Ask a Herpetologist Anything

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you're not very knowledgeable and are not a herpetologist.
I wish you'd leave.

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>>2213739
I've answered quite a few questions accurately, helped other people and had wonderful conversations here. Deal with it.

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>>2213738
I started my lawnmower and decapitated a snake
I panicked and threw the moving body into the neighbor's yard and then their dog ate it

I just heard them this evening talking about taking the dog to the vet because their dog has been ill

Did I give the neighbor's dog my autism?

>>2213738
Do Tegus have a higher range of emotions than other reptiles or is that horse shit made by Tegu owners?

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>>2214033

>>2214042
All reptile owners make up lies. They think snakes show them affection.

>>2214033
More like salmonella.
Reptiles carry that I hear.

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>>2214042
Tegus are certainly intelligent, but I think most of it is probably anthropomorphizing by their owners. I haven't owned a tegu, nor has much been published about their intelligence that I know of. I do know they do possess an ability for basic reasoning (IE if I do this, this happens. If I poke this baton with my nose, I get a treat).

TL;DR scientifically the jury's out. If anyone manages to ferret up any studies, Id love to read them.

>>2214052
It could also be anything from parasites to an outside factor (dogs being like two year olds in that everything and anything goes in their mouths). I wouldn't rule salmonella out, especially if the dog has been vomiting or has runny/bloody stools.

>>2214033
The other neighbor's cat ate the head
Have not seen him since

How often do guys in your field make fun of people who study birds for a living?

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>>2214062
I don't know, the only joke we had passed around the lab was yelling "HAST DU EIN VOGEL?" (German for "Do you have a bird" = "Are you fucking crazy") at the ornithology professor.

>>2213738
How do you feel about the kind of people that own snakes as an accessory?
You know like edgelords.

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>>2214079
I really don't like people like that. Edgelords usually go for a boa constrictor, or sometimes a retic/burm/rattlesnake/cobra. Large animals or venomous animals that need strict control and a well-established knowledge base before someone even THINKS of owning them.

I owned snakes for 10 years before one of the 'giants' dropped into my lap, and even then I wasn't sure if I was ready for him.

This is why you see things about escaped cobras on the news and a retic losing patience with a child and attacking it. Not because they're evil animals or they want to eat people, it's because their owners haven't taken the time to keep them securely.

TL;DR I'd hit it...with a fucking brick.

>>2214288
the emerald tree boa says "oh god why is my face covered in all these crappy heat sensors, I wish I was born a pit viper"

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>>2214301
Judging by their personalities in general, I think most of them are trying to be!