The Lives of Captive Reptiles

This book, originally published in German, is a recognized classic on the biology of captive reptiles (and selected amphibians). In it, the author carefully summarizes an enormous body of information—both his own extensive experience at Tierpark Berlin and a vast literature—much of which has been little known outside the German-speaking world. He synthesizes studies from captive and wild animals and discusses and interprets them in terms of contemporary physiology, ethology, and reproductive biology. Petzold reviews papers in biological, herpetological, zoo, and terrarium journals published throughout the world, including eastern Europe, Russia, and China, and he champions the role played by amateur terrarists in making studies of general importance. He shows how data derived from captive reptiles can lead to discoveries of importance to ethology, reproductive biology, systematics, and veterinary management.

This book will be of value to academics, zoo personnel, veterinarians, amateur terrarists, and conservationists interested in the maintenance, reproduction, and observation of reptiles in captivity.

Hans-Günter Petzold, late Curator of Reptiles and Deputy Director of the Tierpark Berlin, one of the world’s great zoos, was a leading expert on the biology of captive amphibians and reptiles and author of about 350 papers and five books on captive animals. He was trained at the University of Leipzig in systematics, ecology, and animal behavior, where he received his doctorate in 1960, and has conducted field research on reptiles overseas, including Algeria, Cuba, and Vietnam. In this book, Petzold has marshalled this breadth of experience to make insightful connections among diverse studies and to point out fruitful areas for future research. This English edition has been professionally translated by Lucian Heichler, who for more than 30 years served in the foreign service of the U.S. Department of State, and has been thoroughly edited by James B. Murphy, former Curator of Reptiles at the Dallas Zoo and now Research Associate at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. The German edition was not illustrated, but this edition has been augmented by the staff of Tierpark Berlin with 60 photographs (57 in color).

Topics covered include aspects of reproduction (sexual dimorphism, age at maturity, sex recognition and attraction, courtship behavior, copulation, gestation and delayed fertilization, egg-laying, birth, reproductive cycles, parental care, data on eggs and clutches, incubation time, genetic questions), development (growth, coloration and markings, regeneration, skin shedding, longevity), and nutrition (search for and ingestion of food, digestion, excretion, defecation, pellet formation, gastroliths, keratophagy, cannibalism). There are also discussions of the origin and history of zoos, the relevance of terrarium observations, and species conservation programs in zoos and private terraria. The literature cited section includes 1200 titles and there is an index to genera and species.

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