Review by Justin Smith
China is typically not the first place herpes think of as a “mecca”. In fact, much of the country’s herps haven’t been studied nearly as much as their Southeast Asian neighbors. There is, however, one American who is currently trying to fix that, Doctor Kevin Messenger. A few months ago he released a new book, The Asian Ratsnakes and Kin of Greater China.
The book is meant to be a field guide crossed with a reference book of sorts and highlights the array of rat snakes that China has to offer. Some of these colubrids are familiar to most of us in the hobby and some are rarely seen at all in captive collections. In my opinion this book is a must-have for anyone interested in old-world rat snakes as it covers all the bases be it Beauty Snakes, Bamboo Rats, Gonyosoma, Elaphe, and more! Group by group, Dr. Messenger gives general care information as it pertains to each genus, scales counts, distribution maps, photos of both the species and the habitat they are found in (something I really liked).
Overall, it was a straightforward read. The paragraphs of text have both english and chinese to make the literature easy and accessible to the people living in the same space as some of these species. Even in the short time of me buying a copy and finally getting my hands on some Elaphe bimaculata I was using the book as a reference for care info before I got the snakes! What better resource for info like climate and general habitat than a book that speaks about the species specifically?
Another part of this book helps outline all the different bamboo rat snakes. I’m sure I speak for others and myself when I say that group can be confusing especially with so many crosses in the hobby, known or unknown. Messenger gives a nice, detailed map showing the various species, their range, and where the taxonomic problems may lie. I highly recommend this book and check out our interview with Kevin in this issue! Grab your copy of the book here and listen to Dr. Messenger on The Herpetoculture Podcast here.
