of the highest diversities of turtles in the world
Requirement
2
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Southeast Reptile and Amphibian Distribution
• Eastern Box Turtle (T. c. carolina)• Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis)• Ringneck Snake (Diadophis punctuates)• Green Tree Frog (Hyla cinerea)• Red Salamander (Pseudotriton ruber)• American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
Requirement
2
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Common Southeastern Species
• Prey-many are prey items to other reptiles and amphibians, birds of prey, and mammals
• Predators-larger snakes help keep rodent populations down, snapping turtles eat carrion in rivers and lakes
• Keystone species-Gopher Tortoise burrows provide shelter to dozens of other species, including several other endangered and rare species
Requirement
4
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
How are Reptiles and Amphibians important to the environment?
• Gopher Tortoise-Federally endangered due to habitat loss
• Pine Snakes-State Threatened due to habitat loss and lack of information about species
Requirement
4
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Protected Species
• Hellbender-State Rare, being considered for federal listing due to habitat loss and bycatch
• Gopher Frog-State Rare due to habitat loss. Considered the rarest species of frog in Georgia
Requirement 1Describe the identifying characteristics of six species of reptiles and four species of amphibians found in
the United States. For any four of these, make sketches from your own observations or take
photographs. Show markings, color patterns, or other characteristics that are important in the identification
of each of the four species. Discuss the habits and habitats of all 10 species.
Resources for Requirement 1• Savanah River Ecology Laboratory Herpetology
website: http://srelherp.uga.edu/• Amphibian Foundation:
https://www.amphibianfoundation.org/• Any AZA (Association of Zoos and Aquariums)
accredited zoo or aquarium (e.g. Zoo Atlanta, Georgia Aquarium, Tennessee Aquarium, Chattanooga Zoo)
• Vipers (Rattle Snakes, Cottonmouths, Copperheads)
• Elapids (coral snakes, others are cobras, mambas, taipans)
• Some colubrids (boomslangs, genus Boiga, some US species have a very mild venom that doesn’t normally affect humans)
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Venomous Reptiles
• Venomous Lizards (Gila Monsters, Beaded Lizards, Komodo Dragons and a few others)
• 6 species total
• Coral Snake- smaller snake with colorful red, black, and yellow marking
• Copperhead-look for Hershey kisses on side
• Cottonmouth/Water Moccasin- heavy bodied, when threatened they open their mouth which has a cotton color, hence the name
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
IDing Georgia Venomous Snakes
• Timber rattlesnake-Heavy body with zig-zag marking down back and black tail
• Pygmy Rattlesnakes-smaller snake with tiny, hard to hear rattle. Look for lateral spots
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
IDing Georgia Venomous Snakes Cont.
• Eastern Diamondback rattle snake- Large snake with large head, look for rattle on tail and large diamond markings on back
• DON’T GO NEAR IT• Most venomous snake bites happen when people try to
either kill or touch the snake and don’t know what they are doing
• Snakes are not aggressive, but will bite if you scare them enough
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
What to do if you encounter a venomous snake?
• Get person away from the snake
• Call 911• Apply pressure bandage above bite to restrict blood flow but
not cut it off• Don’t try to catch the snake for the doctors, they don’t need it
• Doctors will give you antivenin at the hospital
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Venomous Reptile Bite First Aid
• Doctors will give you pain medication but that’s about all they can do
• Symptoms from bites usually last only around 3 days
• It will be some of the worst pain you will ever feel, but unless you have an allergic reaction to the venom it won't kill you
Requirement
7
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Venomous Reptiles
• If you are bit by a venomous lizard, follow all the same steps• The only thing different is that there is no antivenin for
venomous lizards
You have to do Requirements 8 & 9
on your own
Requirement 8 • If you have a reptile or amphibian at home, then
you can do the requirement with them• If not, you can see if there are zoo or aquariums
with live cams on reptiles or amphibians
Requirement 9• At this time (during self quarantine), it is probably easiest
to do Part C with your family or any other group that you can do a safe talk with. Just record it in some way and send it to your counselor!
• For the other 2 parts, Part A can be hard since some frog calls are difficult to tell apart, but if you can do it great!
• For Part B, the best way to do it at this time would be to take pictures of wild reptiles or amphibians, identify them, and send the pictures with the identification to you merit badge counselor.
• All Snakes with triangular heads are venomous= False• Many nonvenomous snakes will make their heads look
triangular to both increase surface area for basking and to mimic venomous snakes
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
• Copperheads smell like cucumbers= False
• No…just no.• I have no idea
how this came around, but it is completely false
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
• Toads give you warts= False• Not sure where this came from, but toads
defiantly do not give you warts
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
• Coachwhips can bite their tail and role down hills=False
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
• Milk snakes drink milk from cows=False• If you find a milk snake in your barn, its
looking for mice and other rodents, not milk
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
• The only good snake is a dead snake=False
• As was discussed before, snakes are very beneficial to their ecosystems
• Also, most venomous snake bites happen when people are trying to kill the snakes, so don’t kill them
• Many states, including Georgia, have laws that prohibit killing nonvenomous snakes
Requirement
10
Reptile and Amphibian
Study
Reptile and Amphibian Myths
Thank You!