Herpetology Highlights

  • tetragenesis

    Research

    Frogs of the Arabuko-Sokoke forest.
    more >>

  • Galapagos Tortoise Collection

    History

    Collecting herpetological specimens since 1853.
    more >>

  • Expeditions

    Expeditions

    Herpetology in Myanmar and the Gulf of Guinea
    more >>

  • Collections

    Collections

    Explore Herpetology's vast collections
    more >>

During the past two and half decades, the Department has produced well over 100 scientific papers, and authored or contributed to the publication of at least 11 books. Herpetology faculty and staff have served as officers and board members of national and international organizations such as the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Geological Society of America, Willi Hennig Society, California Institute for International Studies, Forum for the History of Science in America, the Biodiversity Foundation for Africa (Zimbabwe) and the National CITES Standing Committee of the Kenya Wildlife Service, to name a few.

Collection Statistics

As of March 2011, 300,761 specimens have been cataloged in the Department of Herpetology. The collection is comprised of the California Academy of Sciences (CAS) collection (247,465 specimens) and the Stanford University (CAS-SU) collection (53,296 specimens).

African Frogs

Visit Dr. Bob Drewes' pages on The Frogs of the Impenetrable Forest, Frogs of the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, Gulf of Guinea Treefrogs, and the discovery of a new Serengeti Treefrog.  The Amphibian and Predator list, available on the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest page, contains images, sounds, and descriptions of the frogs, some of the predators, and other inhabitants.

Herpetology Grant Programs

The Section of Herpetology maintains two grant programs: The Charles Stearns Memorial Grant-In-Aid for Herpetological Research and The Brett Stearns Award for Chelonian Research. Please see Funding Opportunities link above for more information.

New species of reptiles and amphibians discovered from Myanmar

Download Dr. Jeff Wilkinson's presentation of new species discovered in Myanmar.

 

 

 

Projects funded by the National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded several major California Academy of Sciences Herpetology Department projects.

Herpetology Department Innovations

The members of the Department of Herpetology pride themselves in being one of the more creative and innovative departments in the Academy. Our past three decades have included many Academy "firsts."

The Digitization and Rectification of the Brown and Alcala Philippine Collection

The California Academy of Sciences maintains the largest collection of Philippine amphibians and reptiles in the world, comprised of 29,656 whole preserved specimens, representing 386 taxa, including 95 holotypes, 12 syntypes (10 taxa), seven neotypes, two lectotypes, two paralectotypes and 1,813 paratypes (102 taxa). The collection’s breadth covers 98 islands including all the main islands within the Philippine Archipelago. Over 156 scientific publications have utilized specimens from this collection, and at least 10,713 specimens (over one third of specimens) have been cited.

Research Expeditions

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Search Collections

Our collection of amphibians and reptiles is one of the ten largest in the world, containing more than 300,000 catalogued specimens from 166 countries.

Contact the Department

  • Herpetology
  • California Academy of Sciences
  • 55 Music Concourse Drive
  • San Francisco, CA 94118
  • 415-379-5277 (direct)

Summer Systematics Institute

 

The Summer Systematics Institute and the Biological Illustration Internships will be offered June 17 to August 9, 2013.  The application period for this year's term is now closed.  Please check back for information on the 2014 term in November of this year.

 

Learn more

 

 

 

 

Internship
February 15, 2013

FAQs

  • Can I tour Herpetology?
  • Can you identify a reptile or amphibian for me?

    Positive identifications can only be made if a specimen is brought to our laboratory.  We cannot declare genera based solely upon general descriptions, drawings, or even photographs.

  • I'm thinking of becoming a Herpetologist or know someone who is developing an interest. Do you have any advice?

    Herpetology is a wonderful field with many possibilities.  Please visit our staff pages to learn more about our interests, foci, and specialties first and then send an email or letter with your questions.  We'll answer as best we can and as time permits (sometimes we're in the field for up to 2 months at a time!)

  • What’s the best way to take care of my animal?

    Please note that we do not work with the live animals on exhibit, nor do we focus on husbandry. Inquiries regarding animals on exhibit should be directed to the Aquarium, and for inquires regarding husbandry, we recommend contacting the East Bay Vivarium.

  • Can I donate specimens?

    We only accept donations of specimens if you are able to provide locality data, (this includes latitude and longitude as given by a GPS unit). Otherwise please contact the Academy's Naturalist Center . They take donations of specimens that are in good condition for educational purposes.

Dr. Drewes Gulf of Guinea Blog

The Race: Principe Island– A New World Biosphere Reserve!
During GG VII, just completed, a rather remarkable thing happened which readers should know about. I will write a wrap-up of Gulf of Guinea VII next month, but in the meantime I want to talk about Príncipe Island in general and what has just happened there. Photo by Eddie Herbst. Readers will already know that ...
The Race: GG VII—We Reunite and Part Again
After two hectic weeks of education activities on São Tomé, Rayna Bell (Cornell University) arrived and the four of us joined the botanists, Tom Daniel, Jim Shevock, Miko Nadel, Tamas Szuts (our spider guy) and Andrew Stanbridge (our photographer) on Príncipe.   I  have asked Andrew, a veteran of three Gulf of Guinea expeditions, to illustrate ...
The Race: GG VII First Week: Snakes, Workshops and Spiders
Our first week is now complete. The botanists and Andrew our photographer went to Príncipe early so I will include their progress in a later blog. One thing I will add though is a picture Andrew emailed us yesterday, a shot of the endemic diurnal green snake, the Príncipe Soá-soá. We have only been able ...

Become a Donor

For those who would like to support young herpetologists, tax deductible donations can be made to 'the California Academy of Sciences', with a cover letter stating that the money is to be credited to Herpetology at the Academy. Please address your donation to:

 

Herpetology Chair
California Academy of Sciences
55 Music Concourse Drive
Golden Gate Park
San Francisco, CA. 94118
United States