Tennessee - Amphibian Husbandry Experts

Steve Reichling is Director of Conservation & Research at the Memphis Zoo, where he has worked for 45 years. He is heavily involved in the captive management of reptiles and amphibians and their conservation in the wild. He leads the zoo component of the recovery program for the Endangered dusky gopher frog (Lithobates sevosus), having founded the AZA Species Survival Program for the taxon and initiated the captive-breeding and release program in partnership with state and federal agencies, NGOs, and academia. He also initiated the zoo-based component of the striped newt (Notopthalmus perstriatus) release program. His herpetological interests center on the species endemic to the longleaf pine ecosystems of the southeastern United States, resulting in his book “Reptiles and Amphibians of the Southern Pine Woods” (Univ. of Florida Press), and he leads the zoo-based recovery effort for the Louisiana pinesnake (Pituophis ruthveni). In addition to being a professional herpetologist, he is intensely interested in tarantulas, resulting in his book “Tarantulas of Belize” (Krieger Publishing Co.), and has discovered and described four new species and one new genus, all from Central America. A spider genus, Reichlingia, is named in recognition of his work.