Delighted that the 2023 Drayton Manor conference on reptile husbandry and breeding was another very successful, now truly international event - with speakers from Europe, the US and even Australia plus delegates from UK, Europe and the US this major annual conference just keeps growing in scope and size. 130 + people were in the conference both days and more than 90 people enjoyed the Saturday evening dinner.

This year - for the first time - we had the benefit of an entire conference facility at the park , with three separate but linked spaces . This worked really well and we plan to continue in the same facility in future - it's already booked for 2024!

We hope to produce a full report on the conference in due course; in addition the talks were all recorded and the edited content will be uploaded to the BHS website in coming weeks and months.

Plenty of pictures and short videos available on both the BHS and AHH Facebook pages - BHS FB , AHH FB

Huge thanks to Drayton Manor Resort and all our sponsors for enabling the event. The 2024 conference is set for the weekend of March 16th and 17th - put it in your diary now!

Many of the talks that were recorded at the 2022 AHH / BHS Conference on reptile husbandry and breeding are now available to view for BHS members.

This page contains information on the videos that have been uploaded and how to access them:

2022 Drayton Manor Conference talks

STUDENT RESEARCH SHOWCASE!

AHH/BHS Student Research Poster Showcase 2023

The event is running over 2 days at Drayton Manor where we invite students to submit their research posters for showcase. These will be displayed for the duration of the conference to enable delegates to read, ask questions and enable students to network. This is a great opportunity to showcase your work to the herpetological community including industry professionals from zoos, researchers and academics from around the globe. Every research student whose poster is accepted for display can attend the Conference free of charge and therefore will NOT have to purchase Conference tickets - however you will still need to book and pay for the Saturday evening dinner if you wish to attend that.

To enter, just download the guidance and ‘Student Research Poster Submission Form’ for more details on format and sending a digital copy of your poster for registration.

We look forward to seeing your research work!

Research Poster Submission Form

Further Guidance for Students

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For the first time in many years (possibly since the Society was first formed)  we have regretfully decided that cancelling the 2020 AGM - scheduled for April 25th - is the only sensible course of action given the unprecedented coronavirus situation. 

We very much hope all BHS members and other users of the site are able to stay safe and well  in the coming weeks and months. 

At this point we hope that the planned Amersham meeting on September 6th - annual joint meeting with Thames and Chilterns Herpetological Group - will be able to go ahead (see separate event entry for details) but will of course be monitoring the situation in coming months.

The recent 2019 joint AHH / BHS / IHS conference held at Drayton Manor Park  was another great success, with both the Saturday workshops and Sunday conference well attended.  Delegates enjoyed a range of varied, informative and often entertaining talks from our excellent speakers, along with great opportunities for meeting up and sharing experiences and information during the breaks.

We would like to once again extend our grateful thanks to Drayton Manor Park for kindly hosting the conference and their great support during planning and the weekend itself.  Particular thanks to the park Zoo Manager, Chris Mitchell  and Conference and Events manager, Melissa Penn.

A full report of the conference will appear in a future edition of our newsletter, The Natterjack. 

Booking facility is now open for what promises to be another great 2 days of workshops and conference - please navigate to the event entries on the website home page to book on!

The 2017  annual joint meeting was held once again in the Bournemouth Natural History Society facilities  - and as normal was very well attended with a great range of speakers.

A good summary of the meeting can be found here: https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/amphibian-and-reptile-biology-and-conservation-the-2017-joint-scientific-meeting/ 

We're delighted to report that the first joint BHS / AHH meeting held at Drayton Manor Park Zoo on the weekend of May 13th and 14th was by any measure a great success.

AHH (Advancing Herpetological Husbandry) is a Facebook based group, devoted to promoting best practise and the latest techniques for successful herpetological husbandry. These objectives align completely with BHS aims in this arena and it was natural that the event organising committee comprised members from both entities.

More than 60 people attended the free workshops on the Saturday evening - far more than expected or indeed planned for!  And  more than 50 people attended the all day Sunday conference - for which tickets needed to be purchased in advance.  Delegates enjoyed a range of high quality talks from expert speakers. It was particularly encouraging to see that delegates included private keepers, representatives from the commercial side of the hobby plus zoo professionals - helping to break down barriers that to some extent have existed between the different groupings for a long time. 

For more information on the event, see the entry in the Events section of the website.  Early planning is already under way for a 2018 meeting - with the hope that this will become firmly fixed as an annual event.

The national adder conservation meeting is being held on the 8th-9th of October 2016 in Somerset. Titled "The Vanishing Viper: priorities for adder conservation" this conference will address all aspects of adder conservation including:

· ·Strategic challenges and solutions for adder conservation

· Insights from survey and research

· Managing landscapes sympathetically for adders: opportunities and challenges for land managers

· Public interactions with adders – what messages should we be broadcasting?

· Site protection, regulation and policy issues

· Mitigating development impacts

· Prioritisation of threats and conservation actions for the adder

The full PDF flyer can be downloaded below:

Vanishing Vipers Conference PDF181.47 KB31/08/2016

Booking is essential, and can be done through the following link:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-vanishing-viper-priorities-for-adder-conservation-tickets-26151082592

The 8th World Congress of Herpetology (WCH8) is to be held between the 15-21 August 2016 in Hangzhou, China.

Find out more by visiting www.wch2016hangzhou.com.

This important event brought together freshwater chelonia keepers and breeders from Europe and beyond, to share knowledge, experiences and best practise.

Once again the annual BHS Photographic Competition will be held and judged at the AGM on March 29th (see Meetings section for full meeting details).

For further information about the competition and a gallery of previous years winners, see the BHS Photographic Competition page.

Details of this year's competition  (kindly sponsored by Peregrine Livefoods)  and how to enter are shown on this document:

BHS Photgraphic Competition Flyer 2014.pdf681.11 KB11/02/2014, 18:57