Being Green

A recent study, published in the journal Nature, found that one-fifth of the world’s reptiles are threatened with extinction. Scientists examined over 10,000 species and found that 21% of them are critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable to extinction as defined by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Reptiles include snakes, tortoises and turtles, lizards and chameleons. In this week’s edition of Being Green, Glynis Crook speaks to herpetologist Johan Marais about why this is so alarming and what the status is of reptiles in South Africa.