The earthen colors blend well with the litter of the forest floor.
Clad in roughened scales of muted browns, tans, grays, white, and charcoal, the little Paraoedura androyensis, pygmy panther gecko, is well suited to life in the leaf litter of the southern and eastern Malagasy deciduous forests. This is the smallest of the 13 (with only one species being extralimital to Madagascar) species in this genus, with females, the marginally larger gender, attaining a total length a bit in excess of 3”. When the gecko is moving about, the tail, shorter than the snout-vent length, is often curled over the body. Dorsally the tail bears numerous conical scales and is studded with large, more rounded, scales ventrally.

This is an easy gecko to maintain. It usually feeds readily and will thrive in a leaf covered, clean soil, substrate at 79 to 88 degrees.They will drink from a shallow water dish but will benefit and will drink droplets when their cage is gently misted. Full spectrum lighting is not necessary for this nocturnal gecko.

Never particularly common is the pet trade, this panther gecko is even less so today than just 10 years ago. Fortunately there are a few breeders that occasionally offer captive bred individuals and a very few wild caught examples are usually available each year.

If you’re thinking of acquiring a pair of geckos, think this species. It is a species that is well worth working with.
Continue reading “Androy Pygmy Panther Gecko” …read more
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If you head southwest, you will find these Desert Horned Lizards in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Brockn ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Matamatas are always difficult to find and a pleasure to see.

I’m probably crossing some line or the other here by mentioning one of these 3 taxa but I’ll have a go at it anyway. The three species—wondrous Amazonians all– that I have firmly in mind are the matamata, Chelus fimbriatus, the Suriname toad, Pipa pipa, and the Amazonian leaf fish, Monocirrhus polyacanthus, ambush predators all and all amazingly camouflaged aquatic predators.

The matamata grows to 18”, is flattened, and is camouflaged both by its mud color and skin flanges. It is a fish eater that catches prey by extending its head rapidly forward while distending its throat. The resulting vacuum draws an unwary fish into the mouth where it is then quickly swallowed.

The 6” long Suriname toad, primarily an invertebrate eater that will accept small fish, is also camouflaged by color and its flattened appearance. Rather than catching prey like a roving vacuum, this anuran shovels edible items into its wide mouth with its forefeet and fingers.

At 3”, the leaf fish is by far the smallest of these 3 predatory species, and limits itself, at least when adult, to a diet of smaller fish. The mouth of the leaf fish is large, distensible and extendable and a single barbel, in appearance like the stem of a leaf, extends from the lower jaw. Camouflaged by color and a very slow head down approach, this little mud colored (sounds like a broken record doesn’t it?) fish is a hunter to be reckoned with.

Do I see all 3 on every trip? No. But sometimes I do get lucky.
Continue reading “Three Wondrous Amazonians” …read more
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It is about time our cuteness broke the internet! This Savanah side-neck in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user miyazawa hits the cute meter! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Pretty and very agile, the green cascades frog was imported from Hong Kong.Prior to the turn of the century, occasional herp shipments from Southeast Asia (and most notably from Hong Kong) would include a few interesting anurans. One that I found very interesting was the beautiful and agile green cascades frog. Although imported under the name of Rana livida it was even then recognized that rather than an actual species, the cascades frogs were actually a species complex. Over the years genetic assessment has identified at least 6 additional lookalike species and the Hong Kong form (with which I was familiar) is now recognized as Odorrana chloronota. (Odorrana livida is now known to be restricted to southern Myanmar.)

As indicated by its common name this is a stream dwelling species, but not indicated by its name is the fact that the waters in which this primarily nocturnal frog occurs are not necessarily cascades. Within the streams the green cascades frog may be seen on boulders, logs, and the stream banks. This species is sexually dimorphic with females attaining a snout-vent length of 5” and adult males being about half that length.
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What a handsome Caiman Lizard in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user stingray ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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A bronze frog, Rana c. clamitans
The controversial generic name of Lithobates has been laid to rest—at least for Holarctic frog taxa.

Holarctic? What, exactly, does that mean and what frog species does it encompass?

Meriam Webster dictionary defines the term Holarctic thusly: “of, relating to, or being the biogeographic region including the northern parts of the Old and the New Worlds and comprising the Nearctic and Palearctic regions or subregions”. Or defined by the Free Dictionary as “a floristic and zoogeographic land area that occupies the extratropical portion of the northern hemisphere; its southern boundary lies roughly along the northern boundary of the Tropic of Cancer”.

In a Facebook post, geneticist David Hillis states “Our paper on the systematics and biogeography of Rana (Holarctic true frogs) is now available as a pdf at this link (final volume and page numbers to come): http://sysbio.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/syw055.

The actual name of the paper is Spatiotemporal Diversification of the True Frogs (Genus Rana): A Historical Framework for a Widely Studied Group of Model Organisms and Dr. Hillis was one of the 15 authors.

With this paper Lithobates is gone and Rana is back! To Dr. Hillis and the 14 coauthors I extend my profound “thanks.”
Continue reading “A Return to Rana” …read more
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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! We abosulutely LOVE this albino Atrox (a.k.a. Western Diamondback) in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user krantz ! 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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Peninsula ribbons seem to outnumber the more northerly blue striped subspecies at Gulf Hammock.
Kenny and I were on a very rural dirt road that is well within an area known as a stronghold for classic “Gulf Hammock” rat snakes the target of that nights search. The total rat snakes found, despite seemingly ideal field conditions, was a resounding zero. But despite the lack of rat snakes we were far from skunked! On both the sand roads and later, on the paved roads, venomous snakes were on the prowl that evening. On the sand roads we found 4 dusky pygmy rattlers, Sistrurus miliarius barbouri, and 2 small Florida cottonmouths, Agkistrodon piscivorous conanti. On the paved roads we added 1 larger (3+ feet) Florida cottonmouths and a single Peninsula ribbon snake, Thamnophis sauritue sackenii, to the evenings total. We left happy, knowing then that we’d be back to try again tomorrow.
Continue reading “Gulf Hammock of Florida” …read more
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This beautiful Trans-Pecos Rat Snake is holding on to her most valueable treasure in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user pecoskid ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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This Suwannee alligator snapper had a 6″ carapace length.
Ever get smacked in the headlamp on a dark night by a big water snake that you didn’t know was there? I’ll tell you, it can really catch your attention!

The Santa Fe River was either at its all time lowest or darn close to it. Normally 4 or 5 feet deep at this locale, at the time in question you could then wade across the river without getting much more than your ankles wet! Did I mention that we were in a drought—a drought that showed no sign of easing. I was searching for Suwannee Alligator Snappers, Macroclemys suwanniensis.

The biggest of the alligator snapping turtles stayed pretty close to the deeper pits scoured around old snags and root systems. Smaller snappers, more mobile, hence less restricted, could still be seen in shallower areas. And it was one of these smaller turtles, one about 6 inches long, that I was trying to photograph in situ when I blundered into a big—or at least when it struck at me it seemed big—brown water snake, Nerodia taxispilota.

It was well after dark and I was intent on following a turtle that was at least equally intent on not being followed. In fact, the turtle had just disappeared, having maneuvered quickly into a hidden root system in the undercut bank. Without first looking I leaned against an overhanging limb to stablize myself as I searched (in vain, I might add) and accidentally pinned the water snake against the tree with my shoulder. As water snakes are wont to do, this one (all 3 ½ feet of it—adults can be 5 to 5 ½ feet in total length) took exception to my accidental familiarity, striking at the illuminated and moving headlamp.

I jumped back, tripped, fell (sure glad the river was low!) saw the snake drop into the current, and decided to call it quits. Now, which way was the car?

Continue reading ” Snappers and Brown Waters on the Santa Fe” …read more
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This young green Basilisk in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user AirPirate is enjoying his morning swim! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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As in many other locales in Texas, rocky roadcuts between Sanderson and Comstock provide ideal habitat for many herps. Though rainy and dreary as we drove it in 2016, this stretch of highway holds many fond memories.
Jake and I had been in West Texas (Comstock to Big Bend) for more than a week and had been plagued by adverse weather for all but one night. Deluges had curtailed most herp movement for the first 2 nights. This was followed by a high pressure system for the next 6 nights. Jake’s vacation time was quickly drawing to a close, and we were still experiencing bad weather. Hoping to find a particular taxon of earless lizard and to make the most of the persistent high pressure we had elected to head back eastward a day early. By the time we had gotten to Sanderson the sunshine had been obliterated by sullen clouds that stretched to the horizon. The road, somewhere just east of Langtry was wet and a gentle rain was still falling —it too stretching to the eastern horizon. Obliterated with the sunshine was the lizard search.

I would imagine that unless you’re a herper or a birder, the long drive from Sanderson to Del Rio, might be a boring strip of road. Occasional cattle, a raven or two, and a dozen or so 18-wheelers—a roadsign directing you to Pumpville, another for Pandale, the communities of Langtry and Comstock, and a vast reservoir are all you will see.

But for herpers this same stretch of road holds many possibilities, especially if traversed on a dark night during a period of low barometric pressure. For, to many of us, and certainly to me, this is “the gray-banded kingsnake road.” It was from beneath a cattle guard at the corner where Bill Chamberlain’s gas station once stood that with Gordy and Dennie I was to see our first “Blair’s king,” a dark phase (yes, they WERE Blair’s kings back then). And then, just to add to the excitement of that night,on one of the dirt roads (I think it was the road to Pumpville) we found a second Blair’s, a light phase. Although I’ve never duplicated that 2 in one night episode, I’ve added rat snakes, long-nosed snakes, rattlesnakes, and many others to the species found along US90.

Bored by this road? Not I!

Continue reading “Sanderson to Comstock—Memories” …read more
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“You’re kingsnake.com, where are all the kingsnakes?” Right here in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user trevid ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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As hatchlings, alligators are prominently banded with yellow on black.
Alligators are very much a fact of life in the deep south. And our area of Florida is certainly not exempt. We live between a fair-sized pond and a sizable wetland. Just beyond the wetland is Paynes Prairie State Biological Preserve. There is no shortage of gators here. In wandering from pond to wetlands or vice versa gators often stop in our yard. So far he visitors have ranged from 14” to 8’. Because we have dogs the bigger alligators cause us some concern so we escort them out of the yard and at least part way back to the pond. So far none have returned.

Since the wetlands opened across the street from us we have been able to watch and listen to these big reptiles at about any time we choose. Breeding activity (including male bellowing) and territorial skirmishes are seen and heard in April and May. Hatchlings are usually first seen in late May to July. Except on the most inclement of winter days basking adults may be seen year round.

As stated at the outset, gators are very much a fact of life here. We keep our distance and during the breeding season we keep even greater distances from displaying males and nesting females. Dogs on trails, even when on leashes, can lead to seriously adverse gator encounters. Pure and simple, dogs = food. Watch toddlers carefully. Use common sense folks. Gators are big, dominant, predators that often feed in the shallows or on the shoreline. Give them their due! As the cliché states, “Be safe, not sorry!” And I’ll add, if you really love your dog, leave it at home when you’re in gator country.
Continue reading “Alligators?—Ho Hum.” …read more
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This Irian Jaya Jag is just chilling like a villian in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user AJ01 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Hatchling Texas alligator lizards are prominently marked.
The family Anguidae comprises species from Europe, Africa, Mexico, Asia and the United States. Several of the species are limbless and others, such as the various alligator lizards, have short but fully functional limbs. All have functional eyelids, most have a lateral groove, and the broad tongue is protrusible and bears a slight notch at the tip.

To many hobbyists, the Texas alligator lizard, Gerrhonotus liocephalus infernalis–attenuate, short limbed, and long-tailed–is the king of the family. Certainly it is an interesting species that, although not rare, is secretive and can be difficult to find. Although essentially terrestrial, hiding beneath all manner of surface debris (leaf litter, logs, rocks, cardboard, etc.), this lizard is quite capable of climbing and may ascend juniper or other rough barked trees/shrubs.

Adults of this impressive lizard are gray(ish) or brown(ish) with poorly defined lighter dorsal barring from nape to tailtip. The ground color of juveniles (and hatchlings especially) is much darker and the dorsal barring is lighter and more precise. The long tail is slightly prehensile and readily autotomized.

This is a lizard of Texas’s Edwards Plateau westward to the Big Bend region and from there southward to San Luis Potosi.
Continue reading “Texas Alligator Lizard” …read more
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Santa’s gecko elves are prepping to load the sleigh in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Geckoranch ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Big, loud, prolific, and predatory describe the adult bullfrog well.
Besides the painted turtles mentioned in my last blog, the ponds in the one-time zoo in my hometown had a sizable (both in numbers and body size) and vocal population of bullfrogs, Rana catesbeiana. In itself this was not unusual. By definition bullfrogs are big, noisy, and prolific. Having a body size of 8+ inches, males of this very aquatic species are larger than females. And although females are capable of making escape and fright screams, it is the males that produce the more typical croaks, bellows, and “jug-o-rums.” That takes care of the big and noisy parts of my above statement, but how about prolific? Female bullfrogs produce egg masses that contain from about 7,500 eggs to more than 25,000! That, my friends, is prolific! Fortunately, many predators, from cats to raccoons to herons to water snakes, to bigger bullfrogs to aquatic insects consider bullfrog tadpoles and metamorphs a tasty repast, so not all young bullfrogs make it to the adult size. In fact, it is probable the most don’t survive past the juvenile/subadult stages.

But what about those that do? Well, back to the bullfrogs in my hometown zoo ponds where, secluded and protected by lush water lily/lotus growth dozens (if not hundreds) of wee bullfrogs evaded predation, survived and grew and grew. Most of the froglets were normal, but I would find a few—1 or 2—each year that had a similar deformity—3 hind legs! Cause? Unknown. And I never found an adult with this anomaly.
Continue reading “A Mention of Bullfrogs” …read more
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Chondro Claus is getting in a quick nap before his big weekend in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user toshamc ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Eastern painted turtles usually have an immaculate plastron.
Midland, Eastern, or Intergrade? That is the question.

As a kid I was either skipping school to watch a warbler migration or out bugging the local (Springfield, MA) herp populations. It seemed then that either of these pursuits was a whole lot better than sitting in a classroom.

One of the herp populations that I enjoyed visiting was the huge population of painted turtles in the water lily/lotus ponds of erstwhile local park/zoo, i.e. Forest Park. I didn’t know much about herps back in those early days (I’m not sure I do now!) but I did know that there was a dramatically different suite of characteristics in those turtles. Some had plain yellow plastrons, some had plastrons smudged with dark pigment, and the plastron of others bore a well-defined central figure. I also noticed at some point in time that the carapacial scute sutures (costals and vertebrals) of those having the solid yellow plastrons went nearly straight across the carapace from side to side (excluding the marginals) while the costal sutures of the painted turtles with the plastral figures were not in line with the vertebral sutures. I don’t remember the carapacial suture configuration on the turtles with the smudged plastrons.

So, what did we have in these painted turtles? Employing the description still used today we had eastern painteds, Chrysemys picta picta (solid yellow plastron and nearly straight side to side scute sutures), midland painteds, C. p. marginata (well defined plastral figure and offset costal-vertebral sutures) and intergrades (smudged plastrons).

And therein lies the problem, a problem unbeknownst to me then, and of no interest to the turtles either then or now. But while the easterns and even the intergrades could be easily explained, the presence of 2 well defined subspecies, the eastern and the midland, in the same puddles should not have occurred. Could our descriptive criteria be faulty? Awww heck. As long as the turtles don’t care why should it bother us.
Continue reading “Painted Turtles: Midland, Eastern, or Intergrade?” …read more
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We have the proof Santa is a reptile right here 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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Hatchling rusty whipsnakes are bright green.
Most herpers are familiar with the ontogenetic changes (orange as neonates/hatchlings and green as adults) of emerald tree boas and green tree pythons. But fewer among us are familiar with the color changes of the rusty whipsnake, Chironius scurrulus.

The rusty whipsnake is a hefty and often feisty Amazonian species. Although 4 to 5 feet in length is the most commonly seen adult size, a few may exceed 6 feet by a few inches. Subadults and adults are often found along watercourses where they feed on amphibians and (I have been told but have not verified) fish. The term “rusty” fits the adults to a T—they are a rusty orange, often with scattered black scales dorsally and laterally. The head may have a dusky hue.

The hatchlings, however, are semiarboreal and are a beautiful leaf green. The green dulls quickly with age and growth and within 2 or 3 shedding cycles the once bright green baby has become a dull olive, an ontogeny 180 degrees reversed from the better known emerald boas and pythons.
Continue reading ” Reversed Ontogeny” …read more
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What a festive Tokay in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user bloodpython_MA ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Once common, today the Tucson shovel nosed snake, C. o. klauberi, can be difficult to find.
The insectivorous (some arachnids are also eaten) genus Chionactis, the shovel-nosed snakes, contains 2 fossorial species, palarostris and occipitalis. The former, the Sonoran shovel-nose, Chionactis palarostris, contains 2 subspecies (palarostris and organica) while the western shovelnose, C. occipitalis, contains 4 (occipitalis, annulata, klauberi, and talpina) .

The ground color of both species is white (or cream or yellow), with well separated saddles of black or brown and (often) saddles, or at least a hint, of red (or orange) alternating with the black. Some saddles, especially the dark ones, may extend ventrally and encircle the body. Colors and patterns vary both subspecifically and individually.

These small (14-17 inches), slender, burrowers feed on insects and arachnids. Seldom seen (unless flipped) by day, they are often found above ground at night and can be remarkably abundant when atmospheric conditions are ideal.

Rarely seen in the United States, the range of Chionactis palarostris, includes nwSN and extreme scAZ. Conversely, C. occipitalis, the western shovel-nose, ranges primarily in the sw USA (scAZ and scCA northward to sNV), entering MX only in nBaja and nwSN.
Continue reading ” Shovel-nosed Snakes, Fossorial Beauties” …read more
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Habitat of the Chihuahuan Lyre Snake in West Texas
That Trimorphodon vilkinsonii are out there, there is no doubt—no doubt at all. There is also not the least bit of doubt that I can’t find them. Others find them, sometimes mere minutes before I arrive or after I have left. I know this for a fact for sometimes I’ve been allowed to photo the found snake.

I began looking for this elusive nocturnal snake on Texas trips in the ‘50s with my friend and mentor, Gordy (E. Gordon) Johnston. We drove (actually Gordy drove and I rode) back and forth, and failed to find them. Subsequently I have failed to find them on many of the same roads, right up until today, some 55 years later. If not anything else, at least I am consistent—except for one time. That one time about 15 years ago, Kenny and I were driving through the Chinati Mountain ghost town of Shafter, Texas. In the middle of the town (population once about 4,000, now about 11) we found a DOR lyre snake. The DOR snake was rather fresh and I wondered where the car that had killed it had come from, where it was going, and if the killing of the snake had been deliberate or accidental. It just seemed impossible that with that little traffic the paths of car and snake should have crossed.

Since then I have looked with reasonable regularity during all kinds of weather at all hours of darkness, and never again glimpsed one. Hugh tells me they’re fairly common. Ron tells me they’re very rare. I know only that I have driven and walked the rockcuts in their known TX range for more than half a century and have not only failed to find them, but failed dismally. Time to switch to birding.

Continue reading “Chihuahuan Lyre Snake—A Lament” …read more
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Kismet thinks Iguanas are better to lead Santa’s Sliegh 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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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! What a gorgeous shot of a Russel’s Viper in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user reptilehq ! 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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Think this Cham in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user 1Sun a little hangry?! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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The question–will ontogenetic changes turn this little western coachwhip pink?

One of the most noteworthy snake features of the Big Bend region is to be found on adult western coachwhips, Masticophis (you are free to call them Coluber if you choose!) flagellum testaceus. The adults assume a bright (some call it “screaming”) pink coloration. The juveniles—up to at least a 3 foot length—are typically a straw tan with broad, light, bands.

Coachwhips and the related whipsnakes are usually very evident in the Big Bend region. Since both Jake and I hoped to surprise and photograph one of the pink adults, we made a point of searching for them on several mornings. On most of those days we drove for at least 50 miles on our searches, and on one occasion we drove for more than 200 miles. Zero coachwhips, zero whipsnakes. If you’re thinking “what a failure,” just imagine how we felt. We had failed to find one of the most conspicuous and commonest of Big Bend’s diurnally active snakes. This stationary high pressure system was really crimping our style (and our hopes). With our allocated trip duration quickly drawing to a close we decided to move up to northeastern Presidio County. Could (or would) a change of venue make a difference in our success (or lack of same)?

Did it make a difference? Well, we at least saw a coachwhip—a straw colored juvie– streaking across the roadway. We saw Texas horned lizards and lesser earless lizards. We saw desert box turtles. And we saw Ron and Daniel Tremper who had just seen an adult pink colored coachwhip cross the roadway and stage one of their oft-duplicated yet always surprising disappearing acts—probably by scooting down a ground squirrel hole.

But, and for us this was an important “but,” Ron and Daniel presented to us without ceremony a 30” western coachwhip that they had chased down (all I can say is a respectful “WOW”). It now sits in a place of honor as the only snake in my very small herp collection. I get bitten by it almost every day but I’m hoping that as it grows and if it drinks enough blood it will assume the beautiful pink of its Presidio County brethren. I’ve gotta get that picture somehow! Thanks, Ron and Daniel. I’ll keep you posted on the ontogenetic changes—if any.

Continue reading “Pink Coachwhips” …read more
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Neotropical Bird snakes Phrynonax poecilonotus may not be common, but as you can see in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user SoLA they are amazingly colored and incredibly beautiful! They are also insane eaters. This one just finished a meal of eggs! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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When it gets too cold, we remember field herping. Awesome moments like this Alameda Whipsnake trying to catch a meal in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user trevid has just the right amount of memberberries! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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When you have a serious case of the Mondays, a hatching iguana will help. This little Ctenosaura palearis in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user ilovemonitorliza is just the cure for the blues! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! We hopped into the way back machince to find this field shot of Cerastes cerastes in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user shahar ! 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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Two for Thursday here at kingsnake.com! Usually the animal is the focal point, but today a pair of turtles, one rare and one common, grace our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Wu-Gwei ! Can you see both the Blandings and the Snapper? Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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That’s a whole lotta bull. Bullsnake that is! Loving the colors on the one here in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user orchidspider has never missed a meal! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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What a chunker! I’m just gonna go out on a limb and say that the Barking Tree Frog in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user saltycity has never missed a meal! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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How small are Viper Geckos when they are born? As you can see in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user JohnRobinson VERY small! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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photo courtesy of Maxmax Reptiles Rescue from CNY Kids’ Expo.
Late this morning, a fire broke in the home of Scott Dombrowski and Diana Sleiertin, the founder of Maxman Reptile Rescue.

Their home sheltered many of the rescue’s animals as well as the family’s personal pets. The only one home at the time was Scott, who was critically injured while attempting to save animals.

Scott’s condition is at present critical and unstable. Diana is with him at the hospital while friends and family attempt to go determine what, if anything, can be saved at the house.

Having spent most of my life doing reptile rescue, I know the life Diana has lived. We shared stories of our rescue work the year she visited the Reptile Fest. Everything she had, she put into the animals, and she rescued everything. While her work and heart lay in reptiles, she worked with other area organizations to save as many as possible.

Right now they need our help. Scott’s condition is currently listed as critical. Donations to the family can be made at their gofundme. As we learn more information, we will keep you posted.

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Happy Rattlesnake Friday! Loving this field find in Tenneessee! Awesome shot of a Crotalus horridus in our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user mbwright82 ! 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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