Crossing a metal bridge on a trail through the Costa Rican rainforest, we were stopped by the sight of a Blunt-headed Tree Snake in the latter stages of eating a small lizard. The lizard was still trying to escape, but the snake was not going to lose this one. These tree snakes, with their huge eyes and comically thin bodies, seem kind of goofy, so it was cool to see one doing what they do, and know that for as silly as they seem to be, to a sleeping anole it is a pretty terrifying animal.
It’s not a great photo, but this is how these snakes are often seen. It’s a Striped Whipsnake; one of several seen cruising around a multi-species rattlesnake den in the spring. Personally, I’ve been clued into a good number of rattlesnakes hidden deep within crevices because of these much more observable snakes, and their preference for similar hibernacula.
A Great Basin Gophersnake cruising around the rocks that it shares the winter with dozens of Great Basin Rattlesnakes. These important areas where hibernation and subsequent hunting and drinking are better than the surrounding rock piles can be home to multiple species of snakes.
One of the small, fossorial snakes of the southeast – a Midwestern Worm Snake. These tiny guys specialize in earthworms, but may take other soft-bodied invertebrates as well.
Sonoran Lyresnake from the eastern end of Arizona. These are secretive snakes that live on rocky hillsides, eating lizards and small mammals. They are mildly venomous, and can cause a reaction in humans, but typically not considered dangerous. Fortunately, a bite can easily be avoided by just leaving these shy animals alone.
One of many Indian Vinesnakes we found moving in low branches on a rainy night in Karnataka, India.
Banded Sandsnakes are common, found in sandy drainages and often spotted on the surface in the summer. They’re often mistaken for superficially similar groundsnakes and shovelnosed snakes – one way to tell them apart is the relatively wide body, and the gradual transition of the dorsal stripe to the tan base color along its back. They also have kind of silly puppy faces, which can’t be unseen once you do. This one was found near our office in Cave Creek.
A juvenile Four-Lined Ratsnake we found in Greece. Visiting Europe for the first time, it was interesting to see so many lines of convergence of traits with animals more familiar from back home. This little snake felt just like a little Sonoran Gophersnake, likely occupying a similar role in the local ecology.
A Madrean Mountain Kingsnake we found in New Mexico in 2022 showing a higher degree of black in the bands than is typical.
