Bimini, Bahamas: A 40 Year Reunion, Part 2

Our plan was to take a taxi to the South Bimini Airport and walk the several miles back to the ferry slip when we wished to return to the hotel. The taxi ride was fine, the walk back was horrid.

Near the airport we encountered numbers of Bimini Whiptails, Ameiva auberi richmondi. I recalled that the last time I had visited the island I had been able to run this speedy, alert, taxon down. This time though? Not a chance. Had something to do with advancing age — mine, not the lizards.

On a deserted building we found Bimini Bark Anoles, Anolis distichus biminiensis, but no other taxa. We grabbed a soda at a runway end restaurant and began our hot walk northward. The sun beat down, the shrubs were too short to give any shade, and the heat radiated upwards from the paved road. We did NOT suffer in silence! Eventually Jake and I reached the Fountain of Youth, a Bimini landmark replete with trees. We flipped (and carefully replaced) and Jake happened upon a Bimini Racer, Cubophis (Alsophis) vudi picticeps, but I found only a single Reef Gecko and Bahaman Tarantulas. Feeling somewhat cooled, with ten taxa yet to find, we headed again for the ferry.

Author, photographer, and columnist Richard Bartlett is one of the most prolific writers on herpetological subjects in the 20th century. With hundreds of books and articles to their credit, Richard and his wife Pat have spent over four decades documenting reptiles both in the field and in captivity. For a list of their current titles, please visit their page in our bookstore.