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Two-metre-long specimen could help researchers pin down how and when turtles developed traits such as their shell.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-06012-0
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How do you tell an alligator from a crocodile? And no, dad joke enthusiasts, the answer isn’t that you see one later and the other after a while.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/12/science/alligators-crocodiles-differences.html
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Researchers investigate how the blue-tongued skink uses a full-tongue display to deter attacking predators

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/06/180607101016.htm
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On beaches from North Carolina to Texas and throughout the wider Caribbean, one of nature’s great seasonal events is underway. Adult female sea turtles are crawling out of the ocean, digging deep holes in the sand and laying eggs.

https://theconversation.com/beaches-are-becoming-safer-for-baby-sea-turtles-but-threats-await-them-in-the-ocean-92719
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Now an international team of scientists is one step closer in working out how the rainforest toad morphed into an invasive machine in just 80 years.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-09-20/cane-toad-dna-puzzle-finally-cracked/10246864
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Reptile and amphibian, or herptile and other exotic pet keeping has grown and developed tremendously in recent decades as breeders, hobbyists, enthusiasts, and pet owners alike have learned a great deal about the biology, natural history, and reproductive habitats of these animals both in the wild and in captivity.

http://madisonherps.org/educationalarticle/caring-for-your-elderly-reptile-or-amphibian/
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Only found at high elevations, the salamander has nowhere to go as temperatures rise

https://www.bayjournal.com/article/cow_knob_salamander_fended_off_pipeline_can_it_beat_climate_change
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A new study reveals how crocodiles’ eyes are fine-tuned for lurking at the water surface to watch for prey.

https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-36197656
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Researchers have confirmed that lizards exhibit two sleep states, just like humans, other mammals, and birds.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/10/181011143059.htm
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A decade after chytridiomycosis killed scores of amphibians in Panama, some species are recovering. New research indicates why.

https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/frogs-fight-back-from-fungal-attack-29888
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The ornate box turtle, Nebraska’s only terrestrial native turtle, won a public poll asking people to pick the state’s official reptile. It had nearly double the votes of the secondplace finisher, the snapping turtle.

https://www.omaha.com/eedition/sunrise/articles/hail-the-ornate-box-turtle-nebraskans-favorite/article_ac32a0cf-90dc-5488-a3a2-d5506df287b8.html
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Authorities don’t know who dumped a four-foot-long reptile into Lake Michigan, but they now know what kind it is. After initially believing the animal spotted Monday swimming near Waukegan, Illinois, by a startled kayaker was a caiman, officials now say it is actually an alligator.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/lake-michigan-investigators-want-to-know-who-left-gator-waukegan-illinois/
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The six-feet-long Chinese giant salamander, the world’s largest amphibian, has fallen victim to faulty conservation measures and poaching. Research from two studies, published today (May 21) in Current Biology, have found that the salamander is five or more distinct species, all headed to extinction.

https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/newly-described-salamander-species-nearly-extinct-64415
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A little animal that washed out to sea 240 million years ago off the coast of what’s now Italy turns out to be the oldest known fossil of a lizard.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/oldest-known-lizard-fossil-pushes-origins-back-75-million-years
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A science project gone awry has resulted in the introduction of a new species of amphibian to wetlands around Sitka.

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=wildlifenews.view_article&articles_id=159
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Setting up a terrarium properly is one of the most important things you can do to care for a reptile. An inappropriate habitat can lead to serious side effects for your reptile, including death. Here are 7 must-buy supplies for a reptile terrarium.

https://www.petmd.com/reptile/slideshows/care/reptile-terrarium-checklist
reptile-terrarium-shutterstock_82436296

There’s something strange about the five newly discovered snakes in Ecuador: Unlike most snakes that dine on rats, lizards and other small animals, these slithery reptiles eat snails.

https://www.livescience.com/62818-these-snakes-prefer-eating-snails.html
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Talk about toxic relationships. An invasive species of toad in Madagascar is even more dangerous to local wildlife than previously suspected — its poisonous slime is deadly to just about any local predator, including endangered lemurs, that tries to eat the amphibian.

https://www.livescience.com/62752-madagascar-toxic-toad.html
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The rat snake was just a newborn when it was brought to the zoo, where it was quarantined for 18 months to better its survival chances.

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas/2018/03/10/two-headed-snake-slithers-public-view-waco-zoo
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With an interest in snakes that dates back to his teens, Stephen Mackessy vigorously studies how venom toxins affect humans

https://www.denverpost.com/2018/09/02/professor-researching-snake-venom-cancer/
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Although backyard feeders are a popular way to attract birds, providing a source of water is equally important for creating a wildlife friendly yard.

https://extension.psu.edu/water-for-wildlife-bird-baths-and-backyard-ponds
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