A quacking call and “robbers” mask identifies the earthen colored Wood Frog.
By now herpers in the north east must be anxious for spring to arrive, and for herpers in the south-land it is probably already here. With the blooming of the spring flowers and the budding of the hardier trees comes the emergence of the hardiest species of amphibians.

To fish-free, vernal, woodland and country waterholes come several species of Mole Salamanders. Among these are Spotted Salamanders, Ambystoma maculatum, Blue’spotted Salamanders, Ambystoma laterale, Jefferson’s Salamanders, Ambystoma jeffersonianum, Wood Frogs, Rana sylvatica, and Spring Peepers, Pseudacris crucifer.

These species often begin their breeding cycles while ice still rims the ponds and snow yet remains, patchy but not yet forgotten.

The quacking vocalizations of the dark-masked Wood Frogs, Rana sylvatica, and strident peeping of the aptly named, tiny, but very vocal Spring Peeper, Pseudacris crucifer, advertise the anurans presence, but that the silent salamanders are there and active may first be noticed by sighting their characteristic gelatinous egg masses.

Of the salamanders, it is the beautiful but variably patterned Spotted species that is most easily seen. The yellow, sometimes orangish, spots from which the name is derived may be profuse, present in moderation, or almost missing. The other two salamanders mentioned are of earthen colors with variably contrasting blue(ish) spots along the sides.

When any of these are seen or heard, we can be relatively certain that while chilly days and cold nights might still prevail, warmer weather is actually right around the corner–or maybe 2 corners.
Continue reading “Salamander and Frog Emergence Time” …read more
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! All venomous snakes need our support! This Cottonmouth is screaming it from the field in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user BowieKnife357 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here! Remember on Friday, we highlight our venomous species to help increase awareness about their conservation and celebrate #RattlesnakeFriday with everyone.

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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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New footage shows hundreds of thousands of baby giant South American river turtles hatching. (Source: Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) / ECOVALE)

Between Brazil and Bovlia along the Guaporé River, scientists recently captured video of the world’s largest turtle hatching! Conservation efforts caught the South American River turtles emerging this winter.

Conservationists say coordination between the two countries is important for the protection of the species and hope to establish some sort of protected area for them.

The Wildlife Conservation Society has been working with scientists to use technologies such as drones and thermal images in order to estimate the population of the species there. But, the hope is to be able to use artificial intelligence soon to automate the process of counting the turtles.

Check out the awesome video of these animals hatching here. …read more
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This Mexican Rust Leg Tarantula is NOT a herp, however it deserves to shine in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Jfonseca! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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A thermal image of the leatherback sea turtle digging sand, in Phang Nga, Thailand January 14, 2023, in this screen grab taken from a handout video obtained by Reuters on January 17, 2023. Department of Marine and Coastal Resources/Handout via REUTERS

Conservation officials in Thailand recently caught an endangered Leatherback Turtle laying their eggs in a nest on drone footage.

The department said a thermal drone was able to record more information than labour-intensive human patrolling techniques, as its sensors could detect the body heat of warm-blooded animals – or more specifically the thermal differences between animals and their surrounding environment – despite the darkness.The technology was helpful in preventing noise and light from disturbing the turtles while nesting, it said.

Check out the awesome footage here. …read more
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Hope this beautiful Sumatran Short Tail (aka Black Blood) in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user amaliamoran brightens your Monday! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This curious little wild Rat snake is checking out the camera in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cmac107 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This is an albino Florida Snapper. The greenish tint is algae

Almost everybody knows or thinks they know what a Common Snapping Turtle looks like. Sadly, many folks not familiar with both the Common and the Alligator Snapper mistake the former for the latter and steadfastly refuse to acknowledge the many external differences.

But this blog is not about the identification of either. What I am wondering is what has become of the many color variations of the Common Snapper that were advertised a decade or so ago?

Remember those? There were tan, orange, yellow, and more rarely albino common snappers being offered. But that was back then and this is now—the now that should have allowed plenty of time for those odd colored snappers to have matured and to be producing odd colored offspring if ever they were going to. The albinos should have bred true, but I’ve always wondered about those oranges and other colors that were offered. I guess that if the color was genetically produced and they were line bred there might be some strangely colored snappers around. But was there?

Actually, I was pleasantly surprised. After inquiring on my Facebook page, hobbyists showed me pix of their odd colored snappers, yellows and albinos among them, and mentioned that many other colors and even some pattern variances were available in Asia.

This, and the fact that when well cared for, often handled, captives Common Snappers can become VERY tame are good facts to know.
Continue reading “Whatever Happened to the Fancy-colored Snapping Turtles?” …read more
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Awesome field shot of a Mojave (Crotalus scutulatus salvini) taken in Mexico in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user OXYUMAURUS! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Good things come in small packages, like the Rough Earth Snake in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user gdy! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This Herald snake (Crotaphopeltis hotamboeia) is just cruising around in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user MVH4! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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The Emerald Tree Boa in the most classic of poses graces us in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user snakedawg81! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This little tegu is peeking around the corner to the new week in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user musicloverhoney! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Scientist Mario Yanez holds a specimen of the new dwarf boa species.(AFP: Rodrigo Buendia)

A new species of dwarf boa has been discovered in the Amazon in Ecuador. This brings the number of known Tropidophis to 6 located in South America!

Two specimens were found in the Colonso Chalupas national reserve and in the private Sumak Kawsay park, the discoverers reported.

The snakes are “a relic of time”, Ecuadorian researcher Mario Yanez — of the National Biodiversity Institute (INABIO) — said.

“They are animals so old, that finding or bumping into one of them is a privilege.”

The boa, Tropidophis cacuangoae, was named after early-20th-century Indigenous rights activist Dolores Cacuango. To read move, click here. …read more
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This is the charcoal phase of the Variable Bush Viper
Seems like just yesterday but I guess it was about 4 decades ago, a small, pretty, nocturnal, African viper took American herpetoculture by storm. This was the Variable Bush Viper, Atheris squamiger. And variable it was, clad in scales of green, burnt orange, butter yellow, charcoal, or other, it was not only of easily handleable size (15 to 26”, males being the smaller), but was relatively affordable as well. As indicated by its name, this is an arboreal species, but it is said to prefer shrubs rather than the taller trees. It has a wide but spotty distribution over much of forested humid West and Central Africa.

In nature the diet is varied, including lizards, anurans, small rodents, birds, and probably other snakes. Captives have proven to survive well on a diet consisting entirely of suitably sized lab mice. Healthy captives readily breed. They bear living young and litters usually number from 4 to 8 neonates..

But with all of these positives there is a negative. The venom of this bush viper is quite potent and has no specific antivenin. Human deaths have been attributed to envenomation by this pretty snake.

Oh well. Seems there is often some degree of danger associated with serpentine beauty.
Continue reading “The Variable Bush Viper” …read more
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All coiled up, this Crotalus lepidus klauberi in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user lepidus-klauberi looks ready for something! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This male Lacerta has his eye on you 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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Crocodile researcher Jonathan Triminio talking to students in BelizeJONATHAN TRIMINIO

Saving a reptile species can be a challenging in it’s own right, but what if the benefits are saving an ecosystem too? The Crocodile Research Coalition is attempting to do not only that, but potentially save the world! While it seems like lofty goals, it is all butterfly effect. Or should we say Crocodile effect instead?

THe CRC has been tracking the impact of pollution on the native Morelet’s Crocodiles since 2019 for impacts of local pollution on the current stable population. This research can then be used to impact not only the animals in the study, but the ecosystem as a whole. With public outreach provided to residents through the CRC, changes happen.

Dr. Marisa Tellez, Executive Director of the Crocodile Research Coalition, says that the biggest challenge at the moment is breaking down over a century of misguided information and false stereotypes about Belize’s crocodiles while simultaneously fighting against the sensationalism of TV shows and media about crocodiles.

“If we want to ensure the long-term success of any conservation program, not only do the local communities need to be educated about the Do’s and Don’ts living alongside wildlife, but they also need to know the facts, along with being involved to further pride and stewardship of one’s natural world,” she says.

To read the full article, visit Forbes here! …read more
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What a lovely pair of tortoises uploaded by kingsnake.com user tripletoes. Tell the kids they are playing leap frog! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Hopefully the gorgeous blues of this Dendrobates auratus uploaded by kingsnake.com user amazonreptile will brighten your day. Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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O! M! G! Look how tiny this pygmy chameleon is in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user heart_4_herps!
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A side view of the lizard’s skull and razor-sharp teeth. (Image credit: David Whiteside, Sophie Chambi-Trowell and Mike Benton/Natural History Museum UK))

The discovery of a new prehistoric lizard shifts the timeline of when reptiles evolved! The remains were found embedded in a rock in storage since the 1950’s at the National History Museum in London.Cryptovaranoides microlanius dates back about 202 million years, placing it firmly in the Triassic period. It is also 35 million years earlier than previously recorded reptilian life!

But despite the lizard’s small stature, its sharp teeth would have delivered a menacing bite, which inspired the paleontologists to name it Cryptovaranoides microlanius; the species name means “small butcher,” while the genus means “hidden” and “lizardlike,” a nod to the decades it spent languishing unnoticed in NHM storage. When C. microlanius was alive, it likely preyed on arthropods and small vertebrates on the limestone-rich islands that once surrounded what is now Bristol, according to the study.

To read more about our new favorite dinosaur, click here. …read more
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A side view of the lizard’s skull and razor-sharp teeth. (Image credit: David Whiteside, Sophie Chambi-Trowell and Mike Benton/Natural History Museum UK))

The discovery of a new prehistoric lizard shifts the timeline of when reptiles evolved! The remains were found embedded in a rock in storage since the 1950’s at the National History Museum in London.Cryptovaranoides microlanius dates back about 202 million years, placing it firmly in the Triassic period. It is also 35 million years earlier than previously recorded reptilian life!

But despite the lizard’s small stature, its sharp teeth would have delivered a menacing bite, which inspired the paleontologists to name it Cryptovaranoides microlanius; the species name means “small butcher,” while the genus means “hidden” and “lizardlike,” a nod to the decades it spent languishing unnoticed in NHM storage. When C. microlanius was alive, it likely preyed on arthropods and small vertebrates on the limestone-rich islands that once surrounded what is now Bristol, according to the study.

To read more about our new favorite dinosaur, click here. …read more
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Florida Banded Water Snakes are very variable in color. Reds do not seem as common as other phases.

Field herpers anywhere within the range of Water Snakes of the genus Nerodia, have probably proclaimed on the abundance of these snakes seen on any “good” night of herping. Often, in my area of north central Florida, the numbers of water snakes have exceeded, or at least run neck-and-neck with the numbers of Cottonmouths seen. Or at least that was the case until last summer. After having seen only a single juvie on a roadway that normally discloses 6 to a dozen on a good night, I have seen only one—one lone juvie in a full season of road-hunting. After each trip I find myself asking “Where have all the Nerodia fasciata pictiventris, FL Banded Water Snakes, gone?”

Be it full moon, new moon or in between moon, warm and clear, warm and cloudy, drizzling, or pouring, I have seen only that single Banded Water Snake in the last several months. With winter now upon us, with water levels dropping in our waterways, even with our warm days (north central Florida,) I don’t really expect that the water snakes will be any more visible. But I sure do hope that the spring of 2023 will bring a resurgence in the numbers that we see. We could use a bolstering in the numbers of Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnakes also.

Continue reading “Where Have all the Water Snakes Gone?” …read more
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A great shot of a live (as they should be) Pygmy Rattlesnake on concrete in the field in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user JARHEAD1969 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Love this gorgeous Moluccan python, Morelia clastolepis, in all its shimmering beauty in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user krantz!
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Looks like it is date night for this pair of Diamond Jungle Carpet Pythons in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user terrapene! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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The Manning River turtle has had it’s population decimated over time, but recent conservation efforts have been proving successful. In the four years the species has been surveyed, they have only found one potential nest but no evidence of any eggs surviving. However now there is light! 4 hatchlings estimated at a week old have recently been discovered proving the start of species recovery.

“Finding hatchlings for the first time in four years gives us a good indication of habitat, where they are nesting and breeding successfully,” he said.

“It means we can target follow-up surveys there and we can learn a bit more about their nesting and early life stage ecology.”

To read the full story, visit ABC News here. …read more
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This Barking Tree Frog is quite the chonk in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user saltycity ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Although originally discovered in 1986, the Galapagos Pink Land Iguana (Conolophus marthae) took a few years to properly type as their own species. The aging population is critically endangered with an estimated 200-300 animals left. Now we are seeing the first official nesting sites of this rare Iguana, for the first time since the species was fully identified in 2009.

“The discovery of the first-ever nest and young pink iguanas together with evidence of the critical threats to their survival has also given us the first hope for saving this enigmatic species from extinction.” Paul Salaman, president of Galápagos Conservancy, says in a statement. “Now, our work begins to save the pink iguana.”

VIsit the Smithsonian Magazine to read more about this amazing conservation effort here. …read more
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Here is to hoping this hatchling albino Siamese Crocodile our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user crocodilepaul helps you survive this Monday!! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Brightly colored and beautiful, this Giant Dwarf boa still retains the even brighter tailtip used in luring their prey of anurans and lizards into striking range.
It seems as if all too often the world’s herpetoculture hobby centers on the almighty dollar. In the 70+ years I have been involved with herps I have seen so many species come and go that I would be at a loss if asked to name them all. But since I’ve been on a “Dwarf Boa” kick for the last few months I’ll just mention one of them—the Giant Trope, Tropidophis melanurus. Since mentioning several species of this genus in my blogs, I have had a number of queries asking about their availability in the American hobby. The answer has been and will seemingly continue to be, they are now longer available. Why? Because hobbyists have chosen to breed more prolific snake species that are easier to breed than the Giant Trope was. Think $$$!

By the way, the term giant pertains to the adult size of T. melanurus as compared to other species in the genus. The adult size of this “giant” varies from about 26 to 36 inches but it is of rather heavy girth. Although it is often of light mud color, some (rather rarely seen) examples are much brighter. It was these, of course, that were being captive bred and available to hobbyists. But sadly, even though easily kept and bred, these little snakes had small litters (usually only 2 to 5) and they disappeared from the American hobby decades ago but it is a commonly seen species in the wilds of Cuba. Prey includes frogs, toads, lizards, and nestling rodents.

And just as a heads up, all species of Tropidophis are capable of, and prone to, autohaemorrhage from the mouth, nostrils and eyes if unduly disturbed.
Continue reading “The Giant Trope, Once Available in the USA” …read more
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This lil beardie is gonna have to grow to fill Santa’s hat in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user powell_baby ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Looks like someone is ready to head to grandma’s in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user rosebuds ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This cute lil cham is getting ready to help decorate the tree in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user 1Sun! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Alert and always keeping his eye on you, this Basiliscus plumifrons shines in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user kus! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Stiletto snakes lack an enlarged head but are venomous, and have a short, stout, tail tipped with a spiny scale.
To see any of the several species of African/Mid-Eastern Stiletto Snakes, one would think that they were viewing a harmless little black burrowing snake species. When uncovered these 15 to 26 inch long snakes try immediately to cover themselves again and will quickly succeed unless impeded by substrate or human. All 15+ (according to geneticists there may be 20 or more species) are fast and they are squirmy. They do not have an enlarged head but, heed this hobbyists and systematists) they are venomous and almost impossible, thanks to greatly elongate fangs that slide easily under and beside the upper labial scales, to handle without sustaining a bite. Venom is produced in small quantities but is considered dangerously toxic and is known to cause severe pain. These little burrowers preferentially feed on burrowing reptiles (seemingly on lizards) but will accept nestling mice as well.

It seems that it is the Southern Stiletto Snake, Atractaspis bibroni, that is most often (now rarely) available to American hobbyists and is pictured here.
Continue reading “The Oft Mistaken Stiletto Snake” …read more
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! What a stunning shot of an albino Atrox in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user eekster ! 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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It is a whole lotta squee in this two for Tuesday pair of hatching Hognose in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user caracal ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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