Amphibians and Reptiles of West Virginia

Amphibians and Reptiles of West Virginia is the only comprehensive guidebook for all frogs, salamanders, lizards, snakes, and turtles known to occur in West Virginia.

West Virginia supports a wide variety of amphibians and reptiles, and this book will help beginners and specialist alike to identify these exciting creatures.

The species accounts are based on data from the Marshall University Herpetology Laboratory, herpetological journals, and databases. These accounts include a photograph of each species, a map showing the counties where they are known to occur, and a thorough description of the species

The book also shows how to distinguish between similar species, as well as giving geographic variation and systematics, habitat and habits, reproduction and development, distribution, conservation, important literature, and everything else we know about each species. This includes information from unpublished reports and theses, as well as unpublished field notes.

Most state guides to amphibians and reptiles have had only one or two authors. However, dozens of experts were recruited with a deep knowledge of the state’s native species. Nearly all these authors have been associated with Tom Pauley’s lab at Marshall University, most being Pauley’s graduate students. This approach enriches Amphibians and Reptiles of West Virginia with the author’s personal experiences, which frequently enables them to provide observations not available in the published literature on the species, and to draw on extensive field experience with the particular species.