The Pondcast, Episode 68
Deep in the Heart of Texas
Anthony Pierlioni, Chris Leone, Kevin Minto and Steve Enders
with special guest Viviana Ricardez, Texas Turtles
TheTurtleRoom brings you the The Pondcast, Episode 68: Deep in the Heart of Texas. An audio-only version is also available for download. Visit ThePondcast.com to learn more about the show.
In This Episode...
Viviana Ricardez is the Vice President of the non-profit research organization Texas Turtles. Viviana joins our hosts to talk about all the cool things Texas Turtles is doing to study turtles and her background going from “90s turtle nerd” to a leading expert on the turtles of Texas. The goal of Texas Turtles is to “fill a Texas-sized hole in our knowledge of Texas turtles including studying the ‘Paul Bunyan’ of North American turtles, the Alligator Snapping Turtle”. You can learn more about their exciting work at https://www.texasturtles.org/support-1
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
If you are interested in helping guide the topics and discussion for future shows, please email us at [email protected] with your ideas.
Your Hosts
Executive Producers
About the Authors
Anthony Pierlioni
Anthony was the "Best of 2017" Editor's Choice for "Chelonia Personality of the Year" by The Reptile Report. As the Senior Director of theTurtleRoom, Anthony oversees educational efforts, including video and audio media production, like The Pondcast. Anthony has also written a book on the Geoemyda genus, published by Living Art Publishing as part of their “Turtles of the World” series, and several articles in magazines such as including REPTILES, The BATAGUR, Testudo (Italian), and RADIATA (German).
Anthony has a B.A. from Rhode Island College and works in management for VCA Animal Hospitals. He lives in the Northeast with his wife, Shannon, and daughters, Cambria and Maddalena. He and his family are often on the move, giving turtle presentations at schools, nature and science centers, herpetological societies and conferences.
Read More
Chris Leone
Chris is the Director of Animal Husbandry for theTurtleRoom and owner of Garden State Tortoise. He has kept and bred turtles and tortoises for nearly 30 years. Chris is also an author, speaker and presenter concerning chelonian species and their care. He maintains long-standing relationships with fish and wildlife agencies, zoos, and organizations while handling many of New Jersey’s rescues concerning unwanted turtles and tortoises. Along with his wife Casey, he started the Terrapin Conservation Initiative, one of theTurtleRoom's field programs. Chris is also the coordinator for the Western Hermann’s Tortoise North American Regional Studbook. Chris devotes much of his life to caring for these animals, traveling to educate others about them and remains prominent on social media.
Read More
Steve Enders
Steve is the President, Executive Director, and Founder of theTurtleRoom (tTR), a husband, teacher, athlete, and musician. He has over a decade and a half of experience with turtle husbandry and has worked with more than 50 different species. As President and Executive Director, Steve has overall strategic and operational responsibility for tTR’s staff, programs, finances, expansion, and execution/achievement of its mission and goals. He also takes on leadership and assistant roles on individual projects within the four departments of tTR. Steve completed his Master of Education Degree in Mathematics in 2018 and holds two Bachelor of Art Degrees in Music and a Post-Baccalaureate Certificate (the equivalent of a third Bachelor’s degree). When Steve is not working on projects for tTR, he can be found teaching, relaxing with his wife Lisa, watching sports, playing music, or building LEGO Star Wars.
Read MoreRelated posts
The Pondcast, Videos
The Pondcast, Episode 74
The crew speaks with a hero in the conservation world, Dr. Dante Fenolio. Dr. Fenolio is an extremely accomplished underwater photographer, PhD and educator. He is also the author of “Life in the Dark,” and runs the Department of Conservation & Research for the San …
The Pondcast, Videos
The Pondcast, Episode 73
In this exciting episode, your hosts are with a good friend of theirs, Ari Taub, an American film director and producer. The turtle related debates in this one get really lively, in a good way. Ari is perhaps best known for his movie, The Fallen, …
The Pondcast, Videos
The Pondcast, Episode 72
Christine Light is an experienced scuba diver, with around 500 dives under her belt, one of which saved someone’s life! She has traveled to several points on the globe in her efforts with both wild and captive animals from whale sharks and mobula rays to …
The Pondcast, Videos
The Pondcast, Episode 71
Tonight, Shannon joins the team as a special guest host to interview a college friend and very special guest, Dave Hudson, PhD. As a marine and aquatic biologist, researcher, and educator, Dr. Hudson aims to cultivate biological research, education, policy, and business interactions for marine …
The Pondcast, Videos
The Pondcast, Episode 70
Carl J. Franklin, the President of the non-profit research organization Texas Turtles, joins The Pondcast to talk about his myriad experiences in herpetology. Carl is one of the most interesting men in herpetology, having spent time under the stars in locations all across the Americas …
Leave a reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.