BOWLING GREEN NEWS (Ohio) 01 February 07 Boas breed on campus (Olivia Day)
Biology is defined as the science that deals with all forms of life. With that being said, it's a wonder that two of the University's biological facilities go unnoticed by many - the herpetology lab and marine lab located in the Life Science building.
"We always have a large number of animals . One year we have lots of one species, then the next year it's another," said Eileen Underwood, a biology professor and coordinator of the herpetology lab.
Next year's "large number" species is most likely to be the Dumeril's boa.
The lab plays hosts to three Dumeril's boas, two females and one male. Right now, both female boas are believed to be gravid .
Jerrod Shipman, senior, is in charge of the boas, and expects to get at least 15 offspring from each snake.
"The Dumeril's boas breed only once a year after several times of copulation," Shipman said.
According to Underwood, Dumeril's boas are gravid for about six to eight months and can lie anywhere from two to 21 eggs. However, the average number laid by a boa is seven.
According to Shipman, the breeding process is temperature and humidity based.
"Most boas breed during the winter which, climate-wise, for the boas, is room temperature for us," he said.
The initiation of breeding takes several steps. According to Shipman, the boas enter the winter phase by going into "cool down." Shipman achieves this by turning off the boas' heating source, allowing their cage to become room temperature. Next, he separates the male from the females.
"Once the boas have been in cool down for two months, we re-introduce them to the males. If we did it correctly, then copulation occurs," Shipman said.
According to Shipman, at this point, the boas' midsections should be noticeably swelled.
"Behavioral wise, if the snakes are pregnant, they tend to seek out heat more and sometimes they will stop eating," Shipman said.
Shipman, and other volunteers in the lab, care for the gravid snakes by monitoring their behavior and offering them food.
The boas' offspring are expected to arrive anytime between late March and mid June.
"We don't know if the snakes will arrive for sure. There is a chance that the females aren't pregnant. However, if they do give birth, we plan to treat them as we would any other snake in the lab," Shipman said.
According to Underwood, they will house the offspring in "shoe boxes" until they can be sold. Each year, Underwood travels to shows in Columbus and Cleveland where the offspring are sold to other breeders and the general public.
Besides the upcoming possible birth of Dumeril's boas, the volunteers in the herpetology lab are occupied with other educational resources.
According to Underwood, one of the most important aspects of the lab is its student volunteers because they care for the animals.
"The volunteers not only learn how to interact with animals, but they learn how to interact with other students as well," Underwood said.
Shipman also gave some insight as to why the herpetology lab is a profound resource the University offers.
"The lab is such a good resource," he said.
According to Shipman, the space the lab occupies was once an office complex, leaving little room for its occupants and all of the supplies needed to raise them.
"Our lab is mostly self-supported. We breed and sell animals in order to pay for the equipment we do have," he said.
Eric Nijakowski, a junior, agrees with Shipman.
"I breed bearded dragons from home," Nijakowski said. "The lab just needs more funding and a better facility. Better research can result from this. The students could do things such as genetic studies."
However, some students have been able to make do with what they have and initiate research projects. One, in particular, is sophomore Neal Cropper, who began working in the lab his freshman year.
"I was so impressed by the herpetology and marine labs because it was a good opportunity to learn," he said.
Cropper, who is an education major, uses the labs resources to develop his research and teaching skills.
"I became interested in working with Green Tree Pythons because everybody was scared to handle them. They are such a nippy and aggressive snake," Cropper said.
Over the course of caring for the pythons, Cropper noticed the male and female began copulation.
"This sparked a great interest in me, so Eileen and I began a breeding project with the pythons," Cropper said.
According to Cropper, he spends a lot of time researching proper cage environments while working with Underwood to find the best materials in the lab to provide this care.
"The lab provides a great opportunity to learn and teach others new things. In fact, I brought snakes to my hometown during March 2006 and taught two classes at my local high school," Cropper said.
Research opportunities included
The herpetology lab isn't the only facility the biology department offers. On the second floor of the Life Science building, Matt Partin, instructor in the biological sciences department, runs a marine lab.
"We have a huge 'touch tank' that the kids really like. It has animals such as starfish, horseshoe crabs, horse conks, and sea urchins," he said.
However, the marine lab also serves as an educational resource for many students. The lab's undergraduate student coordinator, Abbie Mingus, junior, is excited about its opportunities.
"The lab provides great opportunities for research and it's also a good resume booster because you have a certain role and are responsible for animals," Mingus said.
Along with experimentations inside the marine lab, the volunteers, with Partin, organize outside experiences.
"All of the volunteers just got their SCUBA licenses, so we will be able to go to quarries and the Florida Keys in order to research live animals," Mingus said.
Although the University's biological facilities provide faculty and students with opportunities to learn, Partin thinks the facilities could improve.
"We do need more space, but space is limited and hard to come by. So we are very fortunate to have what we do," he said.

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