Northern-Cat Eyed Snake Leptodeira septentrionalis
The southernmost region of the Lone Star State is a very interesting location. It harbors several unique species only found here, as this is their northernmost range from either Mexico or Central America. With its dry subtropical clime, most of the year is hot and winters are extremely mild. The vegetation (or what’s left of it), consists of some succulent plants that extend through the sandsheet, thornscrub forests and chaparral.

In over a decade that I’ve been conducting research here, I’ve noticed that for many species, winters aren’t cold enough and certainly not prolonged enough to result in any significant brumation period. A lack of brumation time, interestingly, may result is several species here reproducing year round or producing multiple clutches in a year (this is a neat discussion topic).
For example, one very attractive species found only in this part of the country is the Northern-Cat Eyed Snake (Leptodeira septentrionalis). Relatively little is known about their natural history in this part of their range. We currently have ongoing projects with the species to learn more about their secretive lifestyle.

One observation I’ve made so far is that there are active neonates in December and January, and gravid females in September. This suggests the species is either double clutching or are fall breeders instead of spring breeders as the literature denotes (at least in this part of their range). Even without extended brumation periods, it seems in some parts of their distribution their populations remain stable, while in others they are facing environmental pressure due to habitat loss. I’ve noticed the peak of their activity is during temperatures in the mid 60s to mid 70s. They are rear-fanged and will feed on anurans, lizards, other snakes, and even mice. Finding neonates that late, (or early), in the year, poses more questions than answers for me. I guess we still have a lot more to learn about this enigmatic species.