Jay Eubanks Biography

Jay has over two decades of experience working with wildlife, primarily reptiles and amphibians, and nearly ten years of professional experience in science education. Jay’s passion for wildlife developed very early, beginning with the insects he and his mom found in the backyard. Creature interests grew bigger when Jay discovered reptiles thanks to the final pages of a “Dinosaurs” Golden Book which featured modern day reptiles as “living dinosaurs.” Jay was hooked on the idea that there were dinosaurs among us that he could find in the wild. Those childhood interests led Jay to earn a degree in biology from the University of Memphis (B.S. ‘01). During college, Jay worked extensively in the herpetology lab of the late William H. N. Gutzke where he participated in a variety of research projects led by Dr. Gutzke and his graduate students. This research included studies of ratsnake foraging ecology, salamander surveys in the Great Smoky Mountains, digestive physiology studies with rattlesnakes and alligators, and studies of turtle nesting ecology. Jay also worked at the Memphis Zoo as a seasonal keeper in butterflies, birds, and reptiles during college. After graduation, Jay went on to work at the Knoxville Zoo (now Zoo Knoxville) as a reptile keeper. Jay returned home to pursue graduate school and ended up teaching middle school science for two years. It was then that Jay truly developed as an educator, building on teaching experiences he had as a college biology lab teaching assistant. Jay ultimately combined his passion for wildlife with his love of teaching as an education program manager at the Jackson Zoo in Mississippi and then later in a similar role at the Alabama Wildlife Center. Jay began Green Snake Education to provide quality science-based educational programs focusing on herpetofauna and their habitats here in Alabama.