Fish and Amphibians

[unable to retrieve full-text content] Watch now: Desert spiny Lizard makes friends with homeowner    Arizona Daily Star

We've finally reached the date when we can watch the highly publicized, NC-17 film Blonde , starring Ana de Armas as Marlyn Monroe, at home on Netflix. There have been several movies that look back at the life of the infamous American actress, but none quite like what we see from Andrew Dominik's fictionalized biopic (for better or worse), based on the novel by Joyce Carol Oates. Blonde , running almost three hours long, goes back to Monroe's volatile upbringing as Norma Jeane, right through to her very public persona as an adult, in a story that looks at the disparity between her public and private life. If you're watching this movie in an attempt to learn more about Monroe, this isn't the film for you. It's more of a depiction of the concept of who she was, displayed in a visual style that feels like you're hallucinating and walking through the star's life. Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe in "Blonde" (Netflix) Blonde begins in 1933, introduci...

Where are they from? Amazon milk frogs (Trachycephalus resinifictrix) are found in the tropical rainforests of South America. Populations are widespread in Guyana, Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador and Peru. What's in a name? These amphibians received the name "milk frog" from the sticky white substance they secrete through their skin when threatened. This substance is poisonous to potential predators. Feats of Strength Milk frogs are arboreal, and spend their lives in trees and other plants. Milk frogs have special toe-pads on their feet to help them climb plants. They can hold up to 14 times the animal's body weight! What do they eat? In the wild, the milk frog's diet consists of insects and other small invertebrates. At the Zoo, they feast on crickets. Where can I see Amazon milk frogs at the Zoo? See these frogs and other amazing rainforest species at the Amazonia exhibit. Look for them in the field station.

Robyn Edie/Stuff Bluff man Terry Osborne, who stays in his whitebaiting hut overlooking the Mataura River while fishing for the delicacy, says the 2022 season "hasn't been good at all". Longtime whitebaiters in Southland say the 2022 season has been one of the worst they can remember. "It hasn't been good at all this year, well down on what I normally would have caught," said Bluff man Terry Osborne on Tuesday, nearly one month into the shortened two-month season. He has been whitebaiting on the Mataura river for 15 years, and one month into the shortened two-month season said he was having one of his worst years. READ MORE: * Whitebait season too short, fishers say * Whitebaiters happy to be fishing again in Southland * Southland whitebaiter pleased 'heavy-handed' regulations scaled back Roger McNaughton has been whitebaiting for more than 60 years and said the 2022 season was the quietest he had experienced. "Whitebaiting always has its ...

[unable to retrieve full-text content] Giant Galapagos Tortoise Boosts Conservation Efforts By Fathering 8 Baby Reptiles at 70 Years Old    The Project

Due to the seasonal nature of crawfish, and the unpredictable nature of the exact months contained in that season, buying crawfish at any time can cause some uncertainty. The Spruce Eats says that for people who live in the crustacean's harvesting regions, it's possible to get them fresh any time of the year. That means crayfish enthusiasts who reside in prime mudbug locales, such as Louisiana, the Pacific Northwest, China, or parts of California, which Seafood Source says are major harvesting locations, are likely to be able to dine on crawdads nearly all year long. H-E-B stores are largely located in Texas, home of the aptly-named Texas Roadhouse, where the company is based. While Texas isn't Louisiana, the close proximity makes it possible that certain H-E-B locations might have fresh crawfish anytime the crustacean craving strikes. On the other hand, Texas is huge, so the farther one goes west, away from the rich Louisiana swamps, the less likely the stores are to s...

Commercial fishermen in the United States who are challenging a major shift of Gulf of Mexico red grouper quotas to the recreational sector have drawn the support of charter-boat operators, who argue the revised quotas hurt willtheir businesses as well. On its face, the decision by the National Marine Fisheries Service to ratify the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council's new allocation policy would give the charter fleet more fish, too. But the change will bring other outcomes that hurt the charter sector, according to captain Scott Hickman, operator of Circle H Outfitters and Charters in Galveston, Texas, U.S.A., and a board member of the Charter Fishermen's Association. "We've been down this road before," Hickman said. "You set a precedent for taking quota from an accountable sector and dropping it into a black hole." Announced by NMFS this spring, Amendment 53 to the Gulf reef fish plan would reduce the annual commercial allocat...

One of over 100 lizards seized in the Phillipines on 30 August 2022  Photo by CENRO-Glan Among the reptiles seized were species globally listed Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, including the Pig-nosed turtle Carettochelys insculpta , Blue Speckled Tree Monitor Lizard Varanus macraei , Banggai Island Monitor Lizard Varanus melinus and the Critically Endangered Asian Giant Tortoise Manouria emys . All are found in Indonesia's Papua province and are also listed in Appendix II of CITES*, which strictly regulates international trade and requires permits. These cross-border trafficking cases continue to occur at concerning levels, frequently observed across the Southeast Asian region. We encourage regional enforcement agencies to strengthen information sharing and collaborative initiatives to counter this problem in a meaningful and effective way." Kanitha Krishnasamy, Director for TRAFFIC in Southeast Asia This is the latest in a series of seizures ...

The Petco Vital Care program, which provides unlimited veterinary exams and discounts on pet supplies, will expand to include all species of pets, including reptiles, birds, and fish Petco Health and Wellness Company (Petco) announced that it is expanding its Vital Care membership program to include birds, fish, reptiles, and small pets. This program was originally just for dogs and cats but will now offer exclusive savings and rewards to a wider variety of pets. "Extending the quality care and benefits our Vital Care program offers to cover all types of family pets is yet another move that's good for pets and good for our business," said Jenny Wolski, Petco senior vice president, omnichannel customer experience, in an organizational release. 1 "Vital Care has grown significantly—in both popularity and benefits—since we launched it 2 years ago. Pet parents continue to seek ways to better care for the health of their pets and their budgets, and Vital Care helps them d...

As the proud owner of a lizard and many other reptiles over the years, I'm keenly aware of how difficult it can be to find a good pet store. Too many exotic "specialists" treat reptiles like stock, buying from sketchy dealers and warehousing them in cramped cages. Or, like at a couple of chains that shall remain nameless, animals are frequently pawned onto impulse-buy customers who may have seen a cool YouTube video or two but really have no idea what they're getting themselves into.  Credit: Carl Perry Lucky for us, Pet House in Goleta is one of those rare places where snakes, lizards, tortoises, and other wonderful scaly things are humanely kept and sold to educated buyers. "We know where we get our animals from," said owner Andrea Navarro, "and we always make sure our customers know what kind of care they need." Navarro, who started at Pet House as a cashier 19 years ago while majoring in aquatic biology at UCSB,...

The everyday life of regenerative salamanders whose limbs and organs regrow could be a children's bedtime story about the importance of being resourceful and carefree, but in real life, the genes of these fascinating amphibians are the envy of many scientists around the world. One of them is Professor Elly Tanaka at the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology in Vienna, Austria, who has been studying salamanders for decades.  She thinks the amphibious animal has the potential to open up new ways to improve how we treat injuries in humans and is currently working to unravel the mystery as part of the EU-funded RegGeneMems project , due to be completed in 2023. Tanaka and her team are studying the regeneration of body structures in four-legged animals and trying to understand why it occurs in some species and not others, notably in the highly regenerative salamander, Ambystoma mexicanum, commonly called the axolotl. "Salamanders are the best regenerators among all fo...

Opening a hotel can be like opening a can of worms; problems can arise quickly and unexpectedly. To ensure the process goes smoothly, some hoteliers have traditions in place to prepare for the opening of their hotels. Four hoteliers from around the U.S. shared their strategies and traditions for hotel openings. As a New Orleans native, there's nothing more personal to Brian Englehart than cooking up his personal crawfish recipe. Prior to each hotel opening, Englehart, general manager of Maison de La Luz in New Orleans, prepares 80 pounds of his crawfish for his entire staff. He said everybody who attends a crawfish boil feels like a part of it even if they came in knowing no one. Brian Englehart is general manager of Maison de La Luz in New Orleans. "You can get into long and soul-searching discussions and arguments around here about who makes better crawfish, so it's a very personal thing," he said. "The most important room in a house in th...

ALBANY, N.Y. — The Capital District Reptile Expo is returning this weekend, featuring reptiles, amphibians and other exotic animals. The event is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 25 at the Albany Capital Center, located at 55 Eagle St. Now in its fourth year of operation, the expo is held each spring and fall and continually draws a growing crowd of more than 4,000 people to the Capital Region to learn about and purchase exotic pets and related supplies. Sunday's event will occupy the entire Albany Capital Center with 84,000 square feet of over 160 vendors tables selling exotic pets and feeders as well as enclosures and care items for these animals. The largest selection of animals and supplies in the expo's history will be presented with hundreds of different species of reptiles, amphibians, aquatics, small exotic mammals, and invertebrates (primarily arachnids, insects, and crustaceans) available for purchase. The event's signature Education Room ...

The Amazon frog was a beautiful shade of luminous green and didn't resist being picked up. The guide looked alarmed: "I think you should put it down and wash your hands." It didn't help. Within minutes, the palm of my hand was so painful I nearly vomited and actually checked the back to see if something had drilled right through. The excruciating pain lasted half an hour. The little guy sure packed a poisoned punch.  It's reckoned there are more than 300 species of poisonous frogs in the Amazon. They're part of a class of creatures worldwide you want to avoid, including (at rough count) 1,200 kinds of poisonous sea organisms, 700 poisonous fish, 400 venomous snakes, 60 ticks, 75 scorpions, 200 spiders, 750 poisons in more than 1,000 plant species and several birds whose feathers are toxic when touched or eaten.  As Homo sapiens radiated out of Africa to populate the world, they must have poisoned themselves in the thousands while worki...

Conservationists are split on a new proposal that would legalize captive, commercial breeding of one of Florida's flagship species. The state's wildlife agency was expected to vote against the plan next week over concerns it would make diamondback turtles more attractive for poachers. The U.S. Association of Reptile Keepers of Florida wants the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to approve captive breeding to lessen the novelty associated with the species' current population levels and better prepare for impending habitat loss due to climate change, spokesman Daniel Parker said. The group represents pet stores and hobbyists. Florida's coastline houses five of diamondback terrapin's seven subspecies. None are endangered, but all are designated as Species of Greatest Conservation Need, according to the state agency. Three of the species are exclusive to the state. The proposal wasn't expected to survive. A staff report from the wildlife commission, ...

Seamore's Sustainable Seafood opens in Arlington (pictured: "real deal" plates with grilled fish and seasonal sides). Photography by LeadingDC Diners won't find crab on the opening menu at Seamore's Sustainable Seafood—the dining room is bucking the tradition of out-of-town restaurants throwing it on the menu as a local nod (see also: half-smokes, mumbo sauce). The coastal spot opens in Arlington on Thursday, September 29. for dinner. It's the first Seamore's outside New York for the five-restaurant collective, centered in Manhattan and Brooklyn.   Why no crabcakes? It's not about the higher-than-average prices of the Chesapeake delicacy. Though the restaurant will source a variety of fish and shellfish from the Bay—as well as further afield along the East Coast and Gulf—co-owners Jay Wainwright and Topher Bertone-Ledford have centered their mission around aquatic sustainability. "We only sell fish whose populations are stable or ...

Hart Wildlife Rescue A bird of prey found stunned on a roadside has been nursed back to health and released into the wild. The Red Kite was originally tagged in Germany but discovered in Hampshire on the ground in Lasham by a member of the public. They took the bird to HART Wildlife Rescue which cared for it until it was well enough to be freed. The charity said it was the first Red Kite from Germany to be found in the UK for 32 years. A spokesperson said that on arrival at the rescue centre's headquarters in Alton last week, the bird was "clearly stunned but uninjured". Staff realised the ring on the bird's leg was from a German ringing project and reported it via the British Trust for Ornithology website. The German organisation contacted the charity the next day. Hart Wildlife Rescue The bird was identified in Germany as a "nestling" or youngster on 17 June 2019 at a lake called "Bützower See". It had since flown 931km (578 miles) before ending ...