Members of ‘Junior Herpers’ Find Snakes, Frogs Charming

Here’s a list for you--snakes, lizards, turtles, frogs, toads and salamanders. Does this sound like a catalog of rubberized joke-store frights someone plans to drop down your shirt during Halloween?

Well, it’s certainly not that in the opinion of a group of Valley kids, ages 6 to 17, who meet regularly under the auspices of the Southwestern Herpetologists Society. Herpetology is the study of amphibians and reptiles, and such creatures are frequently on the agenda at the monthly meetings of the society’s recently organized Junior Herpers Committee.

And it’s also a list of the creatures folks of all ages will be able to see this weekend in North Hollywood at the society’s Live Reptile and Amphibian Exhibit. This is the 16th year the nonprofit animal-care educational group is holding the event. The Junior Herpers will have a recruiting table at the exhibit.

Robyn Molina, a North Hollywood 11-year-old, lives next door to where the Junior Herpers meet--at the home of her friends Josh, 8, and Buck, 9. “I want to be a vet,” she says, so she was eager to join when invited by Steve Schatt, vice president of the Herpetologists Society, who supervises the Junior Herpers. A storm-drain contractor by trade, he’s also the dad of Josh and Buck.

During a recent Junior Herpers meeting at which members had the opportunity to get up close and personal with a very large python, Robyn was asked what her favorite snake is.

“I like all the snakes I hold,” she replied. And when asked how she felt about the necessity of feeding live rabbits to the python, she replied, with a shrug, “It’s what they eat.” Then she added, “But I do feel sorry for the animal that’s eaten.”

As a vet, she would play no favorites, though.

“I want to be a vet for all animals. All of ‘em,” she said firmly.

The python was on hand for the meeting because it had been entrusted to Schatt’s care by Los Angeles Animal Control officials. He’s the person local officials call when stray “herps” are found and require placement in an animal shelter. Schatt has operated one in his garage, on behalf of the Herpetologists Society, for the last five years.

The full-grown python was found loose in the Valley early this month. Schatt said in explanation, “People buy them when they’re little--they’re only a foot long at birth--but they grow to 20 feet and people can’t handle that and just let them go.”

The Southwestern Herpetologists Society’s goal in organizing the Junior Herpers activity--and the main reason for holding the exhibit this weekend--is to educate people on how to care for animals. Schatt’s admonition to would-be owners is: “Learn about them before you buy them.”

As a part of the Junior Herpers program, members are required to prepare a report before they buy or adopt a reptile or amphibian.

BE THERE

Herpers gather--Southwestern Herpetologists Society’s Junior Herpers meet the first Saturday of each month in North Hollywood. (818) 765-6665. The Live Reptile and Amphibian Exhibit will be Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at North Hollywood Recreation Center, 11430 Chandler Blvd. $5 for adults, $3 for seniors, $2 for children 6 to 13, free for children 5 and under. (818) 764-6124, (818) 765-6665 or https://www.swhs.org on the Internet.