Meet our Committee Members
President
Andrew Melrose
Andrew Melrose is a lifelong reptile enthusiast whose passion for Australia’s reptiles began in childhood, exploring and learning about snakes in the field throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
A Life Member and former President of the Australian Herpetological Society, Andrew began his professional career in 1994 working with the late George Cann Jr. and John Cann OAM, known from their presentations at the famous La Perouse Snake Pit shows.
Today, he operates Live Reptile Displays, presenting educational wildlife shows featuring turtles, lizards, snakes—including highly venomous species—and crocodiles across New South Wales. Along with his snake catching business, Shire Snake Catchers.
Vice President
Cory Kerewaro
Cory Kerewaro is the owner of Reptile Relocation Sydney and has been working with snakes for over 10 years. With a lifelong passion for reptiles, he’s focused on safe and ethical snake handling, community education, and promoting a better understanding of our native wildlife. Cory brings plenty of hands-on experience and a strong commitment to the industry in his role with the Snake Catchers Association.
Treasurer
Troy Hovenden
Troy Hovenden runs ‘The Reptile Bloke’ along with his wife, Rachel. Troy is based in the Blue Mountains, NSW. He services the Blue Mountains and surrounding areas.
Troy aims to help people to better understand and appreciate snakes and other reptiles as valuable and essential members of the ecosystems in which we share.
Public Officer
Chris Williams
Chris Williams has been a member of the Australian Herpetological Society since 1985 and has served as President for the past decade. He worked in the reptile departments of both Taronga Zoo and the Australian Reptile Park before stepping away from the field – although he would later go on to own Snake Ranch, Australia’s largest breeding facility for reptiles, catering to hobbyists specialising in python morphs.
In 2023, Chris founded Urban Reptile Removal, and would later purchase Sydney Snake Catcher, the original snake relocation business, specialising in the removal of unwanted snakes and other reptiles across the Sydney region. He now works full-time as a snake catcher, spending his days – and many nights – relocating reptiles from homes and businesses throughout Sydney.
Chris’s primary interest lies in urban reptiles, and how the shifting landscape of Greater Sydney has created both winners and losers among the region’s reptile species and how different species adapt – or fail to adapt – to a rapidly evolving urban environment.
Secretary
Sandra Trujillo
Sandra is a former veterinary nurse and dedicated wildlife carer with Sydney Wildlife, where she cared for native animals for many years. She has also worked in government as an Executive Assistant to the former NSW Premier, the Hon. Morris Iemma and
worked as a Compliance Officer for the office of Liquor and Gaming for 4 years.
She is the founder of Puppy Scam Awareness Australia, an initiative that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic to combat online puppy scams.
Sandra worked closely with law enforcement to shut down fraudulent websites and help victims recover lost funds, raising national awareness of the issue.
For the past eight years, Sandra has coordinated a team of professional snake catchers across NSW through Sydney Snake Catchers, ensuring public safety and animal welfare.
Sandra’s work reflects her strong commitment to animal welfare, public service, and consumer protection.
Patron
Rob Ambrose
Rob Ambrose was the first commercial snake catcher in the Sydney area and has been working full-time in the field since 2010. With a background in both the Australian and Hawkesbury Herpetological Societies since 2002, Rob has developed extensive expertise in reptile handling, education, and conservation.
He holds a Certificate III in Captive Animals and has worked as a wildlife presenter with Australian Wildlife Displays and the University of Western Sydney’s Reptile Research Facility. In addition to his professional work, Rob has volunteered as a wildlife carer with Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife for many years.
Since 2013, Rob has been performing as a showman in the pit at the La Perouse Snake Show, continuing the long-standing tradition of public education about snakes while preserving the show’s rich historical significance. He also currently works alongside Andrew Melrose with Live Reptile Displays, the original reptile display business founded by the Cann family, helping to uphold their legacy in Australian wildlife education.
Advisory Board
Dr Robert Johnson AM
Robert graduated with a Bachelor of Veterinary Science degree from the University of Sydney in 1977. He has worked in mixed, small animal, zoo, wildlife, and reptile practice. Robert is a past President, and a Fellow of the Australian Veterinary Association. Robert has extensive experience in zoo animal medicine and animal welfare and has presented and written widely on reptile, zoo, and wildlife medicine.
Robert is a Life Member of WIRES and The Hawkesbury Herpetological Society and holds a Certificate in Zoological Medicine from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. In 2022 he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia for significant service to veterinary science and professional societies.
Dr Gavin Smith
Dr Gavin Smith is the Director of ACT Snake Removals, a licensed snake catching service in Canberra and NSW surrounds. He is also the Principal investigator on the ANU’s Canberra Snake Tracking Project, a longitudinal and multi-method research program exploring the spatial and behavioural ecology of urban-adapted eastern browns (_Pseudonaja textilis_). This research is exploring the impacts and implications of urbanisation on a sample of brown snakes, as well as learning more about their habitat use, different personalities, thermal biology and local population structures. A key part of the study is measuring the effects of translocation on individual snakes and the ecosystems they inhabit. Gavin is a committed snake conservationist and he regularly does venomous snake displays, educational talks and media work to improve the image and representation of snakes in the community.
Anthony Stimson
Anthony Stimson has been an active member of Australia’s herpetological community for over forty years. He worked across several zoos, including Featherdale, and held his own catch-and-release licence for many years. A licensed elapid keeper for more than four decades, and conducted some of Sydney’s first elapid handling courses. Anthony has operated his own wildlife education business for the last thirty years. Anthony has been an active member of the Australian Herpetological Society since his early teens and was mentored by some of Australia’s most respected Herpetologists. He played a key role in the development of the NSW Reptile Licensing System and the Exhibited Animals Protection Act and Regulations. A biologist and qualified teacher, Anthony brings extensive practical experience and professional insight to the Advisory Board, with a deep understanding of field challenges and the importance of ethical reptile handling and relocation.
Lynleigh Greig OAM
I grew up in the bush in Zimbabwe where it was fairly common to find a cobra slithering in through the back-door or a puff adder sitting under a pile of laundry. As young kids my sister and I were always drawn to wildlife - but snakes in particular. Our Dad taught us how to safely relocate them from the house back to the garden.
After moving to Australia, I trained to capture and release all venomous species of snakes. I was also trained to rehabilitate injured ones which is what I enjoy most. Given that snakes are often on the receiving end of hate-fuelled trauma, it's crucial to be able to offer them treatment and care and the opportunity to educate members of the public about their importance.
Rob Ambrose
Rob Ambrose was the first commercial snake catcher in the Sydney area and has been working full-time in the field since 2010. With a background in both the Australian and Hawkesbury Herpetological Societies since 2002, Rob has developed extensive expertise in reptile handling, education, and conservation.
He holds a Certificate III in Captive Animals and has worked as a wildlife presenter with Australian Wildlife Displays and the University of Western Sydney’s Reptile Research Facility. In addition to his professional work, Rob has volunteered as a wildlife carer with Sydney Metropolitan Wildlife for many years.
Since 2013, Rob has been performing as a showman in the pit at the La Perouse Snake Show, continuing the long-standing tradition of public education about snakes while preserving the show’s rich historical significance. He also currently works alongside Andrew Melrose with Live Reptile Displays, the original reptile display business founded by the Cann family, helping to uphold their legacy in Australian wildlife education.
Jarrad Prangell
Jarrad Prangell has over 15 years of experience as a professional snake catcher and more than a decade as a zookeeper at Symbio Wildlife Park. With extensive hands-on expertise in venomous reptile management, Jarrad is passionate about community education, wildlife conservation, and promoting safe human–snake coexistence across New South Wales
Stuart Johnson
Stuart is the current President of the North Coast Herpetology Group. And owner/director of Reptile Solutions, based in the NSW Mid North Coast, providing educational reptile shows & displays, reptile relocation & wildlife consultancy services Stuart has been working in the exhibited animals industry, zoo keeping and animal handling since 1996, with a brief intermission serving in the Australian Defence Force as a Medic in the Royal Australian Navy.
Stuart worked at Bilabong Zoo in Port Macquarie in the position of Head Reptile Keeper, where he was involved in the design and construction of the reptile house and the Saltwater Crocodile exhibit.
Geoff Coombe OAM
For more than five decades, Geoff Coombe has led snake awareness and safety education across Australia and overseas. He has trained thousands of people through St John Ambulance, Paramedics Australasia, and the SA Ambulance Service, and has long contributed to Adelaide University’s Clinical Toxinology courses.
Author of Working with Snakes, Geoff provides practical guidance for professionals encountering snakes in disturbed environments throughout Australia and New Zealand. His lifelong commitment to public safety and education was recognised in 2023 with the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM).