Dr. Charles F. Smith

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Dr. Charles F. Smith is an evolutionary biologist and herpetologist. His research interests center on the evolution of mating systems, especially in the links between spatial ecology, behavior, morphology and physiology, and the fitness benefits and costs arising from each of these attributes at the population level. Chuck’s research combines field (e.g., radio-telemetry, GIS analysis) and laboratory (e.g., endocrinological, histological, molecular) approaches to address hypotheses about the spatial ecology and reproductive physiology of pitvipers. Chuck is a Professor Emeritus of Biology at Wofford College, former Director of The Copperhead Institute, a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Chiricahua Desert Museum, co-author of Bad Medicine: A Photographic History of Snake Bite Treatments, Snake Oil, Potions, Elixirs, and Kits (ECO Publishing, 2023), Amphibians of the Sky Islands – Coronado National Forest (ECO Publishing, 2023), Rattlesnakes of the Grand Canyon (ECO Publishing, 2018), and co-editor of The Bog Turtle: Natural History and Conservation (ECO Publishing, 2023), Reptiles of the Trans-Pecos Region (ECO Publishing, 2021), The Kauffeld Letters (ECO Publishing, 2021), and the peer-reviewed book (2 volumes), Rattlesnakes of Arizona (ECO Publishing, 2016).