Emily Taylor, author of California Snakes and How to Find Them (published by Heyday) delivers a lecture, “The Secret Lives of Snakes,” for the Santa Ynez Historical Society. This is a live and Zoom presentation. Co-sponsored by UC Sedgwick Reserve.

In-person event hosted at UC Sedgwick Reserve, Tipton House.

Dr. Emily Taylor and her students will greet you with the friendly Cal Poly ambassador snakes as you arrive. Emily will give a presentation entitled, “The Secret Lives of Snakes,” with stories of snake encounters from her 25 years of studying these scaly animals around the world. These stories will be brought to life with beautiful photographs and movies of snakes, including footage obtained from recent advances in technology that Emily and her students are using to spy on snakes and learn about their amazing secret lives. In celebration of the release of her book, California Snakes and How to Find Them, published by Heyday, Emily will punctuate the presentation with excerpts from the book on our state’s bounty of legless creatures. The book will be available for purchase and signing at the event.

Emily Taylor is a professor of biological sciences at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, where she conducts research on the physiology, ecology, and conservation biology of lizards and snakes. A staunch advocate for improving the public image of snakes, especially rattlesnakes, Dr. Taylor is founder of the community science initiative Project RattleCam (rattlecam.org), where members of the public help her and other scientists learn about rattlesnakes by analyzing photos and livestream footage from snake dens. She is owner of Central Coast Snake Services (centralcoastsnakeservices.com), which helps people and snakes in California coexist safely and peacefully. She lives in Atascadero with her husband, Steve, and their menagerie of rescue animals, including Pax the dog, Baby the boa constrictor, Aperol Spritz the bearded dragon, and rattlesnakes Buzz and Snakeholio. Follow her on X @snakeymama.