Reptiles and Amphibians of Prince Edward County, Ontario

Francis R. Cook is researcher emeritus (herpetology) at the Canadian
Museum of Nature.

Once dismissed as cold, slimy, or simply uninteresting, naked-skinned
amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders) and the scaled reptiles
(including snakes and turtles) gained public attention when frog
disappearances were hyped as early warnings of world environmental
deterioration. More convincing demonstrations of declines need data
beyond that compiled by the few available trained workers; it must come
from an informed public. Accessible yet accurate and well-documented
local guidebooks are an absolute necessity for this task.

Christie’s book ably contributes to filling this need and also
provides a simple model that others might usefully copy. It is based on
an intensive local field survey initiated by Jack Christie and Tom Huff,
then at the Glenora Fisheries Station and the Picton Reptile Breeding
Foundation, which resulted in more than 300 original observations or
collections from 190 sites. These have been effectively combined with
literature records and subsequent observations from the Ontario
Herpetofaunal Survey’s database.

The text includes a brief description of Prince Edward County, species
accounts, an afterword, references, and three appendices; a checklist of
Prince Edward County species; the singing dates in the county for frogs;
and a list of museum specimens for the county from six institutions. The
discussion of each species is accompanied by a simplistic but lucid
drawing and a spot distribution map depicting all Prince Edward County
records. Included are five turtles, seven snakes, five salamanders, and
eight frogs (including one toad) verified by museum specimens, as well
as five unconfirmed species (four snakes and one frog).