Walter E. Meshaka, Jr.

Walter E. Meshaka, Jr. is an American herpetologist and natural historian. He was the supervisory curator for the four National Parks in southern Florida from 1995 to 2000. In 2000 he became the Senior Curator of Zoology and Botany at the State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. His research has been covered by Lawrence Journal-World, among other news outlets.

Early life and education

Meshaka was born in Worcester to Lebanese-American parents of Eastern Orthodox Christian heritage. He earned a B.S. in biology in 1985 from the University of South Florida. Then, he earned a M.S. in Biology in 1988 from Arkansas State University, and completed his Ph.D. in 1994 at the Florida International University

Research

His focus is on exotic amphibians and reptiles.

J. Whitfield Gibbons noted, "Meshaka’s thoughtful afterword on exotic species introductions to Florida offers some achievable solutions for controlling the influx of more herpetofauna.". He published four pocket field guides with Joseph T. Collins largely "intended to raise public awareness". Their "Pocket Guide to Lizards and Turtles" is said to be "useful for all naturalists to carry with them in eastern Canada. It is especially ideal for junior naturalists as a “starter” guide."

Meshaka has collaborated with the Carnegie Museum of Natural History's Powdermill Nature Reserve on field herpetology research. A long-term mark-recapture study of the ten species of snakes occurring at the preserve has ensued since 2002. He has resurrected and continued a long-term study on Eastern Box Turtles and Wood Turtles that was established by Graham Netting in 1958 and continued until Netting's death in 1996.

Selected Bibliography

Books

• 2001. The Cuban Treefrog in Florida: Life History of a Successful Colonizing Species. University Press of Florida. Gainesville, FL. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr.). 191 pp.
• 2004. The Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. Krieger Publishing Company. Melbourne, FL. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr., B.P. Butterfield, and J.B. Hauge). 155 pp.
• 2005. Amphibians and Reptiles: Status and Conservation in Florida. Krieger Publishing Company. Melbourne, FL. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and K.J. Babbitt, editors). 317 pp.
• 2009. A Pocket Guide to Pennsylvania Snakes. Mennonite Press. Newton, KS. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and J.T. Collins). 51 pp.
• 2010. A Pocket Guide to Pennsylvania Frogs and Toads. Mennonite Press. Newton, KS. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and J.T. Collins). 40 pp.
• 2012. A Pocket Guide to Pennsylvania Salamanders. Mennonite Press. Newton, KS. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and J.T. Collins). 51 pp.
• 2012. A Pocket Guide to Pennsylvania Turtles and Lizards. Mennonite Press. Newton, KS. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and J.T. Collins). 39 pp.

Monographs

• 2011. A Runaway Train in the Making: The Exotic Amphibians, Reptiles, Turtles, and Crocodilians of Florida. Herpetological Conservation and Biology, Monograph I, Vol. 6:1-101. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr.).
• 2014. The Herpetology of Southern Florida. (W.E. Meshaka, Jr. and J.N. Layne). Herpetological Conservation and Biology, forthcoming.