The Master Herpetologist Program is a certificate program, and is offered 100% online. The class is taught by a diversity of herpetologists from around the world.

100% Online | Asynchronous | 16 week program | Certificate program | Offered: Fall, Spring & Summer

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Online Course

This intensive class provides an introduction to herpetology and equips participants with amphibian and reptile identification skills and general knowledge of frogs, salamanders, turtles, lizards, crocodilians, tuatara, and snakes — their life histories, habitat requirements and biodiversity.

Course content includes classification and identification of amphibians and reptiles, 'herping' equipment, frog calls, attracting amphibians/reptiles and backyard wildlife habitat, anatomy and physiology, ecology, behavior, breeding migration, and conservation. This course is a deep dive into the world of amphibians and reptiles, intended to create a foundation of herpetological knowledge upon which students can build.

The course fee includes lectures, handouts, exam, and certificate.

The class is intended for adults. Please contact us before registering someone under the age of 18. For younger learners, please see our Junior Master Herpetologist Program (ages 12-17). If you are a certified Junior Master Herpetologist, and you wish to apply for an Age Exception for this course, please see the application for eligibility and criteria. Application Here

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The 100% online class is asynchronous — meaning there is no required time to meet, is designed for students to go at their own pace with the material, and from any time zone. The scope of the course is broad in order to highlight the global biodiversity of the animals, the students, and the instructors. We will meet optionally every other Wednesday from 6 - 7 pm (EST = UTC -5:00) as 'office hours' on the first day of a new section — if anyone has questions or would like to communicate directly with the instructor (not required). The course will work through any web browser on PC, Mac, and also on the Moodle app on phones/tablets: iPhone, and Android.

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Course Schedule

The schedule below is a guide for the class. A given section (eg. Frogs) will be made available on the first day of that section and will remain available for the duration of the course. Students have 2 weeks to absorb the material, before the next topic (section) is introduced, but can go at their own pace and refer back to earlier topics throughout the course.

The Final Exam will be made available after the (optional) Office Hours at the beginning of the last section, which will serve as a review session for the final. The class lasts about 16 weeks, and requires an average of 2-3 hours a week to complete.

Summer 2023
Section 1 (May 10): Introduction
Section 2 (May 24): Caecilians
Section 3 (June 7): Salamanders
Section 4 (June 21): Frogs
Section 5 (July 5): Lizards + Tuatara
Section 6 (July 19): Snakes
Section 7 (Aug 2): Turtles + Crocodilians
Section 8 (Aug 16): Final Exam

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Course Instructors

Affiliation and Twitter Handle

Adam Bland, Chester Zoo | @adamwbland
Amanda Duffus, Gordon State College | @DrRanidae
Andy Coleman, Urban Turtle Project & Talladega College | @AlabamaTurtles
Anthony Herrell, Bâtiment d'Anatomie Comparée- National Museum of Natural History | @AnthonyHerrel
Arik Hartmann, University of Florida | @AmphibiArik
Brooke Talley, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission | @Br00keT
Carla Bardua, Natural History Museum, London | @CarlaBardua
Chris Jenkins, The Orianne Society | @OrianneSociety
David Bickford, University of La Verne
David Blackburn, Florida Museum of Natural History | @davidcblackburn
David Steen, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission | @AlongsideWild
Duncan Irschick, University of Massachusetts | @duncanirschick
Ed Stanley, Florida Museum of Natural History | @DrScanley
Grover Brown, University of Southern Mississippi | @GroverJBrown
Henry Astley, University of Akron
Houston Chandler, Virginia Tech & The Orianne Society | @TheSnakeDude
Jen Lamb, St Cloud State University | @jenylamb
Jodi Rowley, University of New South Wales | @jodirowley
John Measey, Stellenbosch University | @AfriHerp
Jonathan Losos, Washington University at St Louis | @JLosos
Katy Greenwald, Eastern Michigan University | @amphibs
Laura Kojima, Odum School of Ecology/Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, University of Georgia | @LauraKojima
Marcel van Driel, Helping Hands in Snake Safety | @zambiansnakes
Mark Mandica, Amphibian Foundation & Agnes Scott College | @markmandica
Matthew Niemiller, University of Alabama in Huntsville | @cavemander17
Mark Scherz, University of Konstanz | @MarkScherz
Max Lambert, UC Berkeley | @MaxRLambert
Mikaeylah Davidson, University of Melbourne | @MicrobeMik
Robert Sprackland, Smithsonian Institution, Museum of Natural History | @RSprackland
Ryan Kerney, Gettysburg College | @ryankerney
Sarah Lamar, Victoria University of Wellington | @SphenodonSarah
Sarah McGrath-Blaser, University of Florida | @BlasinAmphibs
Simon Maddock, University of Wolverhampton; Natural History Museum, London & University of Seychelles | @Simon_Maddock
Sneha Dharwadkar, Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises Foundation | @Herpomania
Steve Allain, Save the Snakes | @stevoallain
Steven David Johnson, Eastern Mennonite University, International League of Conservation Photographers
Taylor West, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. University of Michigan | @WildWildTWest
Tobias Landberg, Amphibian Foundation | @TobiasLandberg
Tony Daly-Crews, The Rattlesnake Conservancy
Vladimir Dinets, University of Tennessee, Knoxville | @VladimirDinets
Walter E. Meshaka, Jr., State Museum of Pennsylvania | @ToadWally

This course is offered on the Moodle Platform