Archives for August 2026

We are thrilled to announce the inaugural recipients of the Robert W. Hansen Herpetological Photographic Award, presented at this year’s SSAR Business Meeting at the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. This new award recognizes Robert (Bob) Hansen’s 30-plus years of service to SSAR, and celebrates his passion for herpetological photography. Under Bob’s leadership as Editor, Herpetological Review transformed into a globally acclaimed publication—introducing visually striking, full-color cover images that showcase the beauty and diversity of amphibians and reptiles worldwide. The winning image will be featured in issue #4 of Herp Review each year.

Please join us in celebrating our inaugural award recipients:

Winner: Danté Fenolio—Vice President, Center for Conservation & Research – San Antonio Zoo.

Danté grew up in the fog-shrouded redwood forests of the Santa Cruz Mountains in California (USA), where amphibians like Pacific Giant Salamanders and Red Legged Frogs were a part of his childhood experience. Danté’s father and grandfather were avid outdoorsmen; Fenolio spent much of his youth in the woods. As Danté finished high school, he started spending his summers working for a herpetologist in the upper Amazon Basin, performing herpetological field surveys. With a combined undergraduate degree in both Biology and Environmental Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz, Fenolio continued on to earn a Master’s degree in Zoology from the University of Oklahoma, where he examined the population ecology of Grotto Salamanders, Eurycea spelaea. He went on to earn a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Miami (Florida) involving amphibian conservation, ecology, and taxonomy. Dr. Fenolio’s research interests involve the ecology of animals living in challenging environments like subterranean ecosystems, forest canopies, or the deep-ocean realm.

Winning photo of Ranitomeya reticulata by Danté Fenolio.

Honorable Mentions: Damien Esquerre—Lecturer & Researcher, University of Wollongong, Australia.

Damien was born in Chile where he studied Biology and started working as a researcher on Liolaemus lizards. He also began his career as a photographer there. He was awarded a scholarship in 2012 and 2014 to get his Master’s and then Ph.D. at the Australian National University, where he studied the evolutionary biology of pythons. After working as a postdoc for 4 years for Prof. Scott Keogh, he got a permanent academic position at the University of Wollongong. As a photographer, he has spent the last 10 years teaching courses and taking groups on photo safaris across the globe, including destinations such as Costa Rica, Galapagos, the Amazon, Borneo, and Cape York, where he took this photo (of the Morelia viridis).

Runner up photo of Strophurus ciliaris by Damien Esquerre.

Second runner up photo of Morelia viridis by Damien Esquerre.

Congratulations to our winners, and thank you to everyone who submitted their incredible work! 

Congratulations to Eva Greco and Jacob Smith, the 2026 recipients of the Dean E. Metter Memorial Award!

Eva is advised by Dr. Robert Espinoza and is currently earning a master’s degree at California State University, Northridge. Eva’s research objective is to determine if island fence lizards have shifted their thermal physiology to compensate for lower island temperatures? She plans to compare thermal environments among island and continental sites, record field body temperatures from the two populations, test thermal preferences using laboratory experiments, assess thermal tolerances in the lab, and finally analyze locomotor performances at different temperatures.

Jacob is working on a master’s degree under the tutelage of Dr. Chris Feldman at University of Nevada, Reno. Jacob’s research focuses on mechanisms behind snake and gecko resistance to Arizona bark scorpion venom (ABSV) through an integrative approach. Jacob plans on examining the effects of ABSV at the whole animal level, how ABSV affects critical tissues, and unraveling the genetic basis of venom resistance.

Dean (Doc) Metter was a faculty member in the Department of Zoology at the University of Missouri—Columbia and then the Division of Biological Sciences at that institution for approximately 30 years. A believer in putting knowledge to the test in the field, Doc provided frequent opportunities for students to engage in fieldwork. This award honors Doc’s legacy and dedication to his students. Stay tuned for the next award cycle! Applications are due annually on December 15. Follow the link to learn more: https://ssarherps.org/ssar-awards/dean-metter-memorial-award/.

Last call to apply for the 2026-27 SSAR Graduate Student Mentorship Program (GSMP)! Applications are due Thursday, August 20, 2026.

Program overview:

Healthy mentorship relationships and strong professional networks help mentees excel academically and reach their career goals, while also increasing their sense of belonging in an institution or profession. Mentors can also benefit from a successful mentor/mentee relationship. However, many mentors have never received formal mentorship training, leaving them to learn through trial and error.

The SSAR Graduate Student Mentorship Program (GSMP) aims to serve both mentees and early-career mentors through two major aims: 1) to provide new grad students (master’s students plus 1^st and 2^nd year Ph.D. students) in the field of herpetology with near-peer mentors in the same field who can help them reach their academic and career goals while building connections within the herpetological scientific community, and 2) to provide mentorship training and experience to their peer mentors, who are Ph.D. students in herpetology who have advanced to candidacy or postdocs (and others in temporary positions, like visiting assistant professors) within two years of finishing their Ph.D.

In this program, each peer mentor will be paired with a mentee, with whom they will meet at least once per month throughout the year-long program (September 2026 – August 2027). All participants (mentors and mentees) will attend online training and orientation sessions at the beginning of the program. Peer mentors will attend two additional special topics training workshops during the year, also virtual, and mentees will be offered virtual workshops on a variety of topics. Peer mentors will complete brief monthly reflections on their experiences, which will help guide ongoing development of their mentorship strategies.

The program typically serves 16-20 participants per year. The program coordinator has substantial leadership experience in SSAR (former Chair of the Student Participation Committee, current Co-Chair of the DEI Committee, and current member of the Long-Range Planning Committee) as well as experience coordinating UC Riverside’s Graduate Student Mentorship Program.

Program expectations:

To participate in the Graduate Student Mentorship Program, successful applicants will need to agree to a set of program expectations, listed below. Note that all training, workshops, and other events will be held virtually, over Zoom. Applicants do not have to be current SSAR members, but if they are not, then we will help them secure membership upon acceptance into the program.

Participants will be encouraged (but not required) to attend the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (JMIH) in July 2027. SSAR has several travel grants to which students can apply to help with the cost of attending a conference.

Expectations for peer mentors:

• Attend a 1.5-hour training session in early or mid- September
• Attend a 1-hour mentor + mentee orientation in mid- or late September
• Meet virtually with mentee within 1 week after orientation
• Meet with mentee at least once per month for the duration of the year, and communicate via email, phone, etc. as needed
• Submit a monthly reflection (~½ to 1 page) to the program coordinator
  • The program coordinator will read and respond to each reflection, helping to connect mentors to resources as necessary
• Attend two 1-1.5-hour professional development workshops during the year

Expectations for mentees:

• Attend a 1-hour mentor + mentee orientation in mid- or late September
• Meet virtually with peer mentor within 1 week after orientation
• Meet with peer mentor at least once per month for the duration of the year, and communicate via email, phone, etc. as needed
• Attend 1-2 academic/professional development workshops during the year (2-3 will be offered, 1 hour each)

Application forms and contact info:

Applications are due on August 20, 2026.

Peer mentors should be current Ph.D. candidates, or postdocs (and others in temporary positions, like visiting assistant professors) who defended their dissertation within the past two years, with a research focus on amphibians and/or reptiles. Here is the application form for peer mentors:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeNe4vdIiMAwRJnvcNHoSs0n8hZ_XK9t2pwYnCzM_uCljkqdQ/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Mentees should be 1^st or 2^nd year Ph.D. students (start date between July 2025 and September 2026) or master’s students with a research focus on amphibians and/or reptiles. Here is the application form for mentees:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkZvIQSmFa92jVkzAdttQhup3LaVYKmCNDYebMqRwxF6083Q/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Questions can be directed to Jessica Tingle, jessica_tingle@brown.edu.

Note: The Graduate Student Mentorship Program is year-long mentorship program for graduate students, and it is different from the Conference Mentorship Program. For more information on the conference program, check out this page: https://ssarherps.org/conference-mentorship-program/

The SSAR congratulates the following recipients of the Roger Conant Grants in Herpetology. Each receives an award of $500. To learn more about the grant, visit our webpage. Stay tuned for the upcoming cycle (applications due December 15)!

Conservation:
• Aleida Iriarte, University of Florida; Managing endangered micro-endemic Microkayla frogs through community-based conservation in the Bolivian Andes
• Maddisyn Braun, The University of Georgia; The Role of Hybridization in Shaping Plethodon Responses to Climate

Education:
• Aayush Dhungana, Tribhuvan University; Building school teachers capacity to deliver effective Yellow Monitor conservation education in schools around Chitwan National Park, central Nepal
• Eston Kimaswoch Ayiego, IUCN Commission on Education & Communication (CEC); Living with Pythons: A School-Based Human–Snake Coexistence Program in Baringo County

Field Research in Herpetology:
• Zifang Xiong, University of Toronto; Can predation explain why mainland and island Anolis lizard faunas are so different? – Rethinking the ecological drivers of anole radiations.
• McKae Sarkowski, Auburn University; Measuring sex-specific natural selection in a long-lived species, the diamond-backed terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) International Research in Herpetology
• Chien-Chen Huang, Macquarie University, Australia; Behavioral Flexibility and Spatial Ecology in Human-modified Environments: A Field Study in Wild Lace Monitors (Varanus varius)
• Amar Osmanbašić, (University of Sarajevo); Brčko District: a potential herpetological hotspot in a poorly explored region of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Laboratory Research in Herpetology:
• Emily Blackwell, New York University; Bright lights, hot city: Investigating the effects of artificial light and urban heat on Anolis sagrei
• Gregory Pandelis, University of Texas at Arlington; How to eat a snail: convergence and divergence in skull shape among a sympatric assemblage of snail-eating snakes

Travel:
• Sage Kruleski (California Polytechnic State University); Reconstructing the Evolutionary History of a Native Island Amphibian on the Channel Islands
• Hope Erin George (John Carroll University); Bright colors are not always enough: how anti-predator behaviors help protect poison frogs

Undergraduate Research in Herpetology:
• Gabriela Ribau (Junior Drew University); Morphological and behavioral effects of microplastics on American toad (Anaxyrus americanus) tadpoles and metamorphs
• Nancy Barahona (California Polytechnic State University); Understanding Euryhelmis infections in Taricha torosa through identification of the first intermediate host

Thanks to this year’s reviewers: Stephen Mullin (Arkansas State University), Paul Klawinski (University of Oklahoma), Rob Grasso (Park aquatic ecologist, Yosemite National Park), Mirna Garcia (UNAM, Mexico), Donald Brown (Forest service), David Steinberg (University of New Hampshire), Kelly Robinson (Cal Poly at Humboldt), and Chris Distel (Schreiner University).

The SSAR offers several resources to support students and postdoctoral researchers in attending and presenting research at annual meetings.

• The SSAR Student Travel Awards received 36 applicants this year, with ten individuals randomly selected to receive $500 towards travel to attend the Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (JMIH) in New Orleans.
• This year, the Metallinou Postdoctoral Travel Award funded two individuals to attend JMIH: Drs. Analisa Shields-Estrada and Aaron Griffing.
• The Carl Gans Travelling Fellowship also helped fund an impressive 33 applicants to attend and present their research at JMIH.

Congratulations to all travel award and fellowship recipients, some of whom are featured in the photos below taken at the SSAR Business Meeting in New Orleans!

Committee Chairs Ethan Livingston and Dr. Natasha Stepanova with the recipients of the 2026 SSAR Student Travel Awards.

Committee Chair Dr. Rayna Bell and one of the Metallinou Postdoctoral Travel Award recipients, Dr. Aaron Griffing.

2026 Carl Gans Fellows attending the SSAR Business Meeting at JMIH in New Orleans.