WEBVTT - What Reptiles Are Most Endangered?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff, Lauren Bogabam Here, did you ever date someone,

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<v Speaker 1>perhaps in your less wise years, who sported a green mohawk,

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<v Speaker 1>some strange piercings and seemed to breathe out of their genitals. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>whatever the outcome of that experience, it might also predispose

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<v Speaker 1>you to having a bit of a soft spot for

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<v Speaker 1>the Merry River turtle, which currently ties for thirty on

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<v Speaker 1>the Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered Reptiles List or the

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<v Speaker 1>EDGE List. The list details the one hundred most endangered

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<v Speaker 1>reptiles in the world according to the Zoological Society of London,

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<v Speaker 1>and the tie is three way. The Merry River turtle

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<v Speaker 1>is joined by Bell's sawsheld turtle and the Shaco side

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<v Speaker 1>necked turtle. But what makes the Merry River turtle so

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<v Speaker 1>captivating is the shock of vivid green algae that grows

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<v Speaker 1>on its head, the strange spikes jutting out of its chin,

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<v Speaker 1>and the fact that it can hunker down underwater for

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<v Speaker 1>as long as three days, breathing out of gills located

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<v Speaker 1>in its cloaca, which is the all purpose hole that

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<v Speaker 1>serves for the reproductive, digestive and urinary systems of reptiles,

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<v Speaker 1>as well as other animals like birds and amphibians. It's

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<v Speaker 1>possible that as few as a hundred and thirty six

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<v Speaker 1>of these creatures exist in the wild. They find themselves

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<v Speaker 1>on this precarious footing partly because they have a very

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<v Speaker 1>small native range to begin with, they're very slow to

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<v Speaker 1>reach sexual maturity, they don't breed until they're twenty five

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<v Speaker 1>years old, and their docile temperament and outlandish looks made

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<v Speaker 1>them very popular targets for the exotic pet trade in

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<v Speaker 1>the nineteen sixties and seventies. The Zoological Society of London's

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<v Speaker 1>Edge of Existence program was launched in two thousand seven,

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<v Speaker 1>but its first list that focused exclusively on reptiles came

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<v Speaker 1>out in ten, backed by a study published in April

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<v Speaker 1>of that year in the journal Plos one. The EDGE

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<v Speaker 1>list names exotic reptiles from far flung reaches of the globe,

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<v Speaker 1>including the electric blue Williams dwarf gecko, the earthworm like

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<v Speaker 1>Madagascar blind snake, and the eerily sculptural Indian crocodile the gariel.

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<v Speaker 1>In a press release, Edge Reptiles coordinator Ricky Gums said

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<v Speaker 1>the reptiles often received the short end of the stick

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<v Speaker 1>in conservation terms compared with the likes of birds and mammals. However,

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<v Speaker 1>the Edge Reptile List highlights just how unique, vulnerable, and

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<v Speaker 1>amazing these creatures really are. Not only that, but many

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<v Speaker 1>reptiles represented on the list are the only survivors of

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<v Speaker 1>ancient lineages of reptiles the date back millions of years

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<v Speaker 1>to the age of dinosaurs. Gums said, if we lose

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<v Speaker 1>these species, there will be nothing like them left on Earth.

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<v Speaker 1>Using ZSL's Edge methodology to create the world's first Edge

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<v Speaker 1>Reptile List, and not only are we providing conservation scientists

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<v Speaker 1>with a quantitative tool to prioritize species for conservation, but

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<v Speaker 1>we also hope to bring the plight of these weird

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<v Speaker 1>and wonderful creatures to the public's attention before they disappear.

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<v Speaker 1>Number one on the Edge Reptile List, by the way,

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<v Speaker 1>is the gold plated Madagascar big headed turtle, the world's

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<v Speaker 1>most critically endangered and evolutionarily distinct reptile. Today's episode was

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<v Speaker 1>written by Jesslin Shields and produced by Tyler Clang. For

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<v Speaker 1>more in this lots of other curious topics visit how

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<v Speaker 1>stuff works dot com. Brain Stuff is production of i

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