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Lizards and Turtles and Snakes - an intro

© Paym Bergson

A Topic on Lizards and all things Reptile is not new to Suite101. There are some excellent Topics archived that I will refer to throughout my writings.

What hopefully is new though is the approach. When I first inquired about doing this Topic with Vicki Ferguson, Managing Editor, I had the idea of a series of articles based on each type of lizard, turtle, snake etc. with the emphasis on conservation and behaviour. Since completing more research, this area is needed more than ever, for what I encountered was fear, loathing and intolerance. I had no idea that so many people still had stereotyped fears (a la Jurassic Park or Godzilla) to living creatures with or without scales, with or without legs, but all silent (ever hear the call of a snake? Neither have I, not counting rattles).

Growing up in a city, I became fascinated with all creatures. It may be my eventual downfall, but as a camp counselor (inner city, yes, there IS wildlife in any city) I was the only one who could pick up any snake to take IT to safety – FROM the kids who screamed in panic. Not knowing much about these creatures (fortunately most snakes in Ontario are harmless), I was not brought up to fear, but to respect anything that breathed. Their “skin” was soft and dry, but what got me the most was how I was able to realize that snake was terrified – it just went in circles trying to find an out. When I picked it up it seemed to calm down, and I carried this two-foot rope to another area far from prying and crying campers. Their fear came from their youth, inexperience and lack of knowledge.

Yet now, when I announced my Topic to co-workers and acquaintances, I was met with a barrage of “ewws” and “why those things”? And I realized this same reaction was many people’s standard response to anything “not of theirs”. I was struck by the intolerance that seems to mimic how people feel about other people that “are not of my kind”. And I see echoes of the wars now raging throughout the world based on lack of knowledge, lack of acceptance and lack of tolerance. If we cannot accept a simple creature, how can we accept each other?

Hopefully by education, by facts, and by realizing we are all alike as we all feel and have a great desire to survive despite all odds. We can learn how to live in each other’s world without harming the other’s environment. And if we start with a simple creature, maybe we can move on to each other and figure out a way to live with each other, despite our differences.