FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – J. D. Willson, associate professor of biological sciences, will talk about the challenges of studying snakes, which are known for their secretive behavior, cryptic coloration and often for their rarity.

The University of Arkansas Museum will host Willson’s talk “Challenges in Understanding Population and Community Dynamics of Secretive Snakes" at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 21 in the Arkansas Archeological Survey building at 2475 N Hatch Ave. Light refreshments will be served. It is free and open to the public. 

Willson will share his research on population and community dynamics of some of our most unique, but poorly understood, snake species, and approaches that he and his students use to study them. 

There will be no live snakes at the event, but there will be a display of snake specimens from the Museum’s zoology collections.

This will be the second in the Museum’s Monthly Speaker series this semester. The series aims to connect the Museum’s collections with exciting, related research conducted by the UA community. The series is multidisciplinary as the collections include a wide range of materials. Program topics later this semester will include prehistoric textile weaving traditions in the region and a look at the rich cultural and ethnic diversity of the African continent through art.