A conservationist group says claims that a nocturnal Asian lizard could treat Aids have led to a sharp boom in illegal smuggling of the reptile.

An Evening with the Frogs

The evening includes an educational talk by a Hamilton Zoo keeper, followed by a visit to the nocturnal frog house to meet the cryptic nocturnal native Hochstetter’s frogs. This is a rare chance to see these unique animals up close and personal.

Foreign skink intercepted in Hawke's Bay

Rainbow skinks, an Unwanted Organism under the Biosecurity Act 1993, are yet another threat to our declining native lizard populations.

DOC wants people to contact them on 06 834 3111 or 0800 362 468 if they see one. If possible, capture it, keep in a safe container and take a photo to help with obtaining the correct identification.

A conservationist group says claims that a nocturnal Asian lizard could treat Aids have led to a sharp boom in illegal smuggling of the reptile.

An Evening with the Frogs

The evening includes an educational talk by a Hamilton Zoo keeper, followed by a visit to the nocturnal frog house to meet the cryptic nocturnal native Hochstetter’s frogs. This is a rare chance to see these unique animals up close and personal.

Foreign skink intercepted in Hawke's Bay

Rainbow skinks, an Unwanted Organism under the Biosecurity Act 1993, are yet another threat to our declining native lizard populations.

DOC wants people to contact them on 06 834 3111 or 0800 362 468 if they see one. If possible, capture it, keep in a safe container and take a photo to help with obtaining the correct identification.

This forest Gecko was discovered in Napier - and detective work showed where it had come from...

Two German men who admitted travelling to New Zealand to steal rare native geckos have been jailed.

Fears that toxic sprays killed native skinks and katipo spiders living in Papamoa's sand dunes could force Tauranga City Council into more environmentally friendly methods

The NZ Lizards Database has now been released, linking Landcare species information and the DOC Atlas.

Anson Wong jailed for 6 months

Smuggler caught after bag holding 95 boa constrictors bursts open at airport

A man has pleaded guilty after his bag containing snakes broke open on a luggage belt at Kuala Lumpur International airport

The Kihansi spray toad Nectophrynoides asperginis was declared extinct  in the wild last year. Thanks to a breeding programme in two US zoos a population of the toads has been returned to Africa.

Development of a $20,000 lizard monitoring plan, by the Auckland Regional Council, will help assess the status of lizard populations across the entire Auckland isthmus.

A teenager has been sent to prison for three months after smuggling two small snakes into the country in his pants.

Three Otago skinks and five grand skinks from the high country near Wanaka were released into a predator-proof enclosure yesterday on the outskirts of Christchurch as part of a breeding programme.

For only the second time in more than 200 years, a baby tuatara has been spotted on the mainland, leading experts to believe there could be more breeding in Wellington.

Californian twins helping protect Fiordland fauna

7 forest geckos stolen on Monday night in Whangarei!!!

An interesting article in the news recently about the confiscation and destruction of 50+ Litoria caerulea (White's tree frog) in Auckland early this year.

Queen's Birthday honours
Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit
Anthony Hume Whitaker for services to herpetology.

Protection status changes to Wildlife Act

The Animal Behavior Society (ABS) Film Festival - Entries requested

ABS is pleased to announce the 26th Annual Animal Behavior Film Festival. The festival will be held during the 47th Annual meeting of the Animal Behavior Society at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA,USA; July 25 - 31 2010.

 

New Zealand's largest gecko had been thought extinct on the mainland until a dead specimen was discovered in a mouse trap at Maungatautari in Waikato last month.

BioBlitz 2010 was held in Auckland Domain on 17th - 18th April. 1521 species were found

If you have an opinion on the smugglers who take NZ wildlife, please add your vote on this website.

A German reptile collector has been jailed for 14 weeks and must pay a $5000 fine for plundering New Zealand's wild gecko and skink populations.

Lizard-finding friends Tony Jewell and Rod Morris are enthusiastic about skinks and geckos. Wanaka reporter Marjorie Cook speaks to the pair whose endeavours won them the 2009 Inland Otago Conservation Award at a ceremony in Cromwell 17 Sep 2009.

A film by a visiting researcher from Germany, and a University of Otago communications student, both keen to preserve New Zealand geckos in the wild.

Taranaki Educational Resource: Research, Analysis and Information Network aims to provide open source software solutions to community groups who want to use Geographic Information Systems to analyse their data and display the maps on the www

As the smallest known frog species in the world's second largest mountain range, this new amphibian is easy to miss.

The Department of Conservation is seeking submissions on the "New listing of threatened status of New Zealand reptiles and amphibians" Consultation closes: 28 February 2009

The Department of Conservation has a new on-line resource, the Electronic Atlas of NZ Amphibians and Reptiles.