Reptile & Amphibian News Blog
Keep up with news and features of interest to the reptile and amphibian community on the kingsnake.com blog. We cover breaking stories from the mainstream and scientific media, user-submitted photos and videos, and feature articles and photos by Jeff Barringer, Richard Bartlett, and other herpetologists and herpetoculturists.
Wednesday, September 15 2021
This sassy lil watersnake had to stop and eat a toad in the yard before the photographer captured it for our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user dinahmoe ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, September 14 2021
Through all the years, corn snakes remain our favorite for a great beginner snake! After seeing this one in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cochran, it is pretty obvious why! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Monday, September 13 2021
The Northern Leopard frog ( Lithobates pipiens) is an fairly widespread US Native species that get a spotlight in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Terry_Cox!
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Friday, September 10 2021
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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Thursday, September 9 2021
Back to our roots with this alterna found in Sanderson in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user StuTennyson! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Wednesday, September 8 2021
Welome this little Chondro in our Herp Photo of the day to the world, uploaded by kingsnake.com user MikeRusso! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Tuesday, September 7 2021
What a stunning boa in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Sharkman20 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, September 6 2021
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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Friday, September 3 2021
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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Thursday, September 2 2021
What a stunning headshot of a Diamond Python in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user CincyGrady ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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Wednesday, September 1 2021
It is a whole lotta squee for this 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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Tuesday, August 31 2021
What an awesome shot of this pair of Common Toads in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user Krallenfrosch ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, August 30 2021
This lacerta is loving to lounge in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user krloucks . Be sure to tell them you liked it here!

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 This is a young adult of the brown-checkered phase of the Eastern Garter Snake.
It was perhaps a year, or possibly 2 years, ago that Jake and I began to notice that in North Central Florida we were no longer seeing garter snakes. This was strange because in one form or another, one color or another, one subspecies or another, garter snakes were one snake that we had always counted on seeing.
We looked most for the Eastern Garter Snake, T. s. sirtalis, and often on a normal drive we’d see a couple. Today (midJune 2021) we feel lucky if we see one at all.
Dr. Sam Sweet, who is conducting rat snake studies along FL’s “Nature Coast”, has told me that the Blue Striped Garter Snake, T. sirtalis similis, remains relatively common in his study area.
On the other hand Jake and I (or I alone) have seen only a single Eastern Garter Snake in the last year. The actuality of this paucity was brought home to me when earlier this year I started a serious search for a specific color phase in ncFL. This is a brown, checkered, phase. I had photographed this color phase about 5 years ago when we saw one on almost every trip but wished now to take new photos. But now, after couple of thousand miles of driving and poking about, I have seen only one and it was a DOR example. Is the reduction in sightings real or contrived?
Seems the only solution is to keep looking, racking up the mileage, and hoping to see a garter snake population resurgence. In the meantime here are a few old pix.
Continue reading "Mention of Florida’s Garter Snakes"
Friday, August 27 2021
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!
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