Tick Tock. Hopefully the week passes quickly but today is easier starting with the smile of a Nile Croc in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user CDieter! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! Time to crack a cold one and celebrate the weekend. This A. c. contortrix is already a step ahead of us in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user AlexNevgloski! p.s. Always pick up the trash you see in the field. Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
Remember, on Rattlesnake Friday we celebrate ALL venomous reptiles, not just the rattlesnakes, to help raise awareness of their benefits on this planet!
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What a stunning variable Kingsnake in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Rod_McLeod ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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May this adorable pair of Lygodactylus williamsi in our herp photo of the day brighten your midweek, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jamesmatthews ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Gotta love the smile from this Monkey Tail Skink in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user sreps ! Be sure to tell sreps you liked it here!
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How adorable is this Newt in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user plagueguitarist ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! Today we bring you this serene headshot of a lovely Black-tailed Rattlesnake (Crotalus molossus), uploaded by kingsnake.com user MartinWhalin1 ! This guy was found in the wild in Arizona and as you can see, he was respected by the herpers and he gave them respect in return. Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world.
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These Uroplatus pietschmanni in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user mcamo3 ,show us what amazing masters of camoflague they truly are! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This young banded water snake being very curious in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user casichelydia ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This little cornsnake must have been racing to get out of the egg ahead of his siblings in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cochran ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This vibrant Cape Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer vertebralis) in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user pitparade will brighten your day for sure! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! Loving the close-up of this Southern Pacific Rattlesnake in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user goombaorigato ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world. It is our goal to help dispel the fears surrounding our beloved venomous creatures.
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There was some great news regarding the regulation changes for Florida; including Tegus, Iguanas and a selection of large constrictors.
This is the announcement from USARKFL:
We have some news… good news. The judge agreed with USARK FL and found that SB1414 is in fact unconstitutional! We will post full details soon but the judge granted our motion for summary judgment and now we just await his formal order stating the same. Thank you to everyone who supported us. Please keep the donations coming! We must still pay for this lawsuit and future actions. What a win!
NOTE: This will take a few days to all be finalized and for FWC to rescind their Executive Order. We also do not know if FWC will appeal. Also, by “unconstitutional” we mean the Florida Constitution, not the U.S. Constitution. This is a state lawsuit against a state agency, not a federal lawsuit.
Please stay tuned to both USARK and USARKFL to follow updates and please continue to support USARK. They are getting things done! …read more
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What amazing colors Uros come in, like this ornate in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user plietz! Be sure to tell them you liked it here.
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Remember to eat a hearty breakfast, just like this Aldabra in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Danielk ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Watch this gorgeous Leachie take it all off in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jimfmcdonald for being so many of our first wild herp! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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What was your first? For so many of us it was the same animal! All hail the mighty Garter Snake in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user TomDickinson for being so many of our first wild herp! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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In celebration of all things venomous, a photo of a bushmaster taken in the field graces our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user surgeon ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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What a gorgeous chondro in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user bsuson!
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Ever wonder what a group of frogs would talk about? This batch of White’s Tree Frogs seem like they are having a meeting of the minds in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user DanitaParapai ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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You know it is going to be fun when you start out the day with an Eastern coachwhip in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jodscovry! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Here’s to hoping this hatching kingsnake in our Herp Photo of the Day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user intuitivetype makes your Monday better! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Finally! Jake immortalizing the collared lizard
Throughout this trip we had hip-hopped into and out of Arizona and we were now aiming for it again.
One of the lizard species that Jake wanted badly to see was the Great Basin Collared Lizard, Crotaphytus bicinctores. On earlier trips I had found these rock lovers common but on this trip they had proven nonexistent. We drove to many out-of-the-way locales and failed to see this pretty lizard, even where other observers had reported them only a few days earlier. Jake’s estimate is that we scanned 10,000 rocks to no avail. My estimate of the rocks scanned is about twice greater than Jake’s.
But finally, almost at the edge of the species’ range, Jake hollered” “STOP! I think I just saw one. Back up.” I followed his instructions and sure enough, sitting on the largest rock in an extensive pile was one lone Great Basin Collared Lizard. Another lifer for Jake. Fortunately the lizard seemed unconcerned by our presence and allowed us to take dozens of pix at close range.
The Grand Canyon was still closed due to the Covid-19 scare, so we traveled far into the Navajo Nation to try our luck, again for the Great Basin Collared Lizard as well as in hopes of other species. Even though another cold front had arrived we were fortunate enough to see a Great Basin Gopher Snake, another Lyre Snake, and a very pretty Night snake.
We were down to just one last night in the Sonoran Desert. Despite the seasonal chill we elected to try our luck for burrowing snakes in southeastern Arizona.
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Happy Ratttlesnake Friday! This Crotalus tigris, found and photographed in AZ, is keeping her eye on you in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user kevinjudd ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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No longer just black and white, these snakes show some of the variety in color that the Black Headed Pythons have in our Herp Photo of the Day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Tom_Keogan! Be sure to tell Tom you liked it here!
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The close up shot of this Panther Chameleon in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user vinniem1210 is just stunning!! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Two for Tuesday with this cute pair of Australian water dragons in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cochran! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This Wood Frog in our herp photo of the day, makes me want to go herping. Uploaded by kingsnake.com user casichelydia . Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Like most, this Mojave Desert Sidewinder blends well with habitat color.
Now on to Utah where our target species was a Great Basin Rattlesnake, Crotalus oreganus lutosus (although the older taxonomy of C. viridis lutosus seems more fitting). But of course there were secondary targets to look for along the way. This night our “along the way” was in eastern California where we were hoping for a Colorado Desert Sidewinder, Crotalus cerastes cerastes, the only one of the 3 subspecies that Jake still needed. We had driven northward at dusk while darkness settled in.
Jake and I had been discussing the locales we needed to try for the Great Basin Rattler. Mother Nature, with her typical disregard for traveling herpers had continued to plague us with night temperatures just a couple of degrees too cool for night active species to be out and active. Many of the species on this trip that we had thought would be easy finds, shoe-ins if you will, had proven difficult at best. We were now down to only 3 days/nights remaining on this trip and the temperatures showed every indication of being problematic at best. So, with temps against us, we simply had to put as many hours on the road as possible.
About a half hour north of the almost ghost town of Trona we decided to turn around and head for the motel. Traffic was light but there were continually headlights behind us. Since were going fairly slow it didn’t take long for us to be overtaken. Trona was now behind us and several cars were closing the gap. Just about as several were poised to pass us, Jake hollered “sidewinder.” I had passed over it and once the cars whipped by I was able to turn and speed back. Sure enough, still lying quietly coiled in mid-lane was Jake’s lifer Colorado Desert Sidewinder.
Southward again and there was another sidewinder but we simply assured that it left the pavement. Was that a piece of rope in the other lane? I was able to stop quickly and Jake hopped out and returned with a beautiful little tricolored Variable Ground Snake, Sonora semiannulata. We were happy and now the motel was in sight.
Tomorrow Utah, tomorrow night, hopefully, a Great Basin Rattlesnake.
Continue reading “Sidewinders and a Ground Snake.” …read more
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! EXTREME closeup of this adorable Cerastes cerastes in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user Gaboonviper1388 . Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
As always we highlight our venomous animals on fridays to celebrate #RattlesnakeFriday and help educate on the importance of conserving these animals and dispelling myths about them!
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This is a gorgeous corn snake in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user dallashawks ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! No offense USPS!
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Is this Irian Jaya Jag in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user StonedReptiles bright enough for you? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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We totally LOVE this Cribo in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user steve fuller ! We are so jealous! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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All that glitters is not always gold, sometimes it is diamonds too! This diamond/jungle cross is absolutely stunning in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user KWE , they still inspire us constantly! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Mercedes, at home, alert, and on snail patrol.
Mercedes is back home. And he’s still alone. So Patti and I continue on our hunt for a female with which to partner Mercedes.
Mercedes is an Asian Keeled Box Turtle, Pyxidea (once Geoemyda) mouhoti. Now an Endangered species, a mere few years back this interesting turtle was a major component of the herp trade. And coinciding with the last statement, this taxon that was once so readily available, inexpensive, and easy to keep is now (year of 2020) almost impossible to obtain and cannot, without an almost impossible to get Federal Permit, be offered in interstate trade. So what happened to all of them? There are various explanations, but two that are almost certainly accurate are that they were just a 7” long brown turtle and that they were inexpensive. In the American hobbyist’s pet trade, if some bucks, preferably big bucks, cannot be made by breeding a herp there is no incentive to either keep or breed it. And all of the Mercedes’ of the pet trade fell into these categories.
A few dedicated hobbyist/breeders did hold on to a few of these turtles and a few, now a precious few, are produced each year. But it seems now that mortality pretty much equals captive production and those few lucky owners are holding tightly to the examples on hand. Breeding males can wreak havoc on the more placid females and if not closely monitored injury or death of the female may occur.
Threats to wild populations include habitat destruction including deforestation as well as for food and mostly (probably all) bogus traditional home remedy medications. The pet trade has also figured strongly in population reductions.
I mentioned above that Mercedes (now a 30 year captive) is “back home.” For the last 2 years he has been on an apparently unsuccessful breeding loan to a chelonian breeder in the northeast. We’re glad he’s back, and now we are scouring the USA for a female that we could get on breeding loan. Please, please, if you know of anyone maintaining this turtle as a pet please drop us a line. We’d like to be a part of the future availability of this species in the USA.
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! To end the week, this Jackson’s Tree Snake (Thrasops jacksonii) comes in to represent rear-fangs for our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Claus ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! As always on Friday, we celebrate all of our venomous reptiles for their contribution to the world.
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This frillie looks a little angry our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user nydon ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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A shout out to the little guys! Loving this Vinales Anole in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user macraei ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This Wood Frog in our herp photo of the day, makes me want to blow off work and head out herping. Uploaded by kingsnake.com user casichelydia . Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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