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John Groves - Curator of Amphibians & Reptiles
photo: Rod Hackney
John Groves has been in the Zoo field for more than 40 years. He began his career at the Baltimore zoo where he worked as a Keeper and Senior Keeper of Reptiles for 7 years. He then went to the Philadelphia Zoological Park as Head Keeper of Reptiles in 1973 and was promoted to Assistant Curator in 1978 and Curator in 1981. In addition to his reptile positions, he added Curator of Birds at the Philadelphia Zoo to his list of titles in 1986. He continued in these positions until 1993.
John came to the North Carolina Zoo in 1993 as the first Curator of Amphibians and Reptiles. In this position he manages all of the amphibians, reptiles, fish and invertebrates at the Zoo. John is primarily responsible for the management of the Streamside and Sonora Desert exhibits, but also has collection animals at the African Pavilion, Aviary and Cypress Swamp exhibits.
John has been active in conservation and field biology for many years. He has led and/or participated in research and conservation trips to Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Mexico, Hawaii and the Marianas Islands. John has also done a great deal of research in various parts of the Continental United States. Most of his research has been on the natural history, behavior and conservation needs of a variety of amphibians, reptiles and birds. He has participated in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services’ Hawaiian Bird Project and he developed and led the Mariana Archipelago Research and Survey project (sponsored by USFWS and North American Zoos). This latter project originated with his early work on the Brown Tree Snake on Guam.
John’s latest project is on the life history of the Cape Fear Shiner (an endemic North Carolina minnow). He has also begun studies on the hellbender (a giant salamander in eastern North America) and plans to conduct the first survey of this salamander in North Carolina. He participated in the first Hellbender Habitat and Population Viability Assessment sponsored by the Captive Breeding Specialists Group for the World Conservation Organization. John has been monitoring the native wildlife at the North Carolina Zoological Park and currently is conducting survey work on the amphibians and reptiles in the Park and has initiated a long-term study of the box turtles on the zoo’s site. He has received a grant from Randolph Friends of the North Carolina Zoo to conduct radiotelemetry studies on copperheads and timber rattlesnakes to determine habitat use and the hibernation habits of these native venomous snakes at the zoo.
John is a founder member of several conservation and zoo groups including the Maryland Herpetological Society, Delaware Paleontology Society and the Crocodilian Advisory Group (CAG). He has served on the CAG Steering Committee for many years and is presently the Vice-Chairman of this Group. He is also a member of the curriculum committee, an instructor and co-editor of the monograph of the Crocodilian Biology and Captive Management School of the CAG. He is the studbook Keeper for the Slender-snouted Crocodile. More recently he has agreed to head a CAG committee on the welfare of captive crocodilians. He is also an active participate in the North Carolina Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (NCPARC).
John has been a Research Associate at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (Vertebrate Zoology), a Research Associate (Ornithology) at the Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh and a Conservation Associate at the Philadelphia Zoological Garden. His past affiliations include Vice-President of the Maryland Herpetological Society, Steering Committee Member and Chairman of the Policy Committee of the Delaware Valley Paleontological Society, and Chairman of the Zoo Liaison Committee of the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles.
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N.C. Zoo is a member institution of AZA and an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, William G. Ross Jr. Secretary; Michael F. Easley, Governor. A part of the North Carolina Government portal.
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