(Part 2) Best biology of repriles & amphibians books according to redditors

Camera angle probably contributes to this particular picture, but old leatherbacks do get to be about the size of a VW beetle and can be over a ton. The front flippers can be 9 feet long. Basically they're big enough that if you need to move one, pickup trucks are generally too small (their flippers usually hang over the edge of the pickup and can reach the ground).

Relatively few leatherbacks today can live long enough to reach those kinds of sizes anymore, though. Unfortunately they usually get tangled in a fishing net or get hit by a ship before they get that old.

source: I am a biologist & do some work with leatherbacks. Check out the fantastic book "Voyage of the Turtle" to learn alllllll about leatherbacks.

Cogger is the bible, fortunately is was reprinted recently (7th edition, get that). It used to be 600+ dollars before that.

https://www.amazon.com/Reptiles-Amphibians-Australia-Harold-Cogger/dp/0643100350

They are hardly what I would call rare, uncommon sure. They remain on protected status because the state gets a federal stipend to keep it that way.. It works in their favor (the gilas) tbh, they are kept as pets in other states. There was concerns back in the early 50s export to Europe was high and little was known about them..was the main reason they were quickly given the protected status.

Highly recommend this book http://www.amazon.com/Biology-Monsters-Lizards-Organisms-Environments/dp/0520259874

My two specialties are Snapping Turtles and embryology (incubation) so if you have any specific questions related to those I can definitely send some materials your way. Oh, I forgot, if you like Snapping Turtles at all I LOVE "Biology of the Snapping Turtle", it's very pretty and made up of scientific essays on many aspects of their biology. https://www.amazon.ca/Biology-Snapping-Turtle-Chelydra-serpentina/dp/0801887240

If you're looking for a comprehensive, detailed guide to general herpetology, this textbook has most of that:
Link

It's a bit of a read, and I certainly haven't read all/most of it but it will have most information you'd be interested in knowing. I'd recommend having a dictionary of herpetology or some sort of biological dictionary to go along with it as not all of the words are explained completely clearly.

Just so you know, I'm no herpetologist, just someone who's trying to get there.

A general idea of location would help greatly. For example, Peterson's 4th edition has the most up to date taxonomy for half the the US, and is fairly detailed, but Werler and Dixon's Texas Snakes has a ton of easy to read snake natural history information, but is limited to Texas.

If you can give us a location we can perhaps give better suggestions.

We have this book in our lab. I've only glanced through it but it's definitely on my list of books to own.

Thank you to everyone who participated, to those who answered yes, I'd be interested to know what you keep.


Anyone interested in keeping venomous specimens or working with them in the field should consider buying a copy of [This book] (http://www.amazon.com/Venomous-Snakes-Captivity-Safety-Husbandry/dp/1411629493) [This book] (http://www.amazon.com/Venomous-Snakes-Terrarium-Vol/dp/1575241382/ref=pd_sim_b_2/183-8283002-6256949?ie=UTF8&refRID=1A7X5NCF8TA36BR7C6CN) and [this book] (http://www.amazon.com/Venomous-Snakes-World-Mark-OShea/dp/0691150230/ref=pd_sim_b_4/183-8283002-6256949?ie=UTF8&refRID=1A7X5NCF8TA36BR7C6CN)

These are the venomous bibles, if you will, and make for some good reading.


Thank you again to everyone who participated.

That book looks awesome and a must have, but holy smokes the price tag!

https://www.amazon.ca/Turtles-United-States-Canada-Ernst/dp/0801891213/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1466010396&sr=8-1&keywords=Turtles+of+the+United+States+and+Canada


:(

One of my all-time favorite herp books is Dragon Songs, which gives a fascinating look into the world of crocodilian communication and social behavior. Crocodile: Evolution's Greatest Survivor is very interesting, too. It's more of a general overview of crocodilians.

I also found this one that looks pretty good: American Alligator: Ancient Predator in the Modern World.

Dragon Songs is probably the best on the list, simply because it takes such an interesting approach to understanding crocodilians.