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Hi everyone and welcome! For Episode Eighteen, we travel to Arizona to talk with Michael Cravens. Mike and I go waaaay back, and we’ve spent time in the field together in a number of cool places, and had a number of interesting conversations around various campfires (hence the episode title). Mike and his wife Mary are from Missouri but have lived out in AZ for a number of years now, and it was good for me to chat with my old friend and catch up.
Along with talking herps, I also heard about Mike’s work with the Arizona Wildlife Federation, and a couple of his side interests, including Hunt To Eat. Here’s a link to an article Mike wrote for HTE – “A Life Defined By Wild Places”, which I think you will find interesting. I am also including a YouTube link to “Wild Game Big Mac Challenge”, where Mike takes on the infamous hamburger using a pound or two of elk. That was fun Mike! You’re a natural and it was great to see the kids in there. And now I want an Big Elk Mac!
Mike is also involved with BackCountry Hunters and Anglers – which I didn’t know much about, but I enjoyed looking through their website and there’s a lot of interesting material there. If you’re a hunter or angler and you haven’t already checked BHA out, take a look!.
Thanks for coming on the show, Mike! Good to talk with you again. And thanks for listening, everyone! And don’t forget, the podcast will be taking a two week hiatus after this episode, while I do some traveling. In the meantime, please keep the comments and suggestions coming! The show email is somuchpingle@gmail.com, and there’s also a So Much Pingle group on Facebook, for discussion, comments, feedback, suggestions, herp confessions. game cooking, tips for herping better, etc.
Stay tuned for more episodes! And don’t forget to herp better!
-Mike
Hello again everyone, and welcome to Episode Sixteen! I’ve been having a conversation with Daniel Dye for more than a decade, and for this segment, microphones were put into play! Along with amphibians and reptiles, Daniel also has a great deal of knowledge and experience with insects, spiders, and other invertebrates, and fortunately for all of us, he’s crafty with a camera, and so there are a number of venues where you can check out his work. We didn’t cover it in the interview, but Daniel is also a serious audiophile, and he has a home audio system that he built himself that will blow your hair back (I’ve been there, done that). I get a kick out of his Facebook posts that feature a delicious breakfast and a selected album to go with it. Jethro Tull’s ‘Minstrel in the Gallery’ was on the turntable this morning – tasty stuff, Daniel!
Be sure to check out Daniel’s 
Hello again everyone, here is Episode Fifteen, the second part of my conversation with Justin Elden on this Sunday double-fun day. The main thrust of our conversation is Justin’s work in Guatemala with the 
Hey there herpsters, it’s Episode Fourteen! What shall we talk about? Let’s ask the triumphant dude on the left, the one with the little viper in a tube. That’s Justin Elden, the viper is Armenian (Montivipera raddei), and guess where they are? In this episode, I talk with Justin about his involvement with the St. Louis Zoo’s 
Hello everyone, and welcome to Episode Thirteen! Lucky! We’re talking about herps, herp trips, photography, and the overall coolness of the cosmos with Josh Wallace. We’ve been to some places, and we’ve seen some things…..Josh also brings a strong herp meme game to social media, and we talk about that, and much, much more. The fantastic photo at top left is representative of Josh’s astroscape work with a camera. Think about it, folks – while you’re tucked snug in your beds, Josh is slapping his cheeks to stay awake and capture images of the universe as it wheels overhead.
Welcome to Episode Twelve! In this installment, I talk with Dr. Emily Taylor, professor of biological sciences at Cal Poly (California Polytechnic State University), and we cover a number of topics, including rattlesnakes and leopard lizards. Dr. Taylor is pursuing some fascinating lines of research and her passion for her work comes shining through. Now this episode comes with some homework – I want you all to read “
Hi folks! For Episode Eleven, we have an interview that I recorded last month, on location in eastern Colorado, with Tim Warfel and Hunter Johnson. The main thrust of our conversation was the recently concluded COPARC Otero County herp survey, and we managed to cover a few other topics as well. This was the eighth Otero survey and I was happy to participate, and to hang out with a lot of Colorado herpers. We found some pretty cool herps as well. In photo left is Ryan and Cambria Borgmann. Cambria was the youngest participant, and she got to see her first horned lizard and her first rattlesnake. Guess who the oldest surveyor was?
Hello again everyone! Welcome to Episode Ten! I like that double-digit number. For this episode, we’re talking with Rob, AKA SmetLogik, a YouTube content creator par excellence when it comes to documenting herps and herp adventures. Rob, Jennifer and son Nick recently relocated from the Denver area to Tucson, Arizona, and I caught up with Rob a few weeks ago in their new home. I really like Rob’s approach to the herp vid medium – he’s got a great sense of style and flair, as does son Nick (also, see photo at left). I’ve also had the good fortune to spend some time in the field with this father-son combo and I enjoy their company.
Hello everyone! Episode Nine finds us both in and out of the water with photographer/herper Matt Sullivan. Two shows in a row where we dip ourselves in the drink to visit with fascinating creatures! We’ll have time to dry off before our next installment, but for the moment, we’ll talk with Matt about his experiences photographing both herps and cool aqua-creatures. Matt’s underwater camera housing is featured in photo left – an awesome rig.