FIGURE 3 - uploaded by Jeff Lovich
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Henry S. Fitch in the Army Pharmacy School, El Paso, Texas, USA, August 1941. For more information, see "Historical perspective: Henry S. Fitch. Henry S. Fitch as told to Alice Fitch Echelle" in Copeia 2000:891-900. (Photograph courtesy of Alice Echelle).
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The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) has a long and distinguished history of employing herpetologists to conduct basic and applied research to better manage amphibian and reptile populations on public lands and even outside the boundaries of the United States. This history extends back over 125 years with roots in the U.S. Biological Survey, t...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... the story goes, the Forest Service superintendent and local ranchers, antagonistic to Henry's rattlesnake studies, conspired with the local draft board to induct Henry into the Army in 1940 (Fig. ...
Context 2
... research assignments, Jeff Lovich (Fig. 23) spent approximately 12 years serving in research management positions within USGS, including stints as Director of the Western Ecological Research Center Mississippi, 2009), another herpetologist, to coordinate the tortoise project. They recently co-authored a paper describing a new species of turtle from Mississippi, Graptemys ...
Context 3
... leaving Fort Collins, Steve recruited Erin Muths (Fig. 30) Fritts and Rodda 1998;Perry et al. 1998;Rodda et al. 1998). His expertise was enlisted for a project to eliminate the introduced Wolf Snake (Lycodon aulicus) from an islet near Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. Tom also maintained his long-term studies in the Galápagos Islands. He is now ...
Similar publications
Donald G. Broadley was one of Africa’s most prolific recent authors. He produced over 410 articles, including numerous comprehensive and detailed taxonomic reviews of lizard and snake genera. A review of his scientific publications spanning over 50 years of herpetological research reveals three phases. The first (1958–1981) saw Don describe his fir...
Citations
... This is a daunting number of potential scientists and there is no systematic structure or source of information to find out what organizations or individuals are available with appropriate expertise in various geographies. For example, few realize that the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI, and especially the U.S. Geological Survey) employs more herpetologists than any other organization in the U.S. (Lovich et al. 2012). In academia alone there are over 2,600 four-year colleges and universities in the U.S. (Outen 2005), although many may not yet employ researchers engaged in herpetofauna-related studies. ...
Wildlife stewardship is of utmost importance in the United States, where management for sustainable natural resources is extended to native species including amphibians and reptiles. The U.S. wildlife conservation framework is a nested system of authorities regulating species and habitats, science-based management and policy decisions, and adaptive management as new knowledge is applied to improve outcomes of population-and habitat management actions. Yet the approach has evolved through time, from single-species management of game species to the conservation of entire ecosystems and the biodiversity they support. Today, the mismatch of conservation ideals with conservation capacity puts nongame species like amphibians and reptiles in the crosshairs for losses due to insufficient resources to address growing numbers of threats. Despite these challenges, optimism prevails, as the management and conservation of U.S. herpetofauna is an increasing priority of the public, with considerable investment into habitat restoration, species-specific threat mitigation, research, public outreach, and education. Herein, we outline key elements of U.S. herpetological conservation efficacy: (1) a web of legal authorities governing the management of U.S. herpetofauna and their habitats; (2) a network of people and organizations that work toward filling priority knowledge gaps by conducting scientific research and that are actively engaged in the science-management interface for species-to-ecosystem level conservation decision-making, and (3) a learning framework of adaptive management within the legal landscape ("lawscape") and for improving effectiveness of conservation actions. Lastly, the human dimension of species conservation in the U.S. is emerging, where bottom-up local efforts are having success in addition to state-and regional-scale approaches. We propose U.S. herpetological conservation priorities under three themes: threats, research, and human dimensions (people). Together these multifaceted efforts are contributing to advances in the maintenance of U.S. amphibian and reptile diversity. The success of these efforts is notable and could be viewed as a model system, where lessons learned may apply elsewhere.
... Herpetology, the study of amphibians and reptiles, has experimented an increase in the last decades (Lovich et al., 2012;Vitt & Caldwell, 2013) due to the endangered conservation status of both amphibians (Wake, 1991;Alford & Richards, 1999;Collins & Storfer, 2003) and reptiles (Gibbons et al., 2000;Cox et al., 2022). Scientists' concern about the decline of amphibian populations began at the First World Congress of Herpetology in 1989 , and it is probably one of the most serious examples of a cladespecific biodiversity crisis (Allentoft & O'Brien, 2010;Ficetola, 2015;Angelini et al., 2020). ...
This study summarizes the temporal variation, the relative contribution of each university, the research topics addressed, the taxonomic groups studied and the differences in author and its ad-visors' gender in the 303 PhD theses on herpetology defended in Spain and gathered in Teseo © and Dialnet © between 1977 and 2020. The number of theses defended per year is around 7 with an upward trend. Complutense and Autonomous University of Madrid universities hosted the highest number of theses, followed by Barcelona and Valencia universities. The most addressed topic was morphology, biometry and anatomy, followed by physiology and histology, genetics and habitat selection. The most studied herpetofauna orders were Squamata and Anura and the families most tackled were Lacertidae, followed by Ranidae and Salamandridae. The most addressed species were native to Spain and without protection status, as opposed to those that were non-native or with protection status. The study of invasive species is very poorly represented. The number of PhD theses defended by men is higher compared to those by women (1.43:1), however, both genders show an upward trend in the number of theses. The results represent an approximation of the development, trends and interests pursued by herpetological research in Spain.
... Another example to be followed by governments is of employing herpetologists as done by the U.S. Department of the Interior, where science can foster knowledge and protection of amphibians and reptiles (Lovich et al., 2012). Also, it is important to consider more research on the usefulness and effectiveness of species of reptiles and amphibians as "umbrella" and/or "flagship" species (Simberloff, 1998;Rondinini & Boitani, 2006;Kalinkat et al., 2017), considering their ecological similarities and shared habitats (Vitt & Caldwell, 2014). ...
Currently, herpetofauna worldwide is facing enormous threats; the number of threatened species is increasing at an alarming rate and many species have gone extinct. Despite efforts of institutions and researchers to understand and address the causes of declines and raise awareness of herpetofauna conservation, there has been no systematic study to evaluate the allocation of funding for basic and applied research relevant to conservation, relative publication rates, and the relationship of these measures to a degree of threat among herpetological groups. This study addresses this gap and identifies strengths and weaknesses of herpetological research and conservation over the last 10 years (2008-2018). Frogs had the highest grant-publication index (1384), followed by lizards (695), turtles (678), snakes (461.5), salamanders (366.5), crocodiles (164), caecilians (25.5), worm lizards (23) and tuatara (10). Nonetheless, when the grant-publication index is divided by the number of threatened and data-deficient species within each group, it demonstrates that, proportionally and in ascending order, salamanders, snakes, lizards, worm lizards, frogs and caecilians are in most need of knowledge and ongoing funding for their conservation and survival. I was able to document a continued shift in attention in herpetological research owing to the emergence of chytridiomycosis and the global decline of amphibians. Despite some caveats, these findings should represent a proxy for the allocation of research and conservation effort on herpetofauna worldwide. I suggest priorities for research and how to better direct efforts to herpetofauna conservation.
... Another example to be followed by governments is of employing herpetologists as done by the U.S. Department of the Interior, where science can foster knowledge and protection of amphibians and reptiles (Lovich et al., 2012). Also, it is important to consider more research on the usefulness and effectiveness of species of reptiles and amphibians as "umbrella" and/or "flagship" species (Simberloff, 1998;Rondinini & Boitani, 2006;Kalinkat et al., 2017), considering their ecological similarities and shared habitats (Vitt & Caldwell, 2014). ...
... 1998; Ramotnik 2005; Ramotnik and Scott 1988;Sapp 2002; Ramotnik 1989a, 1992;Scott et al. 1987;Weigmann et al. 1980;Wells 2007;Welsh and Droege 2001;Williams 1976Williams , 1978Williams and Degenhardt 1974; Williamson et al. 1994), genetics (Chong and Mueller 2017; Fonseca et al. 2006;Green and Sessions 2007;King 1991;Larson and Wilson 1989; Macgre-gor and Jones 1977;Mizuno and Macgregor 1974;Osborne et al. 2017;Pope and Highton 1980;Sessions and Wiktorowski 2000), history of collectors (Beolens et al. 2013;Lovich et al. 2012), osteology (Schaaf 2010;Wake 1963Wake , 1964Wake , 1966, phylogenetic and systematic relationships (Baum and Larson 1991;Chippindale et al. 2004;Frost et al. 2006;Larson 1984;Larson et al. 1981Larson et al. , 2003Lowe 1950;Macey 2005;Mahoney 2001;Mueller 2005;Mueller and Boore 2005;Mueller et al. 2004;Plötner et al. 2007;Pyron and Wiens 2011;Reilly et al. 2015;Schaaf 2010;Sessions and Kezer 1987;Vieites et al. 2011;Wake 1963Wake , 1964Wake , 1966Wiens and Morrill 2011;Zheng et al. 2011), physiology (Carey 1988Hilton 1947Hilton , 1952Whitford 1967Whitford , 1968, predation on (Painter et al. 1999), reproduction (Bruce 2000;Degenhardt et al. 1974; Schad 1959, 2010;Petranka 1998;Ramotnik 2005Sapp 2002;Schwartz 1955;Williams 1973Williams , 1976Williams , 1978Williams and Degenhardt 1974; Williamson et al. 1994), taxonomy and nomenclature (Collins 1990(Collins , 1997 Taggart 2002, 2009;Collins et al. 1978Collins et al. , 1982 Comité sur les Noms Français Standardisés 2012; Committee on Standard English and Scientific Names 2008 Conant et al. 1956a Conant et al. , 1956b Crother et al. 2001; Frank and Ramus 1995; Frost 1985;Mitchell 2017;Painter 2002; Sokolov 1988;Stuart and Painter 2005;Wrobel 2004;Zhao et al. 1993Zhao et al. , 1998. ...
... Our approach is largely historical with some philosophical musings along the way. Although numerous histories of various aspects of herpetology have been published in the past, including for our own institutions of the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (e.g., Anderson 1989) and the US Geological Survey (Lovich et al. 2012b), this is the first historical review of turtle researchers and research from the 1900s to date. ...
... Desert Tortoises (Gopherus agassizii sensu lato) have been one of the most intensely studied species (e.g., Germano and Bury 1994;Walde et al. 2007;Riedle et al. 2010;Murphy et al. 2011;Agha et al. 2015b;Berry et al. 2015;Edwards et al. 2016;Todd et al. 2016;Peaden et al. 2017;Allison and McLuckie 2018;Averill-Murray et al. 2018) since its listing as threatened in 1990 under the US Endangered Species Act. The literature of this once poorly known species increased exponentially, largely through federal government scientist research, with 415 citations being added to our bibliography over the ensuing three decades (Lovich et al. 2012b). In addition to those cited, many individuals (e.g., H. Avery, S. Corn, C. Darst, L. DeFalco, T. Esque, K. Field, B. Henen, C. ...
Over 9000 articles have been published on turtles and tortoises (excluding sea turtles) since 1950 according to the Web of Science, including over 8000 contained in a personal bibliography that we analyze in this paper. Research had a slow start from 1900 to 1950, with mostly anecdotal additions to our knowledge until the contributions of F. Cagle and A. Carr took turtle research to new levels as the cofathers of turtle ecology in the middle of the last century. Books written in 1939, 1952, and 1972 that compiled existing literature on turtles in the United States and Canada set the stage for growing interest in turtles. The first global compilation of turtle species did not become available until 1961. Publication frequency increased in the 1960s and especially the 1970s as interest in turtles grew, and a wave of turtle biologists emerged from doctoral degree programs. We briefly review the contributions of scientists who published extensively on turtle ecology in those and later decades up to the present. We also review advances in our knowledge of various topics, including the global distribution of turtle research efforts; changes in our perceptions of turtle species diversity over time; turtle community ecology; sex ratios, sex-determination, and climate change; overwintering behavior; sexual size dimorphism and sexual dichromatism; analyses of population genetics; turtles and vocalization; and the emergence of turtle conservation biology efforts. We conclude with a discussion of future opportunities and challenges for working with turtles.
... Our approach is largely historical with some philosophical musings along the way. Although numerous histories of various aspects of herpetology have been published in the past, including for our own institutions of the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (e.g., Anderson 1989) and the US Geological Survey (Lovich et al. 2012b), this is the first historical review of turtle researchers and research from the 1900s to date. ...
... Desert Tortoises (Gopherus agassizii sensu lato) have been one of the most intensely studied species (e.g., Germano and Bury 1994;Walde et al. 2007;Riedle et al. 2010;Murphy et al. 2011;Agha et al. 2015b;Berry et al. 2015;Edwards et al. 2016;Todd et al. 2016;Peaden et al. 2017;Allison and McLuckie 2018;Averill-Murray et al. 2018) since its listing as threatened in 1990 under the US Endangered Species Act. The literature of this once poorly known species increased exponentially, largely through federal government scientist research, with 415 citations being added to our bibliography over the ensuing three decades (Lovich et al. 2012b). In addition to those cited, many individuals (e.g., H. Avery, S. Corn, C. Darst, L. DeFalco, T. Esque, K. Field, B. Henen, C. ...
... Upon entering the Division of Amphibians and Reptiles, I was first met by Bob Tuck who greeted me with "I thought you were still in Europe" and guided me to the office of divisional curator James A. Peters, with whom I had been corresponding, and later to George Zug. That morning Bruce Bury, recently selected herpetologist for the Bird and Mammal Laboratory of the Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife, U. S. Department of the Interior (see Lovich et al., 2012), and I also met face to face. Bruce and I had corresponded and traded herps several years earlier, but lived thousands of miles apart and had never actually met. I became most interested in the newly-created, but as yet unfilled, position that probably would become available in the fall (government funding is always an issue). ...
