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Why Herping Counts: Reptiles, Reverence, and the Reawakening of Our Deep Selves

Introduction

Herping is not a hobby. It is a return.

To crouch in leaf litter, to track the shimmer of scales through shadow, to feel the pulse of ancient life beneath bark and stone—this is not leisure. It is invocation. It is the reawakening of something older than language, deeper than memory.

Reptiles are not just creatures we observe. They are architects of our anatomy, sculptors of our cognition, and anchors of our mythologies. They shaped our organs, sharpened our senses, and haunted our dreams. They taught us how to survive when the world was young—and they may yet teach us how to endure when the world grows old.

This article argues that herping is not merely biological fieldwork. It is existential archaeology. A way of excavating the reptilian inheritance embedded in our bodies, our brains, and our cultures. It is a practice of awe, of reverence, and of planetary stewardship.

We explore four dimensions of this claim:

  1. We Are Them – Anatomical and neurological inheritance from reptiles.

  2. We Were Shaped by Them – Evolutionary pressures and survival strategies forged through reptilian interaction.

  3. We Adore Them – Mythological and symbolic reverence across cultures.

  4. We Are Now Their Students – Reptiles as models for resilience, adaptation, and ecological wisdom.

To herp is to remember. To herp is to learn. To herp is to protect.

Let the descent begin.

1. We Are Them

The human body is a palimpsest of reptilian architecture. Our kidneys, liver, lungs, and heart all trace their structural lineage to early amniotes—reptiles being the most enduring representatives of that clade. Gans and Parsons (1966) demonstrated that the nephron architecture of our kidneys, the hepatic lobulation of our liver, and the dual-circuit heart with septal division are all reptilian legacies. Even our lungs, with alveolar branching and gas-exchange efficiency, echo the evolutionary blueprint laid down by scaled ancestors (Perry, 1998).

Most strikingly, our brain retains the paleocortex, a reptilian remnant responsible for instinctual behavior: territoriality, aggression, survival. MacLean's triune brain model (1990) identifies this as the "reptilian brain"—the seat of ritual, habit, and primal drive. It is the part of us that flinches before thought, that reacts before reason. When we herp—when we scan the underbrush, feel the tension of the hunt—we are not merely observing reptiles. We are reactivating the circuitry they gave us. Herping is not voyeurism—it is atavistic resonance.

2. We Were Shaped by Them

Reptiles didn't just precede us—they pressured us into becoming human.

The Snake Detection Theory (Isbell, 2006) posits that primate vision evolved under selective pressure to detect snakes. Our koniocellular visual pathway, responsible for rapid threat detection, expanded in response to venomous snakes. This shaped our depth perception, color sensitivity, and visual acuity—traits foundational to tool use and social cognition (Isbell, 2006; Van Le et al., 2013).

During the Homo habilis era (~2 million years ago), tortoises were among the few reliable food sources. Archaeological evidence from Olduvai Gorge shows cracked tortoise shells alongside Oldowan tools, suggesting early hominins developed lithic technology specifically to access reptilian nutrition (Leakey, 1960). These weren't accidents. They were innovations. Reptiles forced us to invent.

Even our tool use, our dietary flexibility, our ecological opportunism—traits we now call "human"—were catalyzed by reptilian challenge. Monitor lizards, crocodiles, and venomous snakes shaped our spatial awareness, our fear responses, and our mythologies. Reptiles were the crucible in which human adaptability was forged.

3. We Adore Them

Reptiles are not just biological—they are mythological infrastructure. Across continents and centuries, they have been revered as symbols of power, wisdom, transformation, and cosmic balance. We don't merely observe them—we build civilizations around their metaphors. Many metaphors and legends.

  • Quetzalcoatl (Aztec and Toltec) The Feathered Serpent deity Quetzalcoatl fuses sky and earth, intellect and instinct. As the god of wind, learning, and creation, he brought maize to humanity and governed the calendar and priesthood (Reptileszilla 2023a).

  • Kukulkan (Maya) Closely related to Quetzalcoatl, Kukulkan is the Maya Feathered Serpent god of vision, creation, and celestial knowledge. His temples align with equinoxes, symbolizing his role as a cosmic regulator (Reptileszilla 2023a).

  • Sobek (Ancient Egypt) The crocodile-headed god Sobek was revered as a protector of the Nile, a symbol of fertility, military strength, and cosmic order (Reptile Focus 2023a).

  • Wadjet (Ancient Egypt) The cobra goddess Wadjet protected Lower Egypt and the pharaohs. Her image adorned royal crowns, symbolizing divine authority, protection, and venomous justice (Reptileszilla 2023f).

  • Nāga (Hinduism and Buddhism) Nāgas are semi-divine serpent beings who guard rivers, treasures, and sacred thresholds. In Buddhism, the Nāga Mucalinda sheltered the Buddha during meditation (Reptile Focus 2023b).

  • Makara (India and Tibet) A mythological aquatic hybrid—part crocodile, part fish, sometimes part elephant—Makara serves as the vehicle of Ganga and Varuna. It symbolizes liminality, transformation, and the unknowable depths (Reptileszilla 2023b).

  • Rainbow Serpent (Aboriginal Australia) The Rainbow Serpent is a creator deity associated with water, fertility, and land formation. It carved rivers and valleys and governs the cycles of nature (Reptileszilla 2023c).

  • Amphisbaina (Greco-Roman and Medieval Europe) The Amphisbaina is a two-headed serpent capable of moving in either direction. It symbolizes duality, paradox, and self-sufficiency (Reptileszilla 2023d).

  • Python (Greek Mythology) The serpent Python guarded the oracle at Delphi until slain by Apollo. It represented earth wisdom, prophecy, and primordial chaos (Reptileszilla 2023g).

  • Jörmungandr (Norse Mythology) The Midgard Serpent, Jörmungandr, encircles the world and will rise during Ragnarök. It symbolizes cosmic tension, apocalypse, and the boundary between worlds (Reptileszilla 2023h).

  • Had Hospodáříček (or Had Domovníček)(Czech, Lusatian and Polish Ancient Slavonic Mythology) The Snake, the Little Steward, is a domestic guardian spirit in ancient Slavic folklore, most commonly appearing in the form of a snake, believed to bring fortune and protection to households that welcomed it. If the snake settled near the home, it was considered a sign of prosperity. In Czech tradition, people offered bowls of milk to them, despite the biological fact that snakes do not drink milk—an act of symbolic reverence. The Hospodáříček guarded thresholds and hearths, acting as a protector of domestic harmony, a symbol of ancestral continuity, and a link to the spirit world.

  • Aido-Hwedo (West African Mythology) The rainbow serpent Aido-Hwedo helped shape the Earth in Dahomey cosmology. It represents creation, balance, and the link between heaven and earth (Reptileszilla 2023i).

  • Taniwha (Māori, New Zealand) Taniwha are reptilian water spirits that dwell in rivers, lakes, or caves. They symbolize ancestral power, territorial guardianship, and sacred place (Reptileszilla 2023e).

  • The Crocodile Men (Papua New Guinea, Chambri tribe) Found in East Sepik province, like many indigenous races, practices a ritual initiation for boys entering manhood, who undergo ritual scarification to mimic the beast's armoured hide—symbolising transformation, strength, and spiritual rebirth (Snider 2009:13).

  • Chameleon (Africa and Asia) The chameleon is a silent sovereign. In African folklore, it is a messenger between gods and humans. In Asian symbolism, it represents adaptability, invisibility, and trickster intelligence (SpiritAnimalOnline 2025).

  • Serpent of Eden (Judeo-Christian) The serpent in Genesis tempts Eve, symbolizing rebellion, temptation, and knowledge of good and evil (Reptile Focus 2023c).

  • Reptilian Spirits (Native American Mythology) In various Native American traditions, serpents and lizards are guardians of the underworld, symbols of transformation, and keepers of sacred knowledge (Reptileszilla 2023j).

  • Reptilian Guardians (Celtic Mythology) In Celtic lore, dragons and serpents guard sacred wells, burial mounds, and hidden wisdom. They represent ancestral memory and earth magic (Reptileszilla 2023k).

  • Chameleon (Sub-Saharan African Mythology) In many African traditions, the chameleon is a

    messenger between gods and humans, often tasked with delivering divine instructions or shaping the fate of humanity. Its slow movement, color-shifting skin, and uncanny stillness make it a symbol of deliberate transformation, spiritual ambiguity, and cosmic timing.

  • Japanese Dragon (Japan) Japanese dragons are water deities associated with rain, agriculture, and spiritual protection. They are often depicted as wise, serpentine beings who dwell in lakes and clouds (Reptileszilla 2023l).

  • Ningishzida (Mesopotamia) Serpents in Middle Eastern mythology are linked to chaos, healing, and divine punishment. The Mesopotamian Ningishzida is a serpent god of the underworld and vegetation (Reptileszilla 2023m).

  • South American Serpents (Amazonian Cultures) In Amazonian mythologies, serpents are rainforest guardians, shapeshifters, and bridges between human and spirit realms (Reptileszilla 2023n).

  • Pacific Islander Serpents (Polynesia, Melanesia) Reptilian spirits in Pacific Islander cultures are tied to volcanoes, ancestral lineage, and oceanic power. They often appear as protective sea serpents or dragon-like beings (Reptileszilla 2023o).

    We don't just study reptiles. We build civilizations around their metaphors.

    4. We Are Now Their Students

    Reptiles are survival algorithms incarnate.

    They have endured mass extinctions, continental drift, and climate upheaval. Their strategies—low metabolism, cryptic behavior, adaptive camouflage—are not quirks. They are lessons.

    Herping is no longer a hobby. It is a planetary dialogue. A way to learn from those who endured when others vanished. A way to co-author strategies of sustainable stewardship with the oldest architects of survival.

    Reptiles do not beg for conservation. They embody it.

    They show us how to live with less, adapt without conquest, and persist without spectacle. They are the blueprint for a future that doesn't collapse under its own excess.

Herping The Planet Earth is not a slogan. It is a manifesto. A call to awaken the reptile within, honor the reptile without, and build a world where awe becomes action.

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