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.
Thursday, February 15 2018
Curiosity doesn't seem dangerous to this Nile Monitor in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user Mantafish every once in a while! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, February 14 2018
This Kenyan Sand Boa is helping us at ks.com wish you allHappy Valentine's Day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Thera, in our herp photo of the day! Be sure to tell them you liked it here.
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A young western coachwhip from the "pink" Big Bend population.
There’s one! Stop! This was Jake informing me that while I had been watching a p yrrhuloxia (a cardinal-like bird) on the powerline I had motored past a good sized pink phase western coachwhip, Masticophis flagellum testaceus, that had been concealed by long roadside grass. The bird was one of my photographic goals, the snake was one of Jakes and those snakes sure are pretty. There were no vehicles behind us so I braked quickly, Jake hoped out, I followed more slowly and after an extended search we both conceded that the coachwhip had won this round.
But then I had to remind Jake that this snake subspecies had won the last round also. In that case the coachwhip had scooted across the road and coiled tightly beneath one of the spine studded “monkey-get-back bushes” that so prolifically line these Chihuahuan desert highways. I stopped, Jake hopped out, crept up to the shrub, and gave me a thumbs up, indicating that the snake was still there. Jake studied the situation, decided how he could best grab the snake while avoiding the plant’s armament, then made a grab for the coiled snake—and missed. The snake was gone. To where it had gone we still don’t know. Kangaroo rat burrow? Invisibility cloak? The whole episode was figment of our imaginations. Doesn’t matter. The snake won. Maybe next time, Jake.
Continue reading "Pink Coachwhips"
Tuesday, February 13 2018
How cute is this Pacman Frog in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user doobie119 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, February 12 2018
Everyone feels just like this little chameleon does here in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user 1Sun every once in a while! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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As first seen from the car, a Sonoran sidewinder.
OK, Frank. This is my last night here (Tucson). Let’s find a sidewinder. It had been well over a decade since I had last sought a sidewinder of any subspecies, and probably 20 years since I had last seen the Sonoran form, Crotalus cerastes cercobombus.
Although a lingering spring cold front has already dropped evening temperatures into the low 70s making success doubtful, Frank agreed to the task, and by the time darkness had enveloped us we were well away from Tucson on some seldom travelled, sandy, desert roads.
All seen so far had been a single Tucson banded gecko, Coleonyx variegatus bogerti. Frank looked at me and shrugged. “It’s the weather” he said. “In good weather” (meaning warmer temps and lower barometric pressure) “we usually see much more.”
Almost time to turn around. Well, at least we had tried. Frank decided to go another mile or so…
And there it was! In an “S” in the middle of the road lay a small Sonoran sidewinder. Frank’s perseverance had brought my short stay in Tucson to fitting close. Photos were taken and we happily headed towards the bright lights of Tucson.
Continue reading "Sonoran Sidewinder"
Friday, February 9 2018
What a fabuoous shot of a Great Basin Rattlesnake in Utah in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user crocman6594! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Thursday, February 8 2018
Here's to hoping this IJ Jag in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user StonedReptiles makes your day a bit brighter!! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, February 7 2018
Despite their reputation of being angry, the beauty of a Tokay gecko puts it front and center 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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Fat and healthy, a Pinto Chuckwalla at Arizona Sonora Desert Museum.
This, Sauromalus varius, the largest species of the genus, is restricted in distribution to the small island of San Esteban in the northeastern Gulf of California. This heavy bodied lizard can attain an overall length in excess of 2 feet and has reportedly attained an adult size of 3 feet. Like other chuckwalla species, this is a lizard of rocky habitats and when threatened is quick to seek safety beneath boulders or in rock-crevices.
The lizards depicted herein are in the captive population that has been at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson, AZ since 1977. This facility has succeeded in reproducing the species on several occasions.
Hued in pale gray overlain with patches of sandy tan, like other “chucks” this iguanian taxon is predominantly vegetarian, feeding on the flowers and leaves of creosote bush, cacti, and other arid land flora.
It is a federally endangered species.
Continue reading "Pinto or Variable Chuckwalla"
Tuesday, February 6 2018
How beautiful is this Ctenosaura quinquecarinata in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user rockabirdie ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, February 5 2018
Gotta love the sassy nature of the Schneider's smooth-fronted caiman in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user cpipes! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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"Waterwing" vocal sacs distended, a northern crawfish frog calls on a cold night.
John called from KY and simply said the Crawfish Frogs are calling. He added,that he would meet me at such and such a place and to get my tail in gear and get up there. Well, I've driven a whole lot further than FL to KY to see a frog, so an hour later the Isuzu Trooper was heading northwestward. By the next afternoon the rendezvous was accomplished and when darkness fell John (plus 2 others) and I were standing knee deep in a pond that was still rimmed with ice while the pounding rain and brisk breezes did all possible to create an unavoidable hypothermic interlude to the adventure. But the frogs were calling (and despite the chill factor were cooperative), we succeeded, and I was able to add the Northern Crawfish Frog, Rana areolata circulosa to my life list. Thanks, John.
Continue reading "Northern Crawfish Frogs"
Friday, February 2 2018
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, February 1 2018
This gorgeous closeup of a Painted Turtle also shows a bit of old fashion home grown cage decor in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user trachemys ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, January 31 2018
An amazing shot of this Indigo Snake in the field in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user ACO3124! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Coiled and posed, a western massasauga on the defensive.
Although the various massasaugas, be they eastern, western, or desert, that I have encountered have moved away at reasonable speed, none, until my recent meeting with western massasaugas, Sistrurus catenatus tergeminus, in Kansas, had I thought of as “speedy.” But those Kansas examples have definitely altered my (and Jake’s) impression of this taxon. The reactions of these snakes, even when approached slowly and carefully, was a headlong dart from the coiled basking position in the grassy center of the road to the safety of the edging rocks. Seemingly with the alacrity usually associated with a basking racer, the crotalines were, if not out of mind, at least out of sight. But we finally managed to find one that, more relaxed than the others, allowed us the hoped for photo ops.
Continue reading "Western Massasauga"
Tuesday, January 30 2018
The best part about corn snakes is their wide variety of looks, like this Striped Sunglow Motley in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user jcherry! Be sure to tell them you like it here!
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Monday, January 29 2018
This Diamond Python in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user CincyGrady really can be a girl's best friend! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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This prairie rattler was one of 3 found on our final day
Central Kansas. Our targets were twofold—a western hognose, Heterodon n. nasicus, and a prairie rattler, Crotalus v. viridis.The afternoon sun shone from a cloudless sky with a palpable force. Despite being basically white in color the roadway we were on was uncomfortably hot. If herps were to be seen at all it would be fleetingly and probably at roadedge. A few minutes before sunset Jake spied the first, a juvenile speckled king snake, Lampropeltis getula holbrooki, that had just emerged from the roadside grasses. This sighting was followed by several western slender glass lizards, Ophisaurus a. attenuata.
One hour passed, then 2. No hoggies, and except for one DOR, no rattlers. And except at the end when we found a very defensive bullsnake, Pituophis catenifer sayi, the next evening was even slower—a couple of pheasants, a lot of slender glass lizards, and incessant lightning accompanying distant storms.
But the third night was the charm. The baking hot day hadn’t seemed much different to me, but the snakes—at least the prairie rattlers, Crotalus v. viridis, found it more favorable. We found the first, a 28 incher, crossing a gravel roadway about a half an hour before sunset. We each took a dozen or more photos and put the snake off of the road. Then came a dozen glass lizards. And then another prairie rattler, this one slightly longer and of a darker color than the first. More pix. It was now nearly dark and for the next hour we saw only crossing glass lizards. Then another rattler. This one, larger still and very dark in color, was photographed in the car’s headlights with the assist of the camera’s flashes, and left as found.
When we left for the southland the next day, we left happy.
Continue reading " Prairie Rattlesnake"
Friday, January 26 2018
Happy Rattlesnake Friday! The icionic Eastern Diamondback just chilling in the sand for our photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user evil-elvis ! 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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Thursday, January 25 2018
What a great field shot of this Black Salamander found in a redwood forest in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user sc_shark! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Wednesday, January 24 2018
Western Plains garter snakes are pretty and brightly colored.
When it seemed to us that the sun was so hot that it was baking those Kansas dikes, when all good rattlesnakes and Plains leopard frogs were concealed in the roadside grasses, when we had turned the car’s a/c to its lowest temperature, it was then that the Plains garter snakes, Thamnophis radix haydeni, emerged from shelter to bask on the gravel surface. They didn’t stay long, but bask for a few minutes they did before returning to the grasses, presumably to seek their leopard frog or toad repast. While in some areas the Plains garter snake may be difficult to differentiate from congenerics, on these dikes, with the red-sided garter snake being the only other thamnophine contender, there was no problem separating the two. The strong yellow vertebral stripe, placement of the lateral stripe (scale rows 3 and 4), and black spotting (lips and body) of the Plains garter were definitive. Most seen (20+) were juveniles but a half dozen adults were found.
Continue reading "Western Plains Garter Snake"
What a stunning shot of a Painted Mantella ( Mantella baroni) in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user Hoosierfrogger to brighten your midweek! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Tuesday, January 23 2018
These adorable Crested Geckos are just hanging around in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user MOC_Reptiles ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Monday, January 22 2018
The western painted turtle has carapacial reticulations and a red plastron that bears a complex dark figure.
So pretty are painted turtles, collectively, that were they rare they would command formidably high pet trade prices. However not only are all 4 of the subspecies common, but they breed easily in captivity as well.
In many areas of their extensive ranges the characteristics (carapacial scute sutures and plastral figure) that differentiate the eastern from the midland subspecies ( Chrysemys picta picta and C. p. marginata, respectively) are muddled. But the western form, C. p. bellii, is usually very easily identified and the southern painted turtle, C. p. dorsalis, is so different that it is thought by some to be a full species, designated as C. dorsalis. Although strongly aquatic, painted turtles inhabit semipermanent and permanent ponds, lakes, marshlands, and slow moving riverine sites where they bask on fallen trees and other such haul-out areas. They may also be seen basking well up on shorelines, crossing roadways, and elsewhere as they seek to change their aquatic homes.
Continue reading "Painted Turtles, East, Central, West and South"
Hope your Monday shines like this Northern Pine does in our Herp Photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user Turekj ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Friday, January 19 2018
In celebration of all things venomous, ciccada is on the menu for this Copperhead in our herp photo of the day uploaded by kingsnake.com user coolhl7 ! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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Female Indian star tortoise nesting
Indian star tortoises, Geochelone elegans. The adults, as hatchlings themselves bred at the Knoxville Zoo, were forwarded to Jim Harding by Bern Tryon about 20 years ago. Jim kept them for about 14 years and then deciding the (by then) adults needed some southern sunshine, he brought them to me. These tortoises have proven much more resilient to ambient atmospheric conditions than we initially thought them capable of. They are most active crepuscularly, feeding most ravenously at dusk or even after dark. The females usually begin nesting in the late afternoon, often not completing the task until well after dark. They are usually very active during summer rains, often sitting in the newly formed puddles (that may be 4 or 5 inches deep) from the beginning of the storms until the puddles have fully soaked in. In other words, in their actions and hardiness, these tortoises have been a surprise to me and to Jim. And if Bern were still with us I feel he, too, would have had to modify his beliefs on the captive care required by these beautiful star tortoises.
Fast forward:One female has nested successfully for the last 3 years. In 2017 she nested on 3 occasions at 30 day intervals. Total eggs numbered 14. In Jan of 2015 the first clutch (5 eggs) have hatched and, again at 30 day intervals, we hope that the remaining eggs will also hatch. I’ll keep you updated.
Continue reading "Indian Star Tortoises"
Thursday, January 18 2018
Alert and always keeping his eye on you, this Basiliscus plumifrons shines in our herp photo of the day, uploaded by kingsnake.com user kus! Be sure to tell them you liked it here!
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