Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(5)

Mendyk, R. W. 2022.  A Sure and Certain Cure for the Bite of a Rattlesnake: 18th Century Folk Medicine and an Early Case of Herpetological Satire. Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(5):43–47. Published March 28, 2022. It can be difficult to find humor or amusement in as grim and macabre a subject as venomous snakebite, especially when considering the innumerable loss of human lives to snakebite throughout history to the present day. But, if there is any particular aspect of venomous snakebite that is more likely to be considered amusing than others, it would probably be the long and storied history of snakebite treatments, antidotes and sure cures that have been proposed and attempted over the last several centuries. In stark contrast to modern therapies, many of the folklore remedies proposed for venomous snakebites in the United States during the 18th and 19th Centuries may seem comical today in relation to what is now known about snake venoms, snakebite, and emergency medicine. Long gone are the days of burying bitten extremities in mud or applying the anuses of live chickens to bite wounds, dubious poultices and topical treatments of salt and gunpowder, pulverized charcoal and hog’s lard, clay and urine and turpentine, and tinctures and decoctions of ammonia spirits, melted hog’s lard and strychnine. Still, reflecting back on archaic snakebite treatments of the past offers a valuable glimpse into an era deeply impacted by a paucity of reliable scientific and medical research, testing, and controls. Here, I recount one particularly outlandish folklore treatment from the late 18th Century that typified venomous snakebite cures of the era in what is today the United States, and call attention to a follow-up satirical account that parodied this treatment and the absurdity of folklore snakebite treatments more than a century later.

Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(4)

Dodd, C. K. Jr. 2022.  Women in Herpetology—A Short Biography of Isabel Hoopes. Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(4):37–42. Published March 27, 2022. Prior to World War II, there were few women publishing on herpetology in the United States, and most of them were associated with major research institutions. Women were intensely discriminated against when attempting to enter graduate programs and, if graduated and professionally hired, were generally relegated to lesser positions than their male counterparts. Even in academia, women were expected to take up laboratory experimental research or work in museums, usually as assistants, rather than venture into the field or assume the title of curator. However, there are a number of lesser-known women without advanced degrees, or even degrees in biology, who made significant early contributions to advance our appreciation and knowledge of amphibians and reptiles at a time when few other naturalists did. Here, I present a short biography of Isabel Hoopes of Massachusetts.

Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(3)

Maynard, R. J. 2022.  Book Review. On the Backs of Tortoises: Darwin, the Galápagos, and the Fate of an Evolutionary Eden. Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(3):33–36. Published March 17, 2022.   “Struggles over conservation are not between those who destroy and those who conserve nature…, but among populations who understand the value of nature very differently.” (p. 211) Elizabeth Hennessy’s book, On the Backs of Tortoises: Darwin, the Galápagos, and the Fate of an Evolutionary Eden, is an engaging and well-researched book that recounts the complex human history on the Galápagos archipelago through the backdrop of giant tortoise exploitation over the past five centuries.

The Exploits of Arvid Blumenthal, Latvia’s “Crocodile Harry” in Australia

            Arvid Blumenthal (Latvian - Arvīda Blūmentala) was certainly one of the most colorful persons in The Land Down Under, a country renowned for its colorful personalities (see John Cann, 2014, Historical Snakeys, ECO Herpetological Publishing, Rodeo, New Mexico), in the decades after World War II. Born 19 March 1925 in Dundaga, Latvia, he fought with the Nazi-occupied Latvian army on the Eastern Front during WWII, was seriously wounded, and was later captured by the Americans.

             Blumenthal emigrated to Australia in 1951, moving to the Northern Territory where he took up crocodile hunting essentially living off the land in the company of Aboriginal peoples. Newspaper accounts, mostly based on “Harry’s” own assessments of his hunting prowess, record that he killed between 10,000 and 40,000 crocodiles, although it is hard to tell fact from fiction. Blumenthal was said to be the model on which the “Crocodile Dundee” (starring Paul Hogan) movie series was based in the 1980s, although that claim is disputed by some. In 1975, Blumenthal moved to Coober Pedy in central Australia to mine opals. As is common there, he made his home underground where he decorated his abode with what can politely be called “eccentric” mementos of his amorous conquests. His cave and its souvenirs can be visited today as Crocodile Harry’s Underground Nest west of Coober Pedy. He is still admired in Latvia, and there is a statue of a crocodile in his honor in Dundaga. Blumenthal died in Coober Pedy on 13 October 2006 and is buried in the town’s “Boot Hill” cemetery.

Crocodile Harry published two books on his hunting exploits and life in the wild in Australia: Latvietis Krokodiļu Mednieks Austrālijā [Latvian Crocodile Hunter in Australia, 1957, 151 p.] and Ilgas Pēc Saules [Longing for the Sun, 1958, 159 p.] (Figs. 1-3). Both were published in Latvian by Apgāds Sauleskrasts, Brisbane, Australia. Both contain poor quality black and white images taken in the field of Blumenthal with crocodiles or going about daily life in the bush (Figs. 4-6). Latvietis Krokodiļu Mednieks Austrālijā was republished as Nacionālais Dēkainis - Krokodilu Mednieks [National Adventurer – Crocodile Hunter], updated with additional information on Australia by Rimants Ziedonis who had visited Blumenthal there (2000, Jumava, Riga, Latvia, 199 p.). Today, these books are little known outside of Latvia, and there are no English translations so that most of the world remains ignorant of this larger-than-life personality. For further information on and photos of Arvid Blumenthal, see:

Jākobsons, E. 2020. Krokodilu mednieks Arvīds Blūmentāls. 2020. Laikmeta zīmes, 3 April         2020. . Accessed 9 March 2022.

Mustillo, M. 2015. Latvia’sCrocodile Harry: Inspiration for Hollywood. The Baltic Times, 2       December 2015. Accessed 9 March 2022.

Smith, T. 2018. Crocodile Harry:The Man Who Inspired Crocodile Dundee. The Culture Trip. Accessed 9 March 2022.

Submitted by: C. Kenneth Dodd, Jr.

Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(2)

Mendyk, R. W. 2022.  Peculiar Case of Ophiomania: The Herpetological Pursuits, Contributions and Advocacy of Arthur Stradling (1851–1902). Bibliotheca Herpetologica 16(2):14–32. Published March 5, 2022. Amateur herpetologsts have undeniably played a crucial role in shaping and advancing the study of reptiles and amphibians over the last several centuries. But with few exceptions, it was not until the 20th Century that it became possible for someone to gain professional employment strictly as a herpetologist, and prior to this, most early contributors to the field held positions and backgrounds in other scholarly disciplines, particularly medicine. Following in such a tradition, Arthur Stradling (1851–1902), an English physician who lacked formal schooling in zoology but excelled as a naturalist, made many important contributions to the study of reptiles and amphibians during the last three decades of the 19th Century. Yet, despite his many discoveries and prolific output of both scholarly and popular publications on reptiles and amphibians, he has been largely overlooked and infrequently referenced in modern works of herpetology and herpetological history. The following account expands on the information presented in a recent biographical vignette of Stradling by Jon Coote (2019), and chronicles his remarkable life and herpetological pursuits, contributions and advocacy for reptiles and amphibians, concluding with an annotated bibliography of his numerous herpetological publications.