Ethnoherpetology is the study of the past and present interrelationships between
human cultures and reptiles and amphibians. It is a sub-field of
ethnozoology
Ethnozoology is the study of the past and present interrelationships between human cultures and the animals in their environment. It includes classification and naming of zoological forms, cultural knowledge and use of wild and domestic animals ...
, which in turn is a sub-field of
ethnobiology ]
Ethnobiology is the scientific study of the way living things are treated or used by different human cultures. It studies the dynamic relationships between people, biota, and environments, from the distant past to the immediate present.culture ...
.
Snakes and amphibians have been considered
chthonic creatures in many cultures. Richly represented in mythology, culture, art, and literature, they often evoke revulsion, fear, suspicion and awe, sometimes even hysteria. Frogs and toads were believed to announce the rains with their choruses.
See also
*
Colorado River toad
The Colorado River toad (''Incilius alvarius''), formerly known as the Sonoran Desert toad, is found in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It exudes toxins from glands within its skin that have psychoactive properties.
Descript ...
*
Frogs in culture
*
Herpetology
*
Legendary salamander in popular culture
*
Nāga
The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...
*
Serpent (symbolism)
The serpent, or snake, is one of the oldest and most widespread mythological symbols. The word is derived from Latin ''serpens'', a crawling animal or snake. Snakes have been associated with some of the oldest rituals known to mankind and represent ...
Bibliography
* Bulmer, Ralph N.H. and Michael Tyler. 1968.
Karam classification of frogs. Journal of the Polynesian Society 77(4): 621–639.
* Indraneil Das – The Serpent's Tongue: A contribution to the ethnoherpetology of India and adjacent countries (Frankfurt am Main: Edition Chimaira, 1998)
* Walsh, M.T. – Snakes and Other Reptiles in Mtanga: preliminary notes on ethnoherpetology in a village bordering
Gombe Stream National Park
Gombe Stream National Park is a national park in Kigoma District of Kigoma Region in Tanzania, north of Kigoma, the capital of Kigoma Region.Tanzania National Parks“Gombe Stream National Park”, 2008. Established in 1968, it is one of the sm ...
, western Tanzania. (1997)
* Bertrand, H. – Contribution à l'étude de l'herpétologie et de l'ethnoherpétologie en Anjou (A study on the herpetology and ethnoherpetology of Anjou province)
* Lee, J. C. – Ethnoherpetology in the Yucatán Peninsula. In Amphibians and Reptiles of the
Yucatán Peninsula
The Yucatán Peninsula (, also , ; es, Península de Yucatán ) is a large peninsula in southeastern Mexico and adjacent portions of Belize and Guatemala. The peninsula extends towards the northeast, separating the Gulf of Mexico to the north ...
, by J. C. Lee. Ithaca, NY:
Cornell University Press
The Cornell University Press is the university press of Cornell University; currently housed in Sage House, the former residence of Henry William Sage. It was first established in 1869, making it the first university publishing enterprise in t ...
, 1996.
An example of indigenous ethnoherpetological knowledge – notes written by a Bukusu-speaking research assistant from western Kenya:
* Wepukhulu, D. M. 1992
Bukusu Ethnozoology (Reptiles and Amphibians) Unpublished manuscript notes on Bukusu ethnozoology.
{{Ethnobiology
Ethnobiology
Herpetology