Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake resting under a bush on a cool Spring day. With temperatures still in the low 50s at night, this snake sat out overnight waiting for prey to wander by, nearly a quarter mile from its den further up the bajada.

This pretty little toad is in steep decline within its range in the Amazon basin. In some pockets, however, they can be locally abundant. This is one of several seen in a short amount of time on a daytime hike through the rainforest at the start of 2024.

Blacktailed Rattlesnake showing off the “desert phase” phenotype, typical of lower, hot desert regions where this snake is common in rocky hills and mountains. This chaotic pattern can range from a yellow-green to silver, at times with the pattern degrading to the point of a unicolor appearance. This one is typical for mountains west of […]

A large Western Ghats King Cobra resting in foliage at the edge of a field in Karnataka, India.

Collared Tree Runner from Peru, found sleeping in low branches on a night time walk through the rainforest.

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.

A Chihuahuan Whiptail from Greenlee County. This is one of several species of whiptail lizards in the area, darting around in grass and rocks as we walked the area looking for rattlesnakes.

Arizona Black Rattlesnake from a desert population. Many of the snakes here are all black, missing the white or yellow scales that are typical in the more often photographed locations. This one has just a hint of yellow in some dorsal scales, but is otherwise all black or grey, including the belly.

A Western Diamondback Rattlesnake on a hot night time survey of a county park. Thermal cameras show snakes selecting the coolest surfaces in the area to rest in and against – there is possibly more to this, which we are looking into.

Red Diamond Rattlesnake stuffed into a crevice at its den in southern California.