Emily Taylor Profile picture
Ophidiophile, Professor at Cal Poly SLO, Founder of @CoastSnake, Co-Founder of @Rattlecams. She/Her/Hers.
Mar 4, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
This is a claim people make a lot. Rattlesnakes kill people so they should die. Let's break down both parts of this fallacy... First, rattlesnakes rarely bite people, and deaths are rarer still. 3-4 times as many people die in the US each year from dog bites than from snake bites. Should we kill all dogs?
Mar 4, 2023 9 tweets 5 min read
This week, over 900 households in Sweetwater, Texas are getting handwritten letters from kids asking them to help stop the slaughter at their town's annual rattlesnake roundup. I was struck by this quote, which is 100% spot on. 1/6 Right now, hunters are pumping gas into dens to extract hibernating rattlesnakes, poisoning the land in the process. On March 10-12, thousands of rattlesnakes will be beheaded and skinned alive (their brains function for hours afterward). rattlesnakeroundups.com 2/6
Sep 9, 2022 11 tweets 3 min read
Over the past 3 weeks, I have been enthralled by a dove that laid her eggs on the window sill inside my friend's house when he left the window open on a trip. He tiptoed around to avoid disturbing them. Here are all the progress photos in one thread. 1/11

All 📷 Paul Weldon Sheltering her eggs during a storm. 2/11
Feb 13, 2022 11 tweets 5 min read
Heyyyyy Ich & Herp folks! It is time to nominate your colleagues for an ASIH award! Please read this thread for awards, deadlines, and links. RT! 1/ @IchsAndHerps The Henry S. Fitch Award for Excellence in Herpetology is awarded to an individual for long-term excellence in the study of amphibian and/or reptile biology. Deadline March 1, 2022. 2/ asih.org/awards/fitch-a…
Feb 11, 2022 5 tweets 2 min read
My seminar class "Team Rattlesnake Rebrand" visited the children's center on campus today to try snake outreach. Enjoy this thread of joyful photos.

Milkshake the milk snake Image Thousands of kids have stared at, coyly touched, petted, and gleefully held these @CalPoly ambassador snakes over the years.

Stubbs the gopher snake Image
Jul 31, 2020 35 tweets 17 min read
Why yes, I did save my favorite image of all time for #RattlesnakeBeautyPageant final Day#31! This image of a Mojave Rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus) by @rattlesnakeguy is truly epic.

Oh, you want to see my other entries all in one place? Here you go: 1/ But first, it's the LAST day to get $5 off your preorder of the #RattlesnakeBeautyPageant 2021 calendar featuring the finest of the images in this thread, with 100% of proceeds going to snake conservation with @SnakeAdvocate! 2/ centralcoastsnakeservices.com/store/p1/Rattl…
Jul 16, 2020 13 tweets 10 min read
IT'S #WORLDSNAKEDAY! What will you do to celebrate the lives of #snakes today? We have some suggestions below, but first…

Something different for #RattlesnakeBeautyPageant Day #16, a Northern Pacific Rattlesnake inked by @MiekoTemple! 1/ Want a print? 10% off during July, plus $9 off $45+ with code WorldSnakeDay, $35+ ships free, at bit.ly/SnakeInk! Mieko is a grad student (SUPPORT STUDENT ARTISTS!) in animal science at @calpoly and draws many other cool critters, check her out: mtillustrations.com 2/
Oct 31, 2019 23 tweets 4 min read
As a field biologist, some scary stuff has happened to me in the past. I radio-tracked rattlesnakes for years in Arizona. You encounter weird stuff at night in the desert. #scarystories One day I kept smelling a strange scent all evening. It was musky, feral, and funky. I couldn’t place it.