A Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake rests in a rocky retreat, waiting for dark. Like other rattlesnake species in the Phoenix area, once temperatures stabilize in the triple digits, their activity becomes mostly nocturnal. The late afternoon is a good time to wait for a lizard or bird to make a mistake, in the meantime.

One of the Malabar Pitvipers we saw on night hikes in rainforests of Karnataka, India. Convergently, they were very similar in appearance and behavior to arboreal vipers I’ve seen in Central and South America.

A pair of Gila Monsters getting some of their first sun in the early spring, a couple of years ago. They had only recently made a short walk from an overwintering den, where they had buried themselves in dirt at the base of a boulder, to this staging area. Here, at least five individuals spend […]

The most common coralsnake I’ve seen in Peru is the Aquatic Coralsnake. They’re big, twitchy, and relatively common in the slopes along tributaries of the Amazon River.

A mated pair of Banded Rock Rattlesnakes, tucked into rocks in a minor drainage in southeastern Arizona. During the late monsoon season, it’s not uncommon to find pairs or rattlesnakes like this, courting and mating in one rock pile while others are still giving birth elsewhere. The period of seasonal rain is the peak of […]

A Blacktailed Rattlesnake was seen on a late-night hike near Phoenix, Arizona. These snakes are found in any of the regional parks around Phoenix and Tucson. Interestingly, they are missing, however, from the mountains of central Phoenix, with no records that indicate they were ever there.

The most dreaded snake in the West? Likely. For good reason? Not really. This one is typical for Maricopa County, Arizona. Some may have a green hue, but most are a muted brown or tan. They tend to have a more “clean” look than the more familiar Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, showing less speckling and a […]

One of several Bamboo Vipers found on steep hillsides in Karnataka, India, a couple of years back.

A large Regal Ringnecked Snake greeted me in my driveway as I headed out for the night to look for snakes. Ironically, this was the species I was hoping to see when I set out. This one was about 20″ long, which is large for a ringneck, though not so much so in Arizona. I […]

A Blacktailed Rattlesnake from southeastern Arizona. They are large, common rattlesnakes in the mountainous regions of much of the state, where they are often misidentified over generations as Mojave Rattlesnakes due to a misunderstanding of the color green in rattlesnakes.