The brassy and white markings and range of the Tellico Salamander renders it a rather easily identified member of the Slimy Salamander group.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

This group of salamanders, all of the genus Plethodon, is very aptly named, for not a single one out of the ~47 described species is tied to an aquatic habitat in any manner. To a species they are woodland dwellers that live their lives in woodland settings. Moisture is, of course, as necessary for these salamander’s survival as it is for any and all amphibians, but the moisture is accessed by rainfall, fog, and mists, and for some species, in streamedge situations (but not immersion). These salamanders are small and slender, varying from 3 ½”, (Red-backed, Peaks of Otter, and many others) to the nearly 9” of Yonahlossee and Bat Cave Salamanders).

All are oviparous, their egg clutches being laid in decaying logs, beneath rocks, or other such moisture holding situations including burrows. There is no aquatic larval stage, the young emerging from the egg- capsules as miniatures of the adults.

While some Woodland Salamanders are easy to identify, others are difficult. This is especially so of the 13 species that comprise the Slimy Salamander group. Some of these latter are identifiable only by locale or genetic studies.

And now, enjoy the photos.

An uncommon striped pattern on McDowell's Carpet Python.By Dick and Patti Bartlett

Excluding the Green Tree, Amethystine and Oenpelli pythons, Australia is home to 3 species and 6 subspecies of heavy bodied, moderately sized (to about 8 feet/ 2- 1/3 meters) Carpet Pythons.

• Morelia bredli, Centralian or Bredl’s Carpet Python
  
• Morelia carinata, Rough-scaled Python
  
• Morelia spilota, Diamond Python and Carpet Python
  
  
  • M. s. cheneyi, Tableland Carpet Python
    
  • M. s. imbricata, Southern Carpet Python
    
  • M. s. mcdowelli, McDowell’s Carpet Python
    
  • M. s. metcalfi, Interior Carpet Python
    
  • M. s. spilota, Diamond Python
    
  • M. s. variegata, Northern Carpet Python
    

Except for the southeasterly most member, the one that is usually referred to as the Diamond Python, the carpet pythons are often referred to simply as Carpet Snakes by Australians. All are constrictors, all are nonvenomous, all are capable of biting, but their readiness to do so varies individually. All are accomplished climbers but may be found terrestrially in habitats as diverse as gardens, attics, or the remote outback. All are oviparous, reproducing by egg clutches that are protected by the female. All feed primarily on small mammals and birds.

All (except the Diamond Python which is black with a variable but often speckled pattern of white or cream) are colored in various shades of yellowish, cream or tan with a darker pattern. But sometimes the dark color prevails, and the light markings are reduced in size or number. Subspecies may interbreed where their ranges abut or overlap. The resulting hatchlings may be patterned non-typically. Encompassing all species and suggested subspecies the ranges include southern Western Australia, then hops to eastern South Australia and northward well into western Queensland, then throughout most of New South Wales and northward in the coastal forests and plateaus to Cape York. Then after another break in range it may again be found in northern Northern Territory westward to newest Australia. Bredl’s Python, seen as a full species by some and as a subspecies of the carpet python by others, seems more arboreal and ranges widely in southwest Northern Territory. The uncommon Rough-scaled Python is found in northwest Kimberly Region of Western Australia.

This is a typical Green Tree Python.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

Long the only species in the monotypic genus, Chondropython, the green tree python has now been lumped with the diamond/carpet pythons in the genus Morelia where it remains despite nomenclatural controversy. Hobbyists still often refer to this snake by the shortened name of "Chondro." The species name is viridis, this meaning green. And this name fits the vast majority of the adults well, for almost all adults are green (occasional occurrences of yellow, blue, or albino adults have been verified) with or occasionally without white vertebral markings. But for the hatchlings it is a misnomer, for by locale they vary from bright yellow to a rich maroon-brown with reddish-brown or white highlights. These snakes are adult at 4 ½ to 5 ½ feet. The head is large, the neck slender, and the body laterally compressed.

Whether juvenile or adult, this is a beautiful snake. Adult coloration is assumed at an age of about 9-12 months and a length of about ~20 inches. It is an oviparous species, laying from a half dozen to two dozen eggs. Incubation periods of 49 to 60 days have been mentioned.

The diet consists primarily of rodents and occasional lizards. Prey is killed by constriction.

This beautiful python is a rainforest inhabitant of northeastern Australia, the Papua and New Guinea mainland and many of the surrounding islands. Adults are considered snakes of closed canopy forest while hatchlings and juveniles seemingly prefer more open and sunny perches.

This snake is a herpetocultural favorite and is bred extensively in captivity.

Sheltopusik may be patterned or unicolored. They are interesting lizards are are popular with herp keepers.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

Called by many different names around the world -- glass lizards (USA), Slowworm (England and Europe), Sheltopusik (Eurasia), and Legless Lizards California, Baja, Australia) -- all are legless (or in the case of the sheltopusik essentially legless), secretive, many are burrowers, and many have fragile, easily autotomized tails.

Glass lizards (seUSA, , Eurasia, Europe, Asia) have functional eyelids, ear openings, and an expandable fold along each side of their body. These may exceed 3 feet in length and lack the suppleness of a snake. Tail readily breaks from body (autotomizes).

Sheltopusik (aka European or Giant Glass Lizard) (Balkans, Crimea, Caucasus, Southwest and Central Asia) have eyelids, ear openings, lateral grooves. The tail is less easily broken off than in most smaller species. (a fold of skin running the entire body length from behind head to but not including the tail. The latter is easily broken off). Usually about 30 inches but rarely to about 50 inches long. May bluff or bite, but they are defensive, not aggressive.

Legless lizards (Western California and Northwest Baja) have tiny eyes with functional eyelids, no ear opening, short blunt tipped tail that is barely discernible from the torso, and seldom exceed 10 inches in total length. Despite being short and thick the tail can be autotomized.

Slowworms (England, Europe) have functional eyelids, tiny ear openings, and are usually under 18 inches in length. Tail readily breaks from body.

Although a few species of the legless lizards of Australia also occur in PNG, most are endemic to Australia.

And remember, no matter how similar these may seem to snakes, they are all harmless lizards.

These interesting reptiles feed primarily on arthropods and worms.

Despite folk tales to the contrary, allow me to assure you that the autotomized tails of these lizards do not reassemble and rejoin the body. A broken tail is a broken tail and if the affected lizard again has a tail, it is a regenerated one. When fully regrown the tail is sometimes as long as the original, but always discernible by aberrant scalation or other differences.

Like most racer type snake the Horseshoe Racer has big eyes and periscopes for prey.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

Once considered common, this long, dark, fast snake now seems uncommon to rare in many parts of its extensive range. Adults of the Horseshoe Racer, Hemorrhois (formerly Coluber) hippocrepis ssp. (there are 2 subspecies, the validity of one being questionable) may attain a length of 5 feet. As are other racers, this slender, alert snake is a periscope hunter, lifting its head above surrounding vegetation when seeking its prey. It consumes rodents and birds, lizards and amphibians. Carrion is also eaten.

An oviparous species, clutch size has been recorded as 6 to 8 eggs.

The ground color may vary from tan to brown or gray. Against this the pattern of large black or black edged deep brown dorsal and smaller lateral spots are very evident. Both common and species name are derived from the light horseshoe shaped marking on the top of the head and anterior neck. There is also a dark interorbital bar. The venter is orange(ish). The preferred habitat includes open rock-strewn land, grasslands and brushy regions as well as yards. This snake ranges from Algeria to Portugal and Spain and includes several islands.

Brown phase Cape Cobras are one of the more common colors.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

The Cape Cobra, Naja nivea, of southern Africa is variable both in color and pattern. Most common colors are various shades of brown, with or without sparse or heavy stippling that may be darker or lighter than the ground color. Beautiful yellow to copper colors, again with or without stippling, are also commonly seen. Juveniles are often more brightly colored than the adults. Average adult size of this very venomous cobra is from 4 to 4 ½ feet. However specimens to and just over 6 feet have been recorded. Hatchlings, 6 to 20 per clutch, are 12 to 16 inches long and are equipped with venom at hatching.

Preferred habitats of this cobra are even more varied than its color. It may be found in desert, semi-desert, grasslands and brushy regions as well as all combinations between. It seeks refuge in the rodent burrows, unused termite mounds, crevices. It is often seen near waterholes as well as streams. It may enter dwellings when attempting to escape the heat of the day.

This is primarily a diurnal, terrestrial snake, but it is well able to climb and often raids the nests of sociable weavers. Besides these birds it eats all manner of small vertebrates, and is known to eat road killed snakes and small mammals. The Cape cobra is not one of the spitting varieties. Because it is often common near dwellings, is dangerously venomous, and tends to stand its ground if surprised, this is considered one of the most dangerous of Africa’s venomous snakes.

An adult female Patch-nosed Salamander
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

In 2009 a new species of “miniplethodontid” salamander was described. Although looking much like the brook salamanders of the genus Eurycea, research determined that this pretty little miniature was sufficiently different from the brook salamanders to warrant the erection of a new genus—Urspelerpes. This genus contains only the single species, U. brucei. Because of the nose-spot this salamander was given the common name of Patch-nosed Salamander.

It is an uncommon denizen of the leaf-strewn montane streams and stream edges of northern GA and adjacent SC.

As mentioned the yellowish patch on the nose tip is characteristic. Including tail, adults are about 1 7/8th inches long. Unlike the Brook Salamanders on which males and females are similarly colored, the males and females of Urspelerpes differ in color. Females tend to be patternless while males are strongly patterned with a pair of dorsolateral stripes.

Variable bush vipers are often yellow to orange and may or may not be banded.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

This small bush viper is appealing to hobbyists who enjoy venomous species. A true viper, Atheris squamiger has no temperature sensitive labial (lip) pits. The variable bush viper attains an adult length of 18 to 30 inches. Females are usually larger than the males. Scales are strongly keeled. Despite the snake’s small size the venom is known to have caused several human deaths. There is apparently no specific antivenin.

The colors vary populationally. The snakes in one population may all be of pretty much the same color while other populations may vary from green to yellow or orange. Some snakes may be banded, others may be basically unicolored. Neonates are often dusky olive but the color may change radically as the snake grows.

This species is found in rainforest areas over West and Central Africa. They apparently prefer flowering shrubs over the taller forest trees.

Note the very well developed rostral horns of the Rhinoceros Viper.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

In its natural habitat of fallen, often wet, forest floor debris the almost gaudy colors of the Rhinoceros Viper, Bitis nascicornis, may render the snake nearly invisible Found primarily in the rainforest belt from West Africa to western East Africa, this magnificent, heavy bodied, 2 to 3 ½ foot long snake is both beautiful and dangerous.

The head is narrower than the body. Two to 3 pairs of upward directed, elongate (horn-like) scales are present on the tip of the snout. Color and pattern consist of saddles, bands, and other markings. The top of the head is blue or green at the edges but with a central black arrow. The overall appearance of this snake is often darkened or nearly obliterated by a coating of mud. The females are the larger gender

A nocturnal ambush predator, this primarily terrestrial snake seems a bit less likely to strike during the daylight hours than at night. Prey varies from small mammals to amphibians, and reportedly, fish.

Neonates, which may number from 6 to 36, are about 8 ½ inches in length.

Strongly neurotoxic, the venom also contains hemotoxin.

Old adults are usually much darker than this half-grown example.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

The elapine (cobra relatives) Australian and Papuan genus Pseudechis contains at least 6 species. Although the snakes in this genus are commonly grouped as “Australian black snakes,” this generalization can be misleading, for some are gray with dark flecks, another is an almost uniform olive-brown, and the one we are about to discuss, Pseudechis colletti, Collett’s Black Snake or simply Collett’s Snake, is a beautiful mixture of red, pink, or off-white and black when a juvenile but does darken considerably as it ages. The venter is usually colored similarly to the light lateral barring.

This elapine is adult at 4 1/2 to 8 feet in length, is rather heavy bodied, and is endemic to the drier regions of the interior of the northeastern Australian state of Queensland. Males are longer than the females. When frightened or defensive this snake may flatten its head and neck like, but not as wide, as the hood of a cobra.

It is dangerously venomous, producing a virulent cytotoxic (blood cell destroying) venom that may be combined with neurotoxins. Despite this it is reportedly commonly kept in Australia as a captive, but because of export restrictions is less commonly seen in captive collections of other countries.

Clutches contain up to 20 eggs.

The diet consists of frogs, lizards, snakes, and small mammals.

Fowler's Toads are often rather precisely marked with 3 pairs of dorsal spots.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

Fowler’s Toad, Bufo fowleri, ranges widely in sandy habitats from central New England to southeastern Iowa, eastern Texas and the panhandle of Florida. It is one of the more precisely marked toad species. In some parts of its range it may be the dominant species, in other it is a comparative rarity. Where I (Dick) grew up in central New England, Fowler’s Toad was abundant but always 2nd in a lineup of 2. The American Toads would arrive first at the breeding ponds to voice their slow-pulsed melodious trills. Then a couple of weeks later, when many American toads had already left the calling sites, the rapidly pulsed, very non-melodious, “whirring notes” of Fowler’s Toads, back then a subspecies of Woodhouse’s , could be heard. Occasionally we would hear a vocalization that confused us and when we tracked it down it would be as intermediate between the 2 species in appearance as it was in voice—a hybrid between the 2. Mother Nature at work.

Often said to be cannibalistic, very little is known with certainty about the hylid frogs of this genus.
by Dick & Patti Bartett

It had been 2 days in the Peruvian rainforest and the rainforest was acting like a rainforest should act--it was raining, hard then softly, then torrentially, then softly. It was a wonderful day. Everybody could get caught up on photographing and then we'd hit the trails again for after dark amphibs.

Darkness approached, Danilo prepared our evening meal, we ate, checked flashlight batteries, put on hats to try and keep some rain out of our eyes, and we were on our way. I chose the medium trail and a couple of herpers decided to accompany me. Another few chose the short trail and one, with the guides, chose to hike the 5 milelong loop.

When we began the rain had almost stopped but when the Gods of rain determined we were all so far away from camp that there was no way we could avoid getting drenched, the torrents came. Band after band found its way through the treetops, each one harder than the last. I needed windshield wipers on my glasses. Going was slow. The trails were ankle deep mud and footing was precarious on the slopes. But all of that was forgotten when I spied that small frog sitting crossways on a vertical sapling--Hemiphractus proboscideus, a Long-nosed Casque-headed Treefrog.

Who said herping in this weather wasn't worth the effort?

Slender of tail and narrow of head, meet the Indopacific Tree Gecko.
by Dick & Patti Bartlett

Perhaps the least well known of the gecko fauna in the USA, this tiny arboreal gecko, known by three appropriately descriptive common names, Indopacific tree gecko, Indopacific slender gecko, or common dwarf gecko, the tiny Hemiphyllodactylus typus, ranges widely over much of southern and eastern Asia and many tropical islands of the western Pacific.

Of more slender build, with a narrower head and skinnier tail than the various house geckos that many of us have now become familiar with, the favored habitats of the Indopacific tree gecko are—are you ready for this—trees! But with that having been said, tree geckos are occasionally found on both the exterior and interior of houses. So far, in the USA they are known only from Hawaii. This tiny (2 ½ - 3 ½” total length) non-communal, olive-colored, lizard waif is so thin-skinned that on many examples the body cavity is translucent. It is an all female, parthenogenetic species.

The diet of this arboreal lizard consists of tiny insects.

Cerastes cerastes, one of the MidEastern Sand shufflers.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

"Now you see them, now you don't" describes many of the world’s sand-dwelling, sidewinding, chubby but small viperine snakes. You may be looking right at them, know that they have moved neither forward nor backward, but they, with a barely visible sideway to and fro shuffling, have disappeared from sight. And it took these sand-adapted snakes only a minute or 2 to sink almost straight down in the yielding desert sands

There are many species of these specialized snakes in the Mideast and Africa and a few in Asia and the western USA. Although all are perfectly able to crawl straight forward and often do so when not in a hurry sidewinding, throwing a loop of the body forward, usually while facing obliquely away, is a more effective and efficient method of moving across loose sands.

Among these snake are species such as the small Saharan sand viper, Cerastes vipera, adult at from 8 to 18 inches with females being the larger (this is true of many snake species). Once burrowed, this species usually leaves its eyes exposed but even the eyes can be difficult to pinpoint. Vipera is considered an ambush predator and its primary prey is lizards. If during their occasional surface activity, the snake happens upon nestling mice or gerbils, these may also be eaten. This little snake has a broad range through North Africa and the Sinai Peninsula.

The Mideastern deserts are home to several other sidewinding snake species. Among these are whiskered vipers, 3 species of horned vipers, and several subspecies and species of sawscaled vipers. Many of the rough-scaled species will often warn you of their presence by assuming a series of tight “S”s and noisily rasping their strongly keeled scales together.

Africa hosts Peringuey’s Vipers and various Horned Vipers, all able to move in either straight and typical fashion or by sidewinding.

In the USA we have the 3 subspecies of pit vipers, the small rattlesnakes, that are aptly named “Sidewinders” of our southwestern deserts.

A captive puff adder.
By Dick and Patti Bartlett

The Puff Adder (Bitis arietans) is probably the most common and widespread of all African snakes.Except for rainforest and montane regions, this dangerously venomous and irritable snake may be found over most of the southern 2/3rds of the African continent. It can also be encountered in Oman, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.

Capable of both linear (slow and in a straight line like a caterpillar) and serpentine (side-to-side) movement, when possible the Puff Adder relies mostly on its camouflaging colors for protection and exemplifies the term sedentary. When frightened, either purposely or accidentally, these snakes coil and expel the breath in loud, easily heard puffing-hisses (hence the common name) and often strike savagely.

Adult at 30 to 40 inches in length, rare examples of this very heavy bodied adder may attain a length of 4 feet. They are primarily terrestrial, often common in grassland habitat, but are able to climb and may bask a few inches above ground in shrubs. They swim readily.

In keeping with its sedentary behavior, the Puff Adder is an ambush predator, waiting quietly for its prey of mammals, birds, amphibians, and lizards to approach within striking distance.

Reproductively active Puff Adder male often follow the pheromone trails of females and engage in combat matches. Live bearing, a clutch usually numbers between 20 and 50. The neonates are 5 ½ to 7”. The largest clutch recorded numbered 156 newborns.

Big, loud, and toxic. What more could you want?
Its proper names are Smoky Jungle Frog, Leptodactylus pentadactylus, and the normal calls of the males as they sit half in or next to their burrows are loud, penetrating, whistling, hoots, that have a rising inflection. But just grab one—go ahead and grab it---grab it hard because they are SLIPPERY, and be prepared for a distressing, loud, penetrating, scream—a scream that has often been likened to a woman in distress! Once heard, you’ll remember it. This frog also may “stand high,” extending all four legs downward and inflating its body if it feels threatened. And wash your hands after handling the frog. The glandular secretions are virulent.

This bullfrog-sized (to a robust 7 inches) rainforest anuran, is one of the largest, if not THE largest, and most common of the tropical frogs. Its call was the one we most often listened for as we settled in at our Amazonian camp. If heard the rainforest was wet and humid. The wet season had officially begun. If not heard we were probably a few days early and although still a wonderland, the forest was probably still comparatively dry.

I’m not sure what the “smoky” part of the name is meant to connote. The dorsum, uppersides, and limbs are a rich tannish-brown and the lower sides are a rich red. There may be dark bars across the back and hind legs and dark spots on the forelimbs. Dorsolateral folds are present. The feet are not webbed. A black stripe runs from the snout, passes over the tympanum (eardrum) and may terminate on the shoulder or continue to the groin. There are dark triangles on the upper lips.

This is a nest building species. A foam nest of body secretions is built in a constructed depression that is usually in the proximity of standing water. Within a few days after hatching rains flood the deposition site and carry the tadpoles to more permanent water.

The rainforest is a wondrous place!

Note the facial plates on this interesting turtle.
This big side-necked turtle, Peltocephalus dumerilianus, ranges in the Amazon and Orinoco drainages from Ecuador, Peru, and western Venezuela to Brazil. Once thought to have been extirpated from Peruvian waters, it has again been found in that country. The actual abundance there (as elsewhere) is not known.

It is monotypic within its genus, but is most closely related to the much better known Amazon River Turtles of the genus Podocnemis.

This appears to be a seldom seen Podocnemid turtle. Until you see it withdraw and fold its head sideways, its overall appearance is that of a “ginormous” mud turtle. The folding of the neck and its nonhinged plastron, however, are positive giveaways. It can reach a length of slightly more than 2 feet straight measure.

Carapacial color is gray to black. The plastron may be brownish or yellow. Limbs, tail legs, and neck are also dark. The dark head may have yellowish cheeks. The crown, cheeks, and jaws appear plated.

Very little is known about this understudied aquatic turtle, this despite it being an important food source for Amazonian families.

Up to 25 eggs have been reported for a clutch, but it is not known whether this species multi-clutches.

Note the yellow interstitial skin of this forest racer.
The genus Dendrophidion contains about 15 species of big-eyed, diurnal, alert snakes, all of racerlike slenderness and speed. The overall distribution of the genus is from southern Mexico to Bolivia. The Tawny (aka Olive) Forest Racer, Dendrophidion dendrophis, was a common and welcome species at our camps in Amazonian Peru.

Although of subdued color this is a pretty snake. The ground color is lightest anteriorly and darkens progressively towards the tail. A series of 50+ narrow, dark-edged, light bands or dark bands with light lateral spots, begins on the nape, and continues to tailtip. These are best defined on young snake and may be obscure on old adults. The Interstitial skin (the skin between the scales) and the belly are yellow, paling anteriorly. Each eye is shaded by an enlarged, flat, outward projecting, supraocular scale. The eyes of juveniles appear proportionately larger than those of the big-eyed adults.

Adult size of this oviparous snake is 3 to 4 feet. This is a frog-eating species.

These racers are most often seen on or near the ground, but they can climb well and often sleep in shrubs or trees 5 to 8 feet above the ground.

The fact that this snake (as a matter of fact, all snakes in this genus) readily autotomizes the tail if grasped by this terminal appendage explains why many forest racers seen have a truncated appearance. The tail is readily lost but does not regenerate.

This is a typically colored hatchling Banded Calico Snake
Varying by researching authority, the genus Oxyrhopus contains 12 or more, largely nocturnal, neotropical (central and northern South America, including Trinidad and Tobago) snake species that vary widely in color. Some are primarily red others are primarily black, some bear bands of contrasting colors, others, except for the head that often contrasts with the body color, are largely unicolored.

In my opinion, one of the prettiest is the Banded Calico Snake. Other frequently heard common names include False Coral Snake and Forest Flame Snake.

Long known as Oxyrhopus petola, Jay Savage has recently suggested that its proper name is O. petolarius, and that this contains 3 subspecies, including the one with which I am most familiar, O. petolarius petola.

Over the years we have gotten very used to visits from this Calico Snake at the preserves where we stay. We not only happen across adults on the trails and juveniles in trailside shrubbery, but the adults range widely and often stray into our campsites.

Hatchlings and juveniles of this yard long, oviparous, snake are banded white and black, most young adults are banded with bright red (sometimes white) and black, and the red bands old examples often darken until the entire snake looks sooty.

Although these snakes were initially considered rear-fanged colubrines, they have now been reclassified as a Dipsadine genus. The venom seems especially virulent against lizards and amphibians on which calico snakes primarily prey. Small rodents and birds are also prey items.

I have found this snake reluctant to bite.

Juvenile Common Bird Snakes are strongly patterned and highly arboreal.
A common snake in Amazonian Peru, the actual range of this feisty snake is from Mexico through most of northern South America. Both the genus and the species/subspecies names for this snake are currently in flux. Some refer to it as Pseustes poecilonotus, some as Phrynonax polylepis, and others simply refer to it, as I have, as the Common Bird Snake. At the moment I’ll also use the long-standing name of Pseustes poecilonotus for its scientific designation. The snake simply doesn’t care what you call it but is apt to display resentment if you approach it too closely.

We have found many of these snakes, but have never yet found one that was happy to see us. Neck distention, similar to that of the better known Spilotes, is a defensive ploy that may be used before, during, or after the snake has struck at you. Bird snakes are nonvenomous. Juveniles are strongly patterned and quite arboreal often being found at face level or above in trailside trees. Adults are more often found resting at night while coiled atop fallen trunks or simply on the trail.

The common name comes, of course, from this snake’s fondness for birds and their eggs. Small mammals, lizards, frogs, and insects are also eaten.

Coastal eastern Black Rat Snakes are often jet black dorsally.
Long in the herpetocultural shadows of more brightly colored rat snakes, it now seems that much interest is being channeled to the big Black Rat Snake, Pantherophis obsoletus obsoletus. Although I’m surely missing some, genetic aberrancies such as white-sided, albino, lavender, rusty, brindle, and calico, have been developed. But let’s talk about the normal rather than the aberrances here.

The Black Rat Snake, a big dark colored constrictor, has an immense range in eastern USA. Using state abbreviations, it may be found from New England’s Lake Champlain to neGA, then seMN to cKS and cLA. Habitats include stone walls, woodlands, pasture edges, deserted buildings and other such structures.

It, like its several subspecies, is adult at 5 to 6 feet in length. Occasional examples have exceeded 8 feet in length. With a record length of 101 inches it is one of the 5 longest snakes in the USA.

When adult this is a large, primarily black, harmless, but often feisty, semi-arboreal snake. Black above, traces of darker blotches may be seen, and if the snake is a hatchling/juvenile, or distended with a meal or gravid. Patches of white, gray, or orange interstitial skin (the skin between the scales) may also show. Dorsal patterns are also more apt to be seen where this snake nears the ranges of the Gray Rat Snake and Texas Rat Snake. The belly is white with irregular blotches of black.

Typically hatchlings are gray with black saddles. Various colors, especially a dark olive green, may show at areas where this snake intergrades with the yellow rat snake. Rodents, birds, and lizards are the preferred prey items of this powerful constrictor.

Rat snakes, as a group, will hiss if frightened and will often vibrate the tail. This latter, if in dried grass or leaves, will make a whirring sound that is similar to the noise of a rattlesnake’s rattle.

Know the difference before you approach.

This terrestrial snake is easily differentiated form its rough-scaled cousin by the lack of keels on the scales.
I know I’ve talked earlier about this little snake, but I would like now to bring to the forefront the fact that the Smooth Green Snake, Opheodrys vernalis, is in trouble.

Dorsally, this small (adult at 15 to 24 inches), smooth scaled, slender, and beautiful snake is leaf green (grayish or yellowish in some small populations and duller immediately after hatching, immediately before shedding or after death when it is bluish). Ventrally it is yellow, white, or pale green belly. It is predominantly terrestrial and was once common to abundant in open grassy areas such as unkempt urban fields, meadows, pastures, and edge habitats. An oviparous species, eggs have a curiously shortened incubation period, hatching in from 4 to 24 days. Hatchlings are duller than adults.

In the east this is a snake of habitats that vary from coastal and other lowlands to montane meadows. The few western populations are found at high elevations. Overall, this snake is considered a boreal species. The northernmost populations are found in Canada’s Maritime Provinces westward to southern Saskatchewan. The southernmost populations were in nw Virginia and s Illinois. Westward of this unusual range there are 25 or 30 small disjunct populations known as far as e WY, ne UT, and the grasslands of e TX (this latter now thought to be extirpated). A population has even been documented in w Chihuahua, MX.

For reasons that have not yet risen above the speculative stage, entire populations of the smooth green snake have now disappeared, and in those now existing, the snake is becoming increasingly rare. With no smooth green snakes having been found in TX in recent years, this population is of special interest. It is wondered by some researchers whether those once found in TX might have been introduced rather than of natural occurrence.

So, why the overall smooth green snake reductions? Is it because of habitat modifications? Probably not. There are still a lot of grasslands, some very remote, throughout this snake’s one-time range.

Could it be dietary. Afterall, this is an insectivorous species, crickets, caterpillars, and an occasional spider being among its favorite prey items. The prevalent use of a wide variety of insecticides has reduced insect populations, this snake’s potential prey.

Is it due to toxic effect from the insecticides themselves? Possibly.

Whichever and whatever it is a problem that we must soon get a handle on lest there be no smooth green snakes left to concern ourselves with.

This adult Rusty Whipsnake was a bit over 7 feet in length.
The neotropical genus Chironius contains about 20 species of slender serpents that are often referred to as “Neotropical whipsnakes.” Although some fully grown at 4 to 5 feet in length, a few species routinely exceed 6 feet when adult. Despite their large size, their whiplike slenderness allows these snakes to be arboreal and they may as often be seen sprawled on the fronds in the crown of a palm tree as in shrubs nearer ground level. Not only the preferred habitats of some, such as the Rusty Whipsnake, C. scurrulus, may change with the growth of the snake, but the overall appearance of the snake changes also.

Reversing ontogenesis from what we have become used to on the emerald tree boa, this snake, the Amazonian Rusty Whipsnake, often found at river edge, is an intense emerald green as an arboreal hatchling. The intensity of the green fades rapidly with the snake’s age and growth. As a semiaquatic adult, the Rusty Whipsnake becomes a beautiful rusty red and is often seen foraging for its prey of frogs at water’s edge.

As indicated above, this is an oviparous species.

In keeping with the above comments, the bright green hatchling fell from the forest canopy during a storm. The paler green juvie was found on a vine covered log, and the red adult was searching for prey on the banks of the Rio Orosa, all so very typical. Enjoy.

Pine Woods Treefrogs often call in huge numbers from terrestrial locations.
Last nite (06 Aug 2020) was a 1 snake (cottonmouth) aor and 1 snake (same species) DOR kind of night. Storms had been forecast for earlier in the day but, as usual, they arrived late. I had motored about 65 miles northward hoping for a warm temperature and dry road. By the time I had arrived at the destination a rainy dusk had enveloped the region and temperatures had plummeted from the 80s to the low 70s. I knew by that time that I had been lucky to see even that single cottonmouth. Rain fell, then fell harder, then harder still. The world—or at least my little part of it-- appeared awash. But it soon became apparent that this was just what the anurans, the hylids and the microhylids, had been waiting for. There was no lead in to the anuran chorus. One minute the region was silent, and of a sudden, frog voices echoed from mile after mile of newly refreshed roadside ditches. The choruses were astounding.

Pine Woods tree frogs were by far the most numerous. Hunkered down in the grasses their Morse Code cadences were deafening in some flatland areas. They were followed next by the honks and churrs of green and squirrel treefrogs. A fair sized chorus of Cope’s gray treefrogs was heard back near a forest stream, and bronze and pig frogs were plunking and grunting from Impassible Bay. Only a single barking treefrog was seen, it sitting quietly on the road. Cricket frogs called in fair numbers from various flooded locales.I estimated the calling anurans in the thousands. No way to guess at the non-vocalizing females. Interestingly, I saw zero bufonids of either species or either sex.

Friend and researcher Dr. Sam Sweet’s comment when I told him about the experience was “You hit the storms just right! I went SW and everything cleared up by dark -- one small ribbon snake, a baby N. fasciata and about 10 leopard frogs on 55 miles of road.” Sam’s ending comment, “Floriduh!”

Nose to nose with a California Giant Salamander.
California has it all. Well almost all. Except for what they don’t have. But if its caudatan diversity you’re interested in, California is definitely a state you should consider visiting. Newts, Lunged salamanders and Lungless salamanders all may be found there. Some are colorful, some are drab. Some are tiny, some are comparatively large. All are interesting.

One of the groups that I find of great interest are the Giant Salamanders of the genus Dicamptodon (family Dicamptodontidae). Of the 4 species 2 dwell in California’s cool, moist forestlands. These are The California and the Pacific Giant Salamanders, D. ensatus and D. tenebrosus, respectively. Both are hefty, and both top out at just about a foot in length, with tenebrosus perhaps being a bit more slender, a tiny bit shorter, having a proportionately smaller head and shorter limbs. This latter is also a bit darker in color. The former, the California Giant, is the southernmore of the 2, ranging southward in the Coast Range from southern Mendocino County to western Glenn County. The Pacific Giant ranges northward from Glenn County to southwest British Columbia, Canada.

Populations of both of these big nocturnal salamanders are adversely affected by foresting practices that leave stream banks unprotected, subject to drying, and the streams themselves subject to warming. Although both of these salamanders are variably colored, neither is brightly colored. Ground color of both is tan to light brown with well-defined reticulations and spots of reddish brown to dark brown. They breed in streams and creeks and the aquatic larvae may take several years to metamorphose.

Prey includes invertebrates such as worms and slugs as well as vertebrate prey such as smaller salamanders.

Fer-de-Lance are everywhere and nowhere. Walk carefully--especially at night.When I sit down to write these blogs, I try to discuss any herps mentioned in a positive way. Such is the case now. I’m writing about the Fer-de-Lance and I’m positive that this, the Fer-de-Lance, Terciopelo, or Her-gon) are the sneakiest snakes alive. I’m equally positive that there far more of them within a Baseball Pitcher’s throw than I can even begin to guess at.

I know that about 10 of us walked across a clearing between the tambos (rustic rooms) to look at a frog brought in by a guide, and when we turned to amble back there sat all coiled and ready for meanness if necessary was an adult Fer-de-Lance. It wasn’t there a minute earlier. Then one night I was stooped down looking at a frog on the trail (I’m about to begin believing that frogs are bad luck!), stood up and there was an 18 inch long Fer-de-Lance staring me straight in the eye. It was coiled 5 feet up in a leafy shrub. Another time I walked down to the shower stepping carefully on the cement pads and looking carefully between them. Nothing. Five minutes later I retraced my steps and in the grass between the pads were a neonate Fer-de-Lance and a couple of pads later an adult was half on and half off a pad. Then there was the incident at the frog puddle. We—all of us-- had walked from tambo to river along this cleared trail numerous times for a week or so. Zero snakes of any kind. Finally we had a rain hard and long enough to fill a depression in the trail. While it was raining small leptodactylid frogs began gathering at puddle edges. And within 15 minutes there were a half dozen Fer-de-Lances gathered to prey on the frogs. I wonder how closely we had been walking to those snakes without ever seeing them.

The above, of course, are excerpts from Preserva Madre Selva on the Rio Orosa in Amazonian Peru. And what exactly is this abundant snake?

The Fer-de-Lance, Bothrops atrox, is a very venomous pit viper. It has a ground color that may vary from olive through various browns and grays to almost yellow. The pattern is equally variable, sometimes being prominent dark banding and on other example the markings may be faint rectangular dorsal blotches or triangles. There is a diagonal facial stripe from the back of the eye to just beyond the angle of the jaw. It is a snake that you should get to know immediately. It is a dangerous snake that as Devon and I have often said is everywhere and nowhere. Caution is the keyword here. And never stroll, even for a few feet, at night without your flashlight. To do so is inviting disaster.

But c’mon down. You’ll love the herps.

Note the similarities such as the narrow pointed head of mole and pine snakes that is designed for plowing through subsurface burrows. This is a young adult mole snake.
They’re a half a world apart but the similarities between the African Mole Snake, Pseudaspis cana, and the American Pine Snakes, Pituophis melanoleucus ssp. are rather remarkable. Do not mistake the mole snake of this article for our various Mole Kingsnakes. The two are very different. If you have been fortunate enough to work with both African Mole and American Pine snakes you’ll know immediately what I’m talking about.

Both are small-headed, strong-jawed, powerful constrictors that spend a goodly amount of time pursuing rodents in their subsurface burrows. Our gopher and pine snake pursue pocket gophers and the mole snakes pursue mole rats and other rodents. The two differ in scalation, with the scales of the pine snakes being keeled and with the mole snake usually (but not always) having smooth scales. A length of 6 feet is not unusual for them and anecdotal accounts of even greater lengths are often heard.

Mole snake hatchlings and juveniles are straw colored and strongly patterned with dark alternating dorsal and lateral bars. The markings fade with age and adults vary from an almost uniform light olive to dark olive-brown in color. Hatchlings of the American pine snake may be paler than the adults. This snake varies in color by subspecies with the northern subspecies (P. m. melanoleucus) being the most strongly patterned in chocolates, black, and white. The Florida subspecies, P. m. mugitus, is the palest (sometimes almost a uniform straw tan), and as indicated by its common name the Alabama/Mississippi subspecies the Black Pine, P. m. lodingi, is the darkest.

Mole and Pine snakes also differ in reproductive modes. The mole snake bears large litters (usually between 20 and 90) of live young. The Pines produce small clutches (often only 3 to of large eggs.

Both species are tough and they know it. And they’re not at all reluctant to pass that knowledge on. If unduly disturbed both hiss loudly, assume a striking “S,” and lunge at the intruder. But both do tame and some make excellent pets.

Banded Geckos look a lot more delicate than they actually are. This is a San Diego Banded Gecko.

Counting species and subspecies there are 7 forms of banded geckos, genus Coleonyx, in the American West. Two of these, the Barefoot, C. switaki, and the Reticulated C. reticulatus, are larger than the remaining 5 and have very limited ranges. One, the Texas, C. brevis, is the easternmost and is smaller than any of the others. It is the remaining 4, all subspecies of the wide ranging Western Banded Gecko, C. variegatus, that we shall mention here. All have elliptical pupils and are nocturnal. The body is slender and between 2 and 3 inches long. The original tail (the tail is easily autotomized and often in some stage of regeneration) is about the same length as the snout-to-vent. Original tails are prominently banded.

The 4 subspecies of the Western Banded Gecko that occur in the USA are the San Diego, C. v. abbotti, the Tucson, C. v. bogerti, the Utah, C.v. utahensis, and the Desert, C. v. variegatus. Appearance differences are slight and it is best if you are interested in a particular form that you check a field guide for ranges.

Generally speaking though, the San Diego subspecies occurs on the Pacific slopes of southern CA. The Tucson form may be encountered in seAZ and swNM, the Utah race is restricted to swUT and immediately adjacent NV and AZ, and the Desert, by far the most wide-ranging of the 4, is found over much of AZ, NV and eastern CA.

Although these little geckos may be found beneath surface debris such as wood, cardboard, and rock by day, I’ve always found it a lot more fun to road hunt them at night. They are active, their light color contrasts well with dark pavement, and they cross roads in a series of darting rushes, often with their tail curled up over their back, this initially giving them the appearance of a large scorpion. Keep this similarity in mind as you jam your car into park, slam open the door, and rush out to slap a cupped hand of the little creature on the road. It’s not pleasant to be painfully surprised!

Juvenile Speckled Forest Pit Vipers are much grayer than the adults.

This pretty, rather large but slender lancehead of the primary Amazonian Rainforests is seldom seen and therefore poorly understood. The gray to olive green ground color (gray when juvenile, olive when adult) renders this snake all but invisible as it lies quietly coiled amidst the fallen leaves or, seemingly as often, on the mossy or lichenate trunks of fallen trees or forest lianas. Normal adult size is between 3 and 4 feet in length but may occasionally exceed 5 feet. Litter size varies from 2 to more than a dozen in number. Neonates reportedly vary from about 7 inches to 10 inches in length. The grayish color of the neonates provides no less camouflage than the green shades of the adults. At all stages of growth there are prominent darker bands are flecked heavily with the ground color and often terminate ventrolaterally with a light blotch. The iris of the eye is liberally flecked with black.

In bygone years this snake was referred to as Castelnaud’s Viper, Bothrops castelnaudi, and that name is still occasionally used today.

In more than 20 years of periodic Amazonian exploration I have seen only a single example of this species in the wild. But after seeing the remarkable camouflage of that one, I have never ceased to wonder how many unseen examples I’ve brushed by?

The finding of this blue phase speckled rattlesnake by friends had us doing a quick reversal in direction.
Our drive eastward started with a totally unintended delay. Jake and I had walked a wash known for its population of blue phase Speckled Rattlesnakes, Crotalus pyrrhus. Even Jake, who had walked much farther than I had found none. But as I had walked, a snakehook wielding pair of herpers, Mike and Nick, had passed me. We chatted a while and they went on their way. Meanwhile I returned to the car and Jake soon followed. I mentioned the other herpers and he said that they must have gone elsewhere for he hadn’t seen them. My comment was that I was pretty sure they were still in the wash.

Anyway, it was time to head eastward and Phoenix was soon far behind us. Too far behind us as it turned out, because Jake’s phone beeped and Nick (who was still in the disputed wash) said c’mon up. “We’ve got a beautiful blue speck here.” What to do now? We explained where we were and how long it would take us to get back to the spot. They kindly agreed to hold the snake so we returned over the 50 miles we had driven. From there, Jake laden with both his camera and mine, ran up the wash, photographed the snake with both cameras (I can no longer run) and after profusely thanking the duo and watching the snake crawl slowly back into its crevice, Jake ran back to the car.

We started eastward again. This time we actually made it out of AZ, through LA, and well into MS before deciding to find a herping road for that night. A likely road was found, a nearby motel had room for us so we were all set.

At dusk we realized that although there were herps on the chosen road there was also a goodly number of fast moving vehicles. But we persevered and by midnight we had added 2 species of water snakes, one of which was a beautiful big female Diamond-backed water, Nerodia rhombifer, a Texas rat snake, a Gulf Coast toad, and a Marsh brown snake to the trip total.

Time for the motel, then homeward. Florida beckoned.