Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hello everyone my name is Billy, im 16, 17 in january and i want to be a herpetologist. My main interests focus on the evolution and behavior of the new world pitvipers however the "colubrids" are starting to catch my attention more and more everyday especially the evolution of colubrid venom as well as the vast array of ecological niches they have occupied. Im a junior in highschool and i hope to go to the university of florida. currently i have a savu python and a pacific gopher snake. Id like to get a racer or coachwhip to trrain myself a little in handleing venomous snakes before i get to college. Anyway i love racers and i hope to get a speckled racer if possible but i might go for a coachwhip wich ive had a little more luck finding available. anyway nice to be here ive kind of avoided the kingsnake boards for a while because they were so large i figured i wouldnt remember where id posted but i guess the larger they are the better chance ill have getting a question answered. looking forward to posting and nice to meet everyone. sorry if i posted in the wrong place but this is probably where ill be asking most of my questions for a while(:

Your post indicates that you are here in Florida. The first thing you should do is contact your local herpetological society (we have several in Florida).

Your interest in venomous is common on these pages and the best way to prepare yourself is to make the proper contacts so that you can properly train and when you are ready (and of age) you can apply for the appropriate license.

Our southern black racer is a very good snake to use for training with hooks and tongs. Nice and nippy which adds that reenforcement to the training.

However, if your forte will be vipers, a nasty Fla garter or water snake would be the closest non venomous equivelent.

In any case, you will find that many people who post here are in your age group. Welcome in.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

hey thanks for the info, actually im in virginia but im probably going to have to move to florida with my uncle to establish residency so that i can afford going to the university of florida if i get accepted. We will be visiting the university of florida this summer though. As for racers, we still have plenty here although i have trouble finding snakes alot of times. not really sure what im doing wrong although i did find and catch my first canebreak (Crotalus horridus) this past october. thanks for the reply and ill be sure to take your advice, im a member of the venomdoc forums so ive talked to Dr. Fry and plenty of others who keep and handle venomous snakes on a regular basis. thanks again...