In two studies published in the Journal of Herpetology at the end of 2015, Dr. Lauretta M. Bushar, chair of the Department of Biology, takes an in-depth look at the invasive Boa constrictor in Aruba.

In the first, Dr. Bushar and co-authors LaCoya C. Pace and Sharese Tucker ’12 characterize the Boa, which first appeared on the Caribbean island in 1999 and has since established a thriving population.

In a separate study, Dr. Bushar researched the increased population density of the Aruban Whiptail Lizard after the establishment of the invasive Boa.

Earlier in the year, Dr. Bushar published “Population isolation and genetic subdivision of Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) populations in the New Jersey Pine Barrens” in Herpetologica with co-authors Melissa Costa Dunlop ’98, ’00M, Megan A. Malloy ’02, and Christina Schocklin ’06M.

Bushar, L.M., N. Bhatt, M. C. Dunlop, C. Schocklin, M. A. Malloy and H. K. Reinert. 2015. Population isolation and genetic subdivision of Timber Rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) populations in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. Herpetologica 71(3), 203–211.

Goessling, J. M., W. I. Lutterschmidt, H. K. Reinert, L.M. Bushar, and R.A. Odum. 2015. Multiyear sampling reveals an increased population density of an endemic lizard after the establishment of an invasive snake on Aruba. Journal of Herpetology 49(3), 358-363.

Bushar, L. M., R. G. Reynolds, S. Tucker, L. C. Pace, W. I. Lutterschmidt, R. A. Odum, and H. K. Reinert. 2015. Genetic characterization of an invasive Boa constrictor population on the Caribbean island of Aruba. Journal of Herpetology 49(4), 602-610.