Registration is now open for the Winter semester of the Junior Master Herpetologist Program ONLINE. Starts Jan 15, 2022

Ages 12-17

Join us for a dynamic introductory course in Herpetology, featuring expert instruction. Become certified, and take a deep dive with us! The class is 100% online and asynchronous so students can take the class on their own time.

There are optional weekly live sessions on Saturdays with the Instructor, so students can ask questions, see live animals, and show off their critters!

For more information, see: junior.masterherpetologist.org

Learn about amphibian declines and what the expectations are for amphibians in our future. Mark Mandica, Founder and Executive Director of the Amphibian Foundation will share the organization's history, mission and conservation efforts especially with endangered amphibian species in the Southeast. More details will be shared about the upcoming field trips to explore and find amphibians at locations where Trees Atlanta has been doing forest restoration work.

Register via "Ticket" link here or via our website Calendar of Events: https://www.treesatlanta.org/get-involved/events

Interested in keeping and breeding reptiles & amphibians? Learn from the professionals! There is a lot of material out there on the internet, and sadly, most of it is confusing, not helpful, or just outright wrong. This class provides an opportunity to learn about the successes and failures from the pros.

This intensive class provides a husbandry foundation as we learn from zoo professionals, nonprofit keepers, conservation managers, professional breeders, and others about the best practices and proven techniques for keeping and breeding reptiles & amphibians in captivity. Methods for growing healthy live food, ensuring proper water quality, light and heat sources, and more will be provided by professionals, as well as details of successful captive projects with species and groups of salamanders, frogs, turtles, lizards, snakes, and more.

The course fee ($250) includes ~ 60 lectures, handouts & additional readings, and optional live Zoom discussions with the Lead Instructor + other Instructors.

The course is asyncronous (on your own schedule) and divided into seven 2-week sections. A topic (e.g. Snakes) is introduced, related lectures are made available, and optional Zoom and forum discussions on the topic begin. Lectures remain available for the duration of the course, so students can always return to the material.

The Spring semester of the course begins March 16, 2022
Section 1: Introduction and Growing Live Food (March 16)
Section 2: Anura: Frogs & Toads (March 30)
Section 3: Caudata: Salamanders & Newts (April 13)
Section 4: Testudines: Turtles & Tortoises (April 27)
Section 5: Sauria: Lizards (May 11)
Section 6: Serpentes: Snakes (May 25)
Section 7: Strategies for Success with Husbandry (June 8th)

Our goal is to introduce children to the exciting biodiversity of amphibians and reptiles, using these animals to illustrate aspects of biology and ecology.

The camps are small (maximum of 15 campers per session) and will be focused on tropical animals, as well as native species.

Campers will be encouraged to ask questions about the animals and discover their own answers through hands-on observation. Safe animal handling, including biosecurity will be taught and implemented at the beginning of the camp, and maintained vigilantly throughout. Over one hundred animals from around the world will be available for this camp. This includes (most of) the major amphibian groups: frogs, toads, salamanders and newts as well as the reptile groups: turtles, tortoises, lizards and snakes. Campers will learn 'fun facts' about each group: their life cycles, where and how they live, how they reproduce, and their defense strategies. Campers will learn things like what makes a frog a toad, and what makes a turtle a tortoise. Campers will also learn how to identify frog species by their call and tadpole!

Learn more and register at: critter-camp.org