Dragon and Forg

Grovyle is many things, but above all he is a gecko

POV: you're from an ancient extinct species and one of the three things modern scientists know about you is that you lay eggs

One of the Tallest picking Zim up by the collar of his shirt, with Zim going limp like he's being scruffed?

He's just danglin!!

What's your favorite snake overall? Favorite hot snake? Favorite constrictor? Favorite misc category? Favorite arboreal lizard? Favorite aquatic herp? Favorite turtle? Favorite birb?

Ah, now here's something that's right up my alley!

My favorite snake overall are probably garter snakes, just because they were my introduction to herpetology- every spring when I was a kid I'd go out to catch them and beg my mom to let me keep one (she said no).

2. Favorite hot snake-- not sure what you mean by this one; there isn't a group collectively known as 'hot snakes'. But I've always had a soft spot for the gaboon viper!

3. My favorite constrictor are anacondas for sure; I love me a big wet noodle

4. Favorite misc. category (of reptile) are frill-necked lizards! I used to have a stuffed animal of one that I slept with every night.

5. Favorite arboreal lizard: Probably iguanas. I don't know why, but there's something about those huge scales on their cheeks that really appeals to me.

6. Favorite aquatic herp: Sea snakes! They're just so crazy!

7. Favorite turtle: This one is really hard; probably a tie between the Asian forest tortoise and the Mojave Desert tortoise. I've had the opportunity to work with both, and they're just so neat!

8. Favorite bird (I will say (and I know this is controversial) that I don't think that birds and reptiles should be in the same category. But I digress): Again, this is a toughie, but I get really nostalgic for red-winged black birds; I'd hear them all the time growing up, and they have such a distinctive call.

Self imposed challenge - Draw a dragon daily

Dragon just for you - she’s sulky but she’ll warm up to people eventually

I was vending at the reptile expo when I felt a little tug on the back of my shirt and suddenly I had a baby to keep me company. He was very tired of being manhandled by the small child he belonged to, and slept up on my shoulder in peace for about an hour before stealing some of my water and heading back to his own people.

and so basically--

yeah. do you UNDERSTAND now???

Twisting Roads by Daszombies

Likely innacurate, but still fun drawing of a Mosasaur :)

I am nawwwwwwt even tagging this as clone high anymore. Guys let me introduce you to @rexbalistidae , @autistic-haven & i’s ocs LMFAO

Who's that Pokémon?

miscellaneous mar. 10 sketches and a peach profile pretend i posted this yesterday

Mother Marambionectes helping her calf surface for air

what's the issue with spider ball pythons exactly? i'm not planning on getting one but your tags are the first time i've heard there being problems

They're the original wobbler. These days there are many genes that wobble, but spiders were the first. Wobble = snake lacks motor control and ability to tell up from down, leading their movements to be unnatural, frightening, "corkscrewing" and at rest they wobble around.

For decades people have insisted this was fine, it could be bred out. People insisted that THEIR spiders didn't wobble, only the spiders of THOSE OTHER BAD BREEDERS wobbled. They just needed some outcrossing and it would be fine, which they had "responsibly" done!

Of course none of this was true. Spiders have been around for ~25 years and they wobble now just as much as they did back then, and they're one of the most outcrossed, possibly THE most outcrossed, gene in ball pythons.

The gene that causes the pattern mutation also causes an inner ear deformity leading to terrible balance issues. It is also random, as in the baby can have it worse than the parent, and vice versa. Some have it so bad they have to be euthanized at hatching. It can't be bred out, they all have it to varying degrees.

Relevant study

If the "we can breed it out!" and "MY spiders DON'T wobble, unlike those other bad breeder's spiders!" rhetoric sounds familiar, it should. You will hear that same song regarding any mutation that is tied to something detrimental, and breeders who invested thousands into their projects are seldom easily deterred.

Literally the only case I've heard of where the pattern/color mutation was NOT tied to the detrimental effect is the granite morph in carpet pythons. When this morph was new, it was inbred to hell and back which lead to kinked spines and short lifespans, weakness, failure to thrive, etc. It was so bad that the entire gene was nearly lost at one point. After more people got this morph and outcrossed it appropriately, these negatives disappeared and the gene is much healthier these days. These weaknesses were due to the inbreeding, not to the morph itself, and it did not take long to figure this out.

(One thing of note, I do think the lavender morph in false water cobras can be saved much the same way, but jury is still out. Right now they have the same problems the granite carpets did, but they were similarly inbred and mass produced horrifically.)

Now if I had to list every detrimental morph where inbreeding wasn't the cause, and it WAS the gene, well, the list would be long as hell and growing.

More HOTD Reptiles AU yay! I was torn between a pool day and a beach day for my next drawing, but after reading @avonneslovelies wonderful and super funny drabble ( Through the Kaleidoscope, part 6) where Lucemond are at the beach I got in the mood for beach shenanigans uwu.  -Luke wants to make a video in the beach with Arrax, so Aemond makes sure he doesn’t lose the opportunitty to tag along, and also have a beach date mind you. -There’s a pet friendly beach near their neigboorhood, so they decide to go there and terrorize the whole beach so they would leave them alone in a 30 m radius (like 20 foot I think?). -Of course Aemond its a responsable owner and would never let Vhagar of leash (the seabirds wont survive if he does, even the poor crabs), but when you and your dog see a Vhagar you pack your things and run, the ones brave enough to try and take pictures get the Aemond stare of death TM  and back off before they can even ask.    -Vhagar its having the time of her life, she really likes the beach, she digs around, trying to dig eat the crabs, sunbathes and even gets to swim with her Aemond, Luke and Arrax. She also gets to give mean looks to the dogs that are too curious for their own good, she might have wanted to eat the tiny dragon before, but nothing would happen to him now if she has a say in the matter ok? -Luke may be a little bit more in secret love with Aemond and his damn lucious perfect pantene commercial hair, his not so subtle heart sunglasses are definitely perfect for the occasion.  I also had the pool idea in mind, one of my bffs lives in this hoa type of neighborhood and they have a public pool area that you can reserve for birthdays and stuff, so meh, let's throw some of that here. -I’ve seen that even if you ask for the place for a private matter there’s people that still decide to also use the pool, but when everyone hears that the weird goth dude and his fricking dinosaur are going to the pool they know it may as well be closed (Aemond and Luke have the Targaryen power and money, but prefer their privacy, so nobody knows their last names, the Targs make sure everyone respects that). -The pool rules say no pets allowed, but Aemond IDGAF Targaryen doesn’t care, the HOA will have to go through him before they ruin Luke’s day and his date. -Aemond going into his karen mode and making the HOA remember how much he pays and what terrible things might or might not happen if they decide to interfere with his use of the facilities lives rent free in my head. -Luke its very kind and a very nice kid, but you would not convince me he doesn’t take advantage of his rich kid privilege and his terrifying uncle almost boyfriend from time to time, he makes sure the pool its nice and tidy before they go back home, so meh, he’s still a very responsable member of the community.