The SSAR Web Oversight Committee is hiring a graduate student or recent graduate to serve as SSAR’s Social Media Coordinator. The Social Media Coordinator will engage with SSAR members and the general public via our social media platforms, and the position will come with a stipend of $1,500 per year. See below for an application form that includes details about eligibility for the position, due August 23, 2024.
Modified auction of jewelry donations from Bayard Brattstrom’s estate
Bayard Brattstrom, friend, teacher, author, and herpetologist, recently passed away leaving several items to the SSAR for their annual auction. Among those things were several dozen items of herpetologically-themed jewelry. It was decided that the jewelry would be sold separately from the regular auction, due to the difficult nature of displaying it properly, and it is now being offered to members of SSAR and attendees of the recent annual meetings.
The jewelry will be sold on a modified auction basis. Potential buyers/bidders will be shown photos of the jewelry, with as much information as is available about it, including list/market values where known. All items are sold as-is/used, but any known defects will be noted. Bids may be made via email on the items through the end of October 2024. At that time, all submitted bids will be compared and each item will sell to the person that bid the most on it, at a price of the submitted bid or $1 over the second-highest bid. Identical bids will go to the one received first.
Multiple items bought by the same person will be shipped together. Items will be sent via USPS, with the buyer paying actual shipping costs. Insurance cost will be added to any purchase of over $50.00. All purchases need to be pre-paid via PayPal, with a 3% fee or via cashier’s check or money order (10 day hold from date of receiving).
All proceeds from these sales will go towards the SSAR student travel grants for future meetings.
If you are interested in buying any of the jewelry items donated by the Brattstrom estate, please visit lansing.craigslist.org. Type Bayard’s Herp Jewelry in the search bar, and browse the 6 ads that should pop up. The market values listed are all 50% above actual market values, to give the herp community the best chance to buy one/some of Bayard’s things. When the auction is over, for the items that did not get bids, the prices will be moved to actual market values for any members of the public that want them. If you are interested in buying any of the jewelry items donated by the Brattstrom estate, please contact Theresa Moran (oldherper@tds.net) for information about the jewelry and photos of the items being offered.
Thank you for your interest in Bayard’s beautiful jewelry and for supporting the SSAR!
Warning about phishing scams
The SSAR has been subjected to phishing attacks where the current president’s or other officers’ names are used with a bogus email address in solicitations for money or purchases. Please be aware these are phishing scams and should be deleted. The SSAR will never send unverifiable requests for donations or payments without advance notice of an organized fund-raising program.
Phishing is scam in which sensitive information, such as bank account numbers, are solicited often via email. Phishing scams may use email addresses that are similar to the person or organization they claim to be. We encourage our members to verify the sender information with the contact information on our website:
Officers & Editors: https://ssarherps.org/about-ssar/ssar-organization/officers-and-editors/
Committees: https://ssarherps.org/about-ssar/ssar-organization/committees/
For more information about phishing scams: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-recognize-and-avoid-phishing-scams
We encourage our members to contact us about any questions or concerns (ssarherps@gmail.com).
Poster Award Recipients for 2024
Victor Hutchison Graduate Poster Award
The SSAR graduate student poster awards honor Victor Hutchison for his extensive contributions to herpetology and the development of future herpetologists. We held the 14th annual SSAR Victor Hutchison Student Poster competition in Ann Arbor on 28 June 2024. Awardees received a check for US $250 and a SSAR book
Many thanks to this year’s judges:
Patrick Baker (United States Military Academy), Micah Nneji (Howard University), Chris Parkinson (Clemson University), Theodora Pinou (Western Connecticut State University), RJ Rao (Jiwaji University), Bibiana Rojas (University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna), Ed Stanley (Florida Museum of Natural History), and Meredith Swartwout (University of Toronto Mississauga).
The 2024 recipients of the Hutchison Graduate Poster Award are:
Physiology and Morphology
Sudipta Kalita (University of Dayton), “Functional morphology of the lower jaw in fanged frogs”
Evolution, Genetics, & Systematics
Mustafa Erkaya (Villanova University), “Population structure analysis of geckos of the genus Bavayia (Diplodactylidae) by utilization of rapidly evolving long exon capture (RELEC) datasets”
Conservation & Management
Adam Austin (Western Michigan University/ The Rattlesnake Conservancy), “Efficacy of a novel eDNA assay in locating a lost aquatic salamander”
Ecology, Natural History, Distribution, & Behavior
Ricardo Gibert (California State University Northridge), “Does competition explain the regional supplantation of Mediterranean house geckos (Hemidactylus turcicus) in Gulf Coast states?”
George B. Rabb Undergraduate Poster Award
SSAR’s George B. Rabb Undergraduate Poster Award is sponsored by Zoo Atlanta and honors our colleague George Rabb (1930-2017), former Director of the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, IL, and highly respected advocate and spokesman for wildlife conservation. 2024 marked the 6th year of this competition and the largest group of competitors to date, with 19 posters. Due to the number of posters, for the first time two awards were given and three posters were chosen for honorable mention. The recipients received a check for US $250 and a SSAR book.
Many thanks to this year’s judges:
Avi Berger (University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign), Emily Bierbaum (University of Tulsa), Lauren Chan (California Polytechnic State University), Dick Durtsche (Northern Kentucky University), Harrison Goldspiel (University of Maine), Aaron Griffing (Princeton University), Marina Gerson (California State University, Stanislaus), Chun Kamei (Field Museum of Natural History), Bonnie Kircher (The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center), and Shelby Timm (Missouri Department of Conservation).
The honorable mentions are:
In Ecology and Behavior: Jaden Kinney (Loyola University New Orleans) “Does social environment impact multimodal signaling in bird-voiced tree frogs (Hyla avivoca)?”
In Conservation and Management: Celina Eberle (University of New Mexico) “Invasion genetics of introduced bullfrogs (Rana catesbeina) in New Mexico”
In Development and Morphology: Riley Stanton (Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates), “Do big mouths make bad biters? Gape limitations appear to constrain evolution in the jaws of snakes”
The award recipients are:
In Physiology: Madeline Russelburg (Benedictine University), “Validating the use of bacterial killing assays to investigate immune health of spotted turtles living in contaminated environments
In Evolution and Genetics: Jonathan Eubanks and Hayden Hanna (Louisiana State University Shreveport), “Phylogenetics and rang-wide phylogeography of Garthia – a phyllodactylid gecko genus endemic to Chile”
Seibert Award Recipients for 2024
The 32nd annual Seibert Awards were presented at the SSAR Business Meeting on June 29th, 2024 following the 66th Annual Meeting of the SSAR in Ann Arbor, MI on June 27th – 30th, 2024. These awards are named in honor of Henri C. Seibert, an early and tireless supporter of SSAR (having served as an officer for over 20 years).
In recognition of outstanding student presentations at the annual meeting, a single award is given in each of four categories: Morphology & Physiology (14 presentations), Evolution & Systematics (14 presentations), Ecology (10 presentations), and Conservation (10 presentations). All recipients receive a check from SSAR and a book compliments of Chuck Crumly (Taylor and Francis).
The Seibert Award Recipients for 2024 are:
Morphology & Physiology:
Jonathan Huie, The George Washington University, “Climbing kinematics and morphology of Aneides salamanders”
Honorable Mention to Ayley Shortridge, Michigan State University, “Phenotypic and fitness effects of heat waves and flash drought during embryonic development in the painted turtle”
Evolution & Systematics:
Matthew Buehler, Auburn University, “Conservation genomics of an endangered charismatic snake, the eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi)”
Honorable Mentions to Ashmika Behere, Marquette University, “Evolution of sex chromosomes in Lialis burtonis” and Tushar Sharma, University of Texas at Austin, “Unraveling evolutionary transitions in developmental modes: insights from Gastrotheca (Hemiphractidae)”
Ecology:
Jeffrey Coleman, University of Texas at Austin, “Nuance in the narrative: environmental compounds and foraging preferences unveiled in a brown poison frog considered diet-generalized and toxin-free”
Honorable Mention to Tyler Hunt, Florida State University, “Visual field analysis reveals near-panoramic vision in narrow-snouted Crocodilians”
Conservation:
Callie Golba, Northern Illinois University, “Population viability analysis-based assessment of Blanding’s turtle conservation strategies”
Honorable Mention to Maris Daleo, University of Urbana, Illinois, “Survival analysis of eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina) incorporating pathogen effects in central Illinois”
With thanks to the judges for 2024:
Kaitlin Allen, University of Florida; Kinsey Brock, San Diego State University; Vincent Farallo, University of Scranton; Darrel Frost, American Museum of Natural History; Whitney Gentry, Loyola University: Leigh Ann Harden, Benedictine University; Anthony Herrel, CNRS: Christopher Mayerli, Northern Arizona University: Oksana Nekrasova, I.I. Schmalhausen Institute of Zoology; John Rowe, Alma College; Rudi von May, Cal State University, Channel Islands.
SSAR Graduate Student Mentorship Program
Note: The Graduate Student Mentorship Program is a new program in 2024, and it is different from the Conference Mentorship Program. For more information on the conference program, check out this post: https://ssarherps.org/2024/05/ssar-2024-conference-mentorship-program/
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 1st and 2nd 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 within two years of finishing their Ph.D.
In this program, each peer mentor will be paired with 1-2 mentees, with whom they will meet at least once per month throughout the year-long program (September 2024 – August 2025). All participants (mentors and mentees) will attend online training and orientation sessions at the beginning of the program. Peer mentors will attend three additional special topics training workshops throughout 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.
For the program’s first year, we expect it will include 12-14 mentees and 6-8 peer mentors. Because the program is enabled by an NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship, the aim of which is to broaden participation of people from groups underrepresented in biology, we will prioritize applicants from groups that have been historically underrepresented in the biological sciences based on race, ethnicity, LGBTQIA+ identities, disability status, neurodiversity, veteran status, or other forms of identity, as well as their intersection. 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 2025. 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 2-hour training session in late August or early September
- Attend a 1.5-hour mentor + mentee orientation in September
- Meet virtually with each mentee within 1 week after orientation
- For each mentee, the mentor-mentee pair will develop a written agreement of expectations, to be submitted to the program coordinator
- Meet with each mentee at least once per month, 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 three 1-1.5-hour professional development workshops, spread throughout the year
Expectations for mentees:
- Attend a 1.5-hour mentor + mentee orientation in September
- Meet virtually with peer mentor within 1 week after orientation
- The mentor-mentee pair will develop a written agreement of expectations, to be submitted to the program coordinator
- Meet with peer mentor at least once per month, and communicate via email, phone, etc. as needed
- Attend 1-2 academic/professional development workshops per semester (2-3 will be offered, 1-1.5 hours each)
Application forms and contact info:
Peer mentor applications are due on August 2, 2024.
Peer mentors should be current Ph.D. candidates, or postdocs 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/1FAIpQLSep5-a7R_nF5P34Iuq5sRxUI4_3p2va7GkLUza3P8C-faY-Fw/viewform?usp=sf_link
Mentee applications are due on August 9, 2024.
Mentees should be 1st or 2nd year Ph.D. students (start date between July 2023 and September 2024) 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/1FAIpQLSdYQEJEpEMMzscIQncshagJqeo7jnsmbg3IdpBaqbtcGnEBCQ/viewform?usp=sf_link
Questions can be directed to Jessica Tingle, jessica_tingle@brown.edu.
Opportunities in herpetologically-minded labs!
Are you a student or postdoc looking for opportunities in herp-focused labs? Check out this spreadsheet for labs that are currently recruiting:
The SSAR website also has resources to help prospective students navigate the application process:
https://ssarherps.org/herp-lab-recruiting/
PIs who are recruiting can use this form any time to add their information:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd-g-GwAZ6o2E0KU1hsiz9KirYVQmRq8QqheutIGgWEjBjcDQ/viewform
SSAR 2024 Conference Mentorship Program
Conference Mentorship Program
Attending your first SSAR conference and want to meet fellow early career scientists and more experienced conference-goers? Or are you a conference veteran looking to encourage participation by new members? For several years, the SSAR mentorship program has helped new attendees get the most out of our annual conference and provided an impactful way for attendees of all career stages to support new members.
Signing up for the program
The program organizers use a questionnaire to determine participants career level as well as research and career interests, then they will use the responses to make meaningful mentor-mentee matches.
Folks who’d like to act as either a mentor or mentee for the program should use the same form. We expect the diversity of mentors to reflect the diversity of our new meeting attendees. Therefore, individuals from all career types and stages are invited to participate as mentors, from students to postdocs to established professionals.
How the program works
Everyone in the program meets as a group near the beginning of the SSAR meeting. This meeting gives everyone the chance to get to know each other, and it provides an opportunity for program organizers to give suggestions for making the most out of the mentorship interactions.
After the initial meeting, mentor-mentee pairs can meet up when and how they choose. Interactions often include attending poster sessions together, checking in over coffee, and/or talking over a meal. Mentors can also help their mentees to meet other researchers and help grown their networks.
Please fill out the questionnaire by May 31, 2024: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd_MhpB-PbdGOlSBMoF_Fx7fK_W89sMSKzNEwD1TChmwiLfMg/viewform
If there are any questions about this program or participation form, please contact Dr. Rob Denton (rdenton@marian.edu).
Virtual info session on identifying graduate programs and preparing to apply: May 22
On Wednesday, May 22 at 3 pm Pacific / 6 pm Eastern, SSAR’s DEI Committee will host a 1.5-hour virtual info session on identifying potential graduate programs and preparing to apply. DEIC members will give short presentations on several relevant topics. We will include time for questions and breakout room discussions.
If you are interested in joining, please mark your calendar, fill out the form, and we will send you a Zoom link about a week before the info session. This event is ideal for people who are thinking about applying to either master’s or PhD programs, as well as for advisors/mentors who want information that they can use to help their mentees find graduate programs.
To access form, use the link or QR code below.
Roger Conant Grants-in-Herpetology Winners – 2024 Awards
SSAR congratulates the following winners of the Roger Conant Grants-in-Herpetology Awards. Each receives an award in the amount of $500.
Conservation:
Morgan Thompson (Northern Arizona University), “Expanding the Use of External-Accelerometry to Understand Space Use and Hunting Behaviors of an Endangered Highly-Aquatic Colubrid: Narrow-headed Garter Snakes (Thamnophis rufipunctatus).”
Shanelle A. Wikramanayake (Colorado State University), “Integrating Genetics into Conservation Planning of Tropical Lizards in an Imperiled Ecosystem.”
International:
Renoir J. Auguste (The University of the West Indies), “Using an Elevational Gradient to Investigate the Effects of Climate Change on the Calling Behaviour of an Island Endemic Frog (Pristimantis urichi) from the Southern Caribbean.”
Anastasios Limnios (University of Porto), “One Lizards’ Trash is Another Man’s Treasure: Using Biochemical Tools to Understand the Synergy between Climate Change and Pesticides in Ectotherms.”
Travel:
Céline M. Carneiro (University of Texas at Austin), “Assessing the Evolutionary Potential of a Culturally Iconic Amphibian in Puerto Rico.”
Kira Gangbin (Texas Christian University), “Nest-Site Selection of Texas Horned Lizards: Key to Successful Reintroductions?”
Laboratory research:
Sage Babish (University of Nevada-Reno), “A Genomic Approach to Understanding an Ecological Adaptation in the Sierra Garter Snake (Thamnophis couchii).”
Christopher M. Zobek (University of Missouri), “Comparative Evolution and Mechanics of Muscle Architecture in the Jaw Muscles of Snakes.”
Undergraduate research:
Jessica Dorantes-García (UNAM), “Diet Composition of a Population of Charadrahyla taeniopus in Cuetzalán del Progreso, Puebla, Mexico, and its Relationship with Sexual Dimorphism.”
Kyle Jesse Moxley (University of Texas at Austin), “Using Skeletal Features to Diagnose Metamorphic State in a Species of Mole Salamander (Ambystomatidae:Ambystoma).”
Field Research in Herpetology:
Max Roberts (California Polytechnic State University), “Utilizing a Live-Streaming Camera to Investigate the Basking Behavior of Pregnant Female and Neonate Prairie Rattlesnakes.”
Angelina D. Piette (California State University, Northridge), “Mutual Mate Choice and Courtship Duet Dynamics in a Neotropical Frog.”
Education:
Owen Bachhuber (California Polytechnic State University), “Window to the Wild: Using Livestreaming Cameras to Influence Zoo Visitor Perceptions of a Misunderstood Reptile.”
Satish Paudel (Institute of Forestry, Pokhara Campus, Pokhara), “Assessment of Status, Distribution and Identifying Threats to the Turtles of Rupandehi District, Nepal.”
Chair of the Roger Conant Grants-In-Herpetology, Roberto Brenes, would like to sincerely thank the SSAR-Roger Conant GIH Reviewers. He greatly appreciates their time and effort.
- Delia Basanta (University of Nevada-Reno/UNAM)
- Mirna Garcia (UNAM)
- Carolina Lamberti (University of Pittsburg)
- Todd Levine (Carroll University)
- Bree Putman (Cal State, San Bernardino)
- Veronica Saenz Calderon (University of Pittsburg)
- Molly Womack (Utah State University)
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