Amplexus, brumation, polyhyphodont, thanatosis, Wolffian duct. Wherever in the world reptiles and amphibians are studied, they are described in a language of their own. Herpetology is a rapidly developing discipline, with new species, techniques and conceptual frameworks emerging every year. Yet its language can be highly specialised and scattered across journals, monographs and field guides. This dictionary offers a single, accessible resource that explains both classical terminology and the most up to date scientific usage, helping readers navigate the complexity of modern herpetological science.

Family entries run from the wart snakes (Acrochordidae) to the knob-scaled lizards (Xenosauridae), each with its distribution and approximate number of species. Species entries range from the Goliath frog of West Africa, the world’s largest frog, to the earless monitor of Borneo, and from the mugger crocodile of the Indian subcontinent to the habus of Japan’s Ryukyu Islands. Zoogeographical regions, habitats from the Amazonian selva to the Sahel, and biogeographical boundaries such as the Wallace Line are all explained, as are vernacular names from the Aztec axolotl to the Japanese mamushi and the Latin American cascabel.

Beyond anatomy, physiology, ecology and behaviour, the dictionary draws in toxicology, immunology, parasitology, veterinary science and captive husbandry, together with zoological nomenclature, conservation treaties such as CITES and field techniques from noosing to atlassing. Biographies run from Linnaeus and Boulenger to Angus Bellairs and Yaichirō Okada, regarded respectively as the fathers of herpetology in Britain and Japan, while myth and folklore wander from the basilisk of European legend to Ahriman of Persian mythology. Even the field’s jargon has its place, from ‘fuzzy’ and ‘milked up’ to ‘chicken’, a juvenile green turtle.

Compiled by a herpetologist with six decades of field and laboratory experience, this is an indispensable reference for students and lecturers in zoology, ecology and conservation biology. It will be equally valuable to researchers, ecological consultants, veterinary practitioners and zoo and museum staff, as well as to keepers, breeders and every naturalist who wants to read the herpetological literature with confidence.

DOI: 10.53061/KZHW8023