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Lizard Extinctions Blamed on Global Warming

from the Washington Post (Registration Required)

When it comes to the hazards of global warming, it may turn out that lizards in burrows are the canaries in the coal mine.

In a study to be published Friday in the journal Science, an international team of biologists reports that in more than one-tenth of the places in Mexico where lizards flourished in 1975 the reptiles now cannot be found. The researchers predict that by 2080 about 40 percent of local lizard populations worldwide will have died off, and 20 percent of lizard species will be extinct.

The reason for the huge die-off appears to be rising temperatures. But it isn't heat that is killing the lizards directly. Instead, global warming appears to be lengthening the period of the day when lizards must seek shelter or run the risk of heat stroke. In the breeding season, that sheltering period is now so long that females of many species are unable to eat enough food to produce eggs and offspring.

See the complete article at

http://ow.ly/1L4sg

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Just more AR Hocus Pocus...We gotta do something or else...

Remember when they said the turtles were all disappearing and going to China for food? How inhumane! That big lie was the foundation to ban the turtle hobby, state by state. Same text printed verbatim from state to state in newspapers. The only variables were localities and cited individuals.

That statement to me seems to be such a broad sweeping unprovable generality. Can't wait to see the data. Well, you know, Professors gotta publish. That's a fact.

That whole explanation sounds rather far fetched.

Shut down the turtles. Shut down the big snakes. Shut down the frogs. Shut down the lizards. Shut down all snakes. Sound familiar?

I'm a skeptic.

jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

"They are going extinct in the wild, so don't breed them in captivity!" because, um, that makes a lot of sense. And that is pretty much the logic of AR nuts and their "scientist" lackeys. What all of these idealists ignore is that herpeculturists are many species' last line of defense against extinction.
However, human-animal interaction is against the AR clowns eco-religion, and our contributions wouldn't fit very well with their smear campaign against us.

They're studying them in Mexico??? They're probably eating the lizards into extinction. My most vivid memory of going to mexico was seeing skinned dogs in the window of a meat market. I had a lot of close friends in Texas who had relatives in Mexico and all of them would tell you to not eat in the restaraunts in Mexico because there was no telling what they were serving you.

I always thought those "skinned dogs" were Cabrito.
But its a fact they do eat Iguana. Don't know to what extent.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

I know what skinned goats look like I've eaten lots of cabritos in my life those were dogs. I will never forget that.

Hard to say anything one way or another without looking at the results and methodology of the studies themselves.
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Brad Chambers
WWW.HCU-TX.ORG

Breeder of:
Green Tree Pythons
Jungle Carpet Pythons
Pastel, Pinstripe, FIRE, Piebald, Clown, Lavender Albino, Leucistic, and Spider Ball Pythons
Striped Colombian Boa Constrictors
Kenyan, Rufescens, and Conicus Sand Boas
Red Phase Western Hognose Snakes
Spider Western Hognose Snakes
Albino Western Hognose Snakes
Locality Trans-Pecos Mexican Hognose Snakes
Southern Hognose Snakes
Eastern Hognose Snakes
Tricolor Hognose Snakes
Hypo Checkered Garter Snakes
Eastern Blackneck Garter Snakes
Stillwater Hypo Bullsnakes
Patternless Bullsnakes
S. GA Eastern Kingsnakes
Locality Desert Kingsnakes
Albino Desert Kingsnakes
Hypo Desert Kingsnakes
Mexican Black Kingsnakes
Desert Phase, Striped Desert, Newport, and Coastal California Kingsnakes
Locality Mexican Milksnakes
Spotted Mexican Milksnakes
Tangerine Mexican Milksnakes
Locality Alterna
Abbott Okeetee Cornsnakes
Mexican Baird's Ratsnakes
Cape Housesnakes
Tangerine Albino African Fat -Tailed Geckos
Locality Spotted Turtles

The title of this thread reminds me of an old Kingston Trio song.

You're dating yourself. Must be one of those OLD Hippies.
jsc
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"As hard as I've tried, just can't NOT do this"
John Crickmer

lol...and your point is?