Welcome

First things first, I apologize to all you dragon-lovers out there, I have deceived you. This blog has nothing to do with dragons and everything to do with lizards! Facts about lizards, history of lizards, bios of specific species, how lizards are depicted in society, and anything else that happens to take my fancy. 

If lizards are not your thing you may be in the wrong place but make sure to check out Fun Biological Phenomena while you're here, I promise it has nothing to do with lizards and it may make you giggle. 

To all those who are still vaguely intrigued, welcome. 

'Lizard in Society' Update

Holes 

 2003
Shia LaBeouf as Stanley Yelnats IV covered in the deadly "yellow-spotted lizards."
This lizard doesn't actually exist, the ones you see here are bearded dragons with makeup for the spots.

A central bearded dragon, the most likely species of bearded dragon used in the movie.
This lizard to not as big as it appears, which kind of threw me off. 

Teen Wolf

2012
The character Jackson (Colton Haynes) seen as a kanima, 
which looks lizard-ish... definitely reptile like.
Similar to The Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man comic, also no idea what species this was based off of, he's got some ridges on his back though.



Cirque du Soleil

Cali in the Cirque du Soleil production of Amaluna. I just saw it and it is amazing! I was so excited to see a lizard/human character. The story is based off of Shakespeare's The Tempest. If you ever get the chance to go to Cirque du Soleil I highly recommend it.  

To see more pictures like these check out my Lizard in Society page.

My Thoughts on Lizards in Society

The only way to start, I think is at the beginning, the very beginning. Now your probably wondering why I'm going to talk about things that have no lizards involved whatsoever, but the way I see it before I talk about lizards specifically I have to show you the emergence of animals into the minds of society in general. 

Anthropomorphism and personification of animals has a long history only part of which I will get into here. Many fables, myths, and religions include animals with human characteristics in their stories. Some of those examples are the animal form of a divine being.

Bronze statue of the Egyptian cat goddess Bastet

A scene in the Indian fable, Panchatantra, where the rabbit fools the elephant
 by showing him a reflection of the moon.

FAQ Update

Check out my newly updated FAQ page! Send me more questions for the FAQ page in the comment's section and I will endeavor to answer them in timely fashion.

Here's a cool lizard picture for your viewing pleasure.

The eastern collared lizard (Crotaphytus collaris)

Highlights and Tips from the Desert

The last in the series of posts about my adventures in the Alvord Desert. My tips for roughing it in the desert and a few of the highlights from my research trip, in no particular order. To read more about what I actually did in the desert see:

The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part I
The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part II
The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part III

• Short tents and sturdy tent pegs are a good idea, this is not something to take lightly, it is very windy in the desert.

That was my professor's tent by the way...he should really have taken his own advice. 

He thought this was hilarious though.

To My Readers

Dear Readers,

Now that my blogging course is coming to an end I must decide what to do with this blog. Fortunately for you I chose a topic that I knew I would want to continue blogging about. There are precious few things I enjoy more than looking up pictures of lizards, learning more about them and seeing a new species for the first time. I won't make any promises about the speed of my updates but I can tell you that I plan to continue posting and I even have a list of future posts in mind.

This has been my first time venturing into the world of blogging and I have been pleasantly surprised. It's been hard finding the time and motivation to do the research and writing for the posts but I have enjoyed learning new things and developing my voice to reflect the craziness that is my mind and releasing into the unsuspecting world.

Anyway, with this plan to continue the blog I may need some help coming up with ideas for future posts, so I ask that you comment below about anything you think might make a good post or that I might enjoy knowing about,  it could be a cool animal, questions or clarifications about lizards, college, herpetology, my experiences, your experiences, pretty much everything is fair game. And in the spirit of sharing, I will show you what has made my rather awful day just a little bit better even though I am overloaded with studying that really needs to be done. Can't wait for this quarter to be over already...

I am not fond of spiders, I like to think that I'm made of sterner stuff but I will and have been know to shriek like a little girl when an overgrown spider finds it's way into my bathroom. I'm ashamed to admit it but just a few months ago as the mature, independent, 21 year old that I am, I made my daddy to get a spider out of the bathroom for me...it was not one of my prouder moments. Anyway this video made me smile and from now on I will always hear this voice whenever I see a spider. Enjoy.

I've re-watched this about ten times and it never gets old.

-Your ever diligent Hopeful Herpetologist

Another 'Lizard in Society' Update

The Magic School Bus

1994-1997

Liz, the pet sidekick to Miss Frizzle

The Jackson's lizard seems to be the most similar to Liz's design.

As you can probably see by now, entertainers tend to reuse lizard species a lot.

Godzilla

1998

Now before anybody says anything, I am aware that there are a lot of versions of Godzilla and his/her origin story varies widely. However, in this particular movie Godzilla is the result of a nuclear fallout near an iguana's nest.

That said I really liked this movie but it got bad reviews...then again I like just about anything that has Matthew Broderick in it.

So it's kind of hard to decide exactly what kind of lizard Godzilla is suppose to be and it doesn't help at the opening credits for the movie shows multiple species. I went with the marine iguana mostly because they look similar and Godzilla takes a swim in the Hudson River during the movie.

Colin Versus the World

2002

Colin, the only main character lizard I've ever seen in a TV show. Unfortunately only the pilot episode was aired and the show never caught on. I watched it and I'm sad to say that I'm not surprised it ended with episode. See the one and only episode here. By the way, this is the only thing I've ever looked on the internet for pictures of and they just didn't exist.

This is a Wellington green gecko. I really have to idea what kind of lizard Colin might be, but I'm guessing he's a gecko of some kind, because of his sticky tongue but there are really no distinguishing marks so this is my best guess.

GEICO Gecko

 1999-present

I don't believe the GEICO gecko has a name but we all know him. 

I love GEICO commercials, they must have a great PR team. 

And it does make me happy to see a lizard mascot.

The Madagascar giant day gecko. Nobody seems to know what kind of day gecko the GEICO gecko is and it doesn't help that there are 43 species of day geckos.

 I think this is a pretty good approximation. 

The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part III

So here it is, the wrap up of my adventures in the desert. At last the time is here and you have -hopefully- read the background story so this makes some sense.

The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part I
The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part II

If you haven't read these posts...you'll probably be fine anyway. And so, on to the skinning of rabbits...for science.

Near the end of the study my group had been radio tracking lizards for a few weeks, but the thing about this kind of radio tracking is that there is no computer that tells us where exactly this lizard has been, we can only find the lizard a few times a day and record where is was, we have no idea what it was doing the rest of that day. So to solve this problem scientists have come up with a method called "powder tracking." The concept behind this is to first glue fur to the stomach of a lizard, then fill the fur with ultraviolet fluorescent powder that will glow in ultraviolet light. 

Ultraviolet fluorescent powder

To powder track our lizards we glued rabbit fur to their stomach before they woke up and filled the fur with a certain colored powder and let them be, then we caught them again at midday when they're asleep or hiding because of the heat and fill the fur with a different colored powder. 

Phrynie hiding from the heat of the day in a borrowed burrow. On a rather sad note, this is a little dangerous seeing as the owner of this burrow might be home and none to happy about sharing. One of our powder tracked females was killed by what we believe to be was a young rattlesnake when she ventured into the wrong burrow.

The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part II

Read The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part I if you haven't already.

Now before you say anything  yes I do realize that I didn't actually answer the question of why we skinned rabbits in the last post even though I said I would...I'm just that mean I guess. Yeah, sorry about that.

On with the story, my group of four people, three girls and one boy, were tasked with the job of working with Phrynies, (nickname for the Phrynosoma Platyrhinos that can be seen on my welcome post) what this entailed was catching them, using the biggest ones for radio tracking,track and document the radio tracked lizards four to five times a day, morning (6-7 o'clock), mid-morning (9-10 o'clock), midday (12-2 o'clock), afternoon (5-7 o'clock), and maybe once more if the lizards hadn't yet settled in for the night.

This horned lizard has a red and yellow radio transmitter glued to her back
that allows researchers to find her and study her movement throughout the day.

The Trials and Tribulations of a Herpetologist Part I

The moment you have all been waiting for...why on Earth would I have to skin a rabbit in the name of science. 

A 'Lizard in Society' Update

A word from your ever diligent Hopeful Herpetologist,

I doubt many people look at "The Lizard in Society" page more than once so you may not know that I continuously update it whenever I find/remember new content. So here's what's new, enjoy!

Rango 
(I had no idea just how many lizards there were in this movie until i had to look at the cast list. 
4 lizards! I'm pretty sure that is the largest number of lizards in one movie I have ever seen).

2011

Rango Vazquez Gutierrez, a strange pet chameleon who becomes stranded in

 the desert and uses his unique wit to survive. 

Same family of lizards as Pascal from Tangled 

Chameleon...so cool!

YouTube Channel

A word from your ever diligent Hopeful Herpetologist,

Hello all, this is just a heads up that I have a YouTube channel with some desert fiasco and lizard related videos for those who are interested.

Sorry about the music, I just couldn't resist.

About the video:

One of the defense mechanisms for desert horned lizards is to tilt onto one side to make themselves look too big to eat, they also camouflage themselves under the sand while they sleep to hide from predators.

 This horned lizard has a red and yellow radio transmitter glued to her back that allows researchers to find her and study her movement throughout the day. Both lizards have paint markings, which makes it easier for researchers to find and identify previously captured individuals. It looks like the leopard lizard that tries to take a bite out of her got a taste of the paint and didn't seem to like it much. 

Personally, I think his eyes were a bit too big for his stomach, he'd have a heck of a time trying to swallow her.

In Honor of Lizards

This a poem one of my wonderfully talented roommates wrote for me as a Christmas present this year and, as it is also about lizards I thought I might share it with you. Enjoy.

In Honor of Lizards

for Anne 

(that's me...when I'm not being Hopeful Herpetologist)

Some might think it odd that Anne

Should choose to make her future plan

Involving certain small reptilians

But truly there are many millions

Of cogent reasons (as we’ll find)

Why all should love the lizard kind.

They’re small and quiet, quick and neat

Excepting, maybe, when they eat

Each other. Yes, sometimes they tend

To gobble up a smaller friend

And you’ll sometimes see them trot about

With half their lunch still sticking out.

But if that less than wholesome sight

Should make you lose your appetite

Never fear, there is a chance

You’ll study those that dine on ANTS!

And then the fun begins with speed

Hours of watching video feed—

Ants that leave and ants that stay

Ants that run around all day

Ants that go and ants that come

Until the end of Christendom.

And why? Well, that’s for you to see

You’re the scientist. Not me.

Of course you won’t spend every day

In such a sedentary way

You’ll go wherever the lizards go!

And where is that? Well, as you know

For cold-blooded creatures, the perfect spot

Is always where it’s very HOT.

  

So to the desert off you trek

In dust and sand up to your neck

Without a shower or a bed

Skinning bunnies you find dead

Chasing scales till morning light

Hoping the tent stays up at night.

And when you’re back to civilization

Still you have an obligation

To research, synthesize, regroup

And measure piles of lizard poop.

But there’s no doubt that lizards are

The pinnacle of life by far

And worth the hours, days and years

The strain, the sweat, the blood and tears.

Indeed, I can’t imagine who

Could something more fun to do.

So Anne, I wish you all the best

May you and lizards both be blessed

Good luck, good tidings, and Godspeed

(But I think I’ll stay at home and read.)

~Rachel~

On a side note, yes I did spend three weeks in the desert living in a tent with only two showers to hold me over. I also weighed and measured quite a lot of lizard poop and sent a few months counting ants on videos to help us understand the availability of prey for ant-eating lizards. A rabbit or two were skinned during this time but it was in the name of science I promise.

One of the lizards I worked with in the desert, the Western whiptail,
very hard to catch once they've warmed up.

It truly was a test of my love for lizards and I'm happy to say that I continue love them just as much, if not more than I did before.   

The Leopard Lizard. I think she's sun bathing in this person's hand 

The desert horned lizard, or horny toad if you prefer. They look so grumpy.

Just in case you were wondering about the part with
 "half their lunch hanging out."
Yes that is a leopard lizard in the process of digesting a whiptail,
lovely imagery isn't it? 

If any of you feel the need to know more about my experiences into the nitty-gritty part of science and herpetology, or simply to ask me something along the lines of why on Earth a rabbit had to skinned, leave a comment and I would be perfectly willing to expand on the story.

The Dangers of Asian Carp

I know I already have these videos posted but I wanted to put everything in one place just in case nobody bothers to look at the Fun Biological Phenomena page and gets really confused. So enjoy if you've never seen this and reminisce if you have. And if you just don't care, then have a nice day.

- a word from your ever diligent Hopeful Herpetologist

A Living Fossil: The Lungfish

Watch this video first, it will give you a good introduction to the lungfish.

The relevant stuff can be seen at beginning-1:37 and 4:30-end, but I highly suggest watching the whole video, you get to see the Thorny Devil, another awesomely cool lizard, whose adorably grumpy face your looking at right now.

The Basilisk Lizard

The Brown Basilisk is one of the species of basilisk lizards, also nicknamed the 'Jesus Christ lizard'

Not to be confused with the alternative rock band named The Jesus Lizard, whose music, in my opinion, is passable until somebody attempts to sing...not quite my type of music I'm afraid. 

Crazy Jumping Fish in River - Fishing Made Easy!

Asian carp, silver carp in particular, are best known for their tendency to jump out of the water when startled. As Asian carp can grow to be 100 lb and can jump 8 to 10 feet into the air they have been known to cause problems. See how extensive this invasive fish has become in our rivers!

You may also be interested in Peoria Carp Hunters

For more information see Fun Biological Phenomena: The Dangers of Asian Carp  

Peoria Carp Hunters

  

As Asian carp can grow to be 100lb and can jump 8 to 10 feet into the air they have been known to cause problems. There have been instances of boaters being injured by flying carp, a woman broke her nose and a vertebra and an inner tuber’s jaw was broken by colliding with one of these carp.

These fish are a danger to us all and good old American ingenuity has come to the rescue.   

For more information see Fun Biological Phenomena: The Dangers of Asian Carp