Fieldherper.com

By Bryan D. Hughes, Future Darwin-Award Winner

  • Pages

    • Jul
    3rd
    2009

    Desert Grassland Whiptail

    I had to follow this little Desert Grassland Whiptail, Aspidoscelis uniparens, around for 15 minutes before it would hold still long enough to get a quick photo. Like a lot of whiptails I encounter, it didn’t much mind my presence, and felt just fine continuing to root around in the soft soil looking for small insects.

    As the species name may suggest, uniparens, this species is entirely female; each baby being a perfect clone of the parent. This of course also renders them unable to change with their habitat or adapt to new challenges, ultimately leading to the demise of the species.

    Desert Grassland Whiptail
    Desert Grassland Whiptail

    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | No Comments »

    Jun
    30th
    2009

    Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwww

    Here’s a young regal horned lizard (Phrynosoma solare) just after squirting me, my phone, and my camera with blood from its eyes. They do this to scare off mamilian predators, which I guess means me. I must admit it worked, as unlike the a bite from the little guy, it got me to put him down to wipe the stuff off my glasses. If coyotes wore glasses, this defense would be air-tight.

    Phrynosoma solare
    Phrynosoma solare
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , ,
    Posted in Field Trips, behavior | 3 Comments »

    Jun
    26th
    2009

    Plateau Fence Lizard

    One of hundreds of instances of Plateau Fence Lizard, Sceloporus tristichus, I see when in the higher elevation forests of the Bradshaw Mountains North of Phoenix. This is the first I have photographed, since I had previously assumed they were something else. Good to slow down and look around once in awhile!

    Plateau Fence Lizard
    Plateau Fence Lizard

    Your email:

     

    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | 1 Comment »

    Jun
    23rd
    2009

    Sonoran Gophersnakes

    I found 2 large, adult Sonoran Gophersnakes (Pituophis catenifer affinis) within 50 feet of eachother in the early evening in April. Neither wanted to fight, which was a little uncommon for these guys. It left me a little disappointed, because it’s fun to see these large constrictors put on their impressive show of puffing, hissing, and strikes.

    Oh well, still good to see them.

    Sonoran Gophersnake
    Sonoran Gophersnake
    Pituophis catenifer affinis
    Pituophis catenifer affinis
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | No Comments »

    Jun
    19th
    2009

    Sonoran Mud Turtles

    An unsuccessful trip to the S. E. portion of Arizona on the hunt for Green Ratsnakes and Brown Vinesnakes ended up yielding some worthwhile byproducts. A cattle pond full with one log and a good number of Sonoran Mud Turtles , Kinosternon sonoriense, basking in the sun. These are the first that I’ve seen of this species. One more for the life list. There is one time that I found several empty shells of these turtles in the Superstition Mountains, in the rocks near the bank. Some bird had a good meal.

    Sonoran Mud Turtle
    Sonoran Mud Turtle
    Kinosternon sonoriense
    Kinosternon sonoriense
    Sonoran Mud Turtles
    Sonoran Mud Turtles
    Sonoran Mud Turtles
    Sonoran Mud Turtles
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | No Comments »

    Jun
    16th
    2009

    Juvenile Mojave Rattlesnakes

    Here are two young mojave rattlesnakes (Crotalus scutulatus) I found within a quarter mile of eachother. I’ve seen my share of drab individuals, but these snakes are highly variable in color and pattern, and each seems interesting for this reason. I’ve seen them range anywhere from lime green to nearly black.

    These are fairly typical of the type you’d find West of Phoenix, but they show some of the pattern variation that occur in individuals that live in the same area.

    Crotalus scutulatus
    Crotalus scutulatus
    c-scutulatus-1-042409
    c-scutulatus-1-042409
    Mojave Rattlesnake
    Mojave Rattlesnake
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | No Comments »

    Jun
    12th
    2009

    Sonoran Whipsnake

    Here’s an example of one of the large, diurnal snakes I often see while looking for other snakes, a Sonoran Whipsnake (Coluber bilineatus). They’re really fast, hard to get your hands on, and extremely aggressive if you do manage to catch one. Fun stuff.

    Coluber bilineatus
    Coluber bilineatus
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping | No Comments »

    Jun
    9th
    2009

    “I Think it’s Injured”

    That’s what I thought when I encountered my first long-nosed snake (Rhinocheilus lecontei) several years ago. Many snakes have a defensive behavior called “musking” that’s an evacuation of feces and various smelly whatnot from the cloaca. Some go a step further and write around in it to cover themselves in a disgusting mess, making them less appetizing. I must say it works. The long-nosed snake brings blood to the mix, leading me to believe the first several I picked up had been hit by a car before I found them.

    Here’s one I moved off the roadway, which covered itself (and my hands) in it’s own poop and blood along the way.

    Rhinocheilus lecontei
    Rhinocheilus lecontei
    Long-Nosed Snake
    Long-Nosed Snake
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Trips | 1 Comment »

    Jun
    5th
    2009

    A Couple of Arizona Lizards

    Since moving to the Northern area of Phoenix (Anthem), I’ve been looking forward to getting into some higher elevations to look for some of the species that live there. Here are the first and second.

    The first is a young Greater Short-Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi) enjoying the early evening sun.

    Phronosoma hernandesi
    Phronosoma hernandesi

    Desktop Wallpaper Version:

    1650 x 1100 desktop
    1650 x 1100 desktop
    Greater Short-Horned Lizard
    Greater Short-Horned Lizard

    The second is the first Madrean Alligator Lizard (Elgaria kingii) I’ve been able to photograph. I’ve seen one other one, but it slipped through my fingers in tall grass.

    Madrean Alligator Lizard
    Madrean Alligator Lizard
    Elgaria kingii
    Elgaria kingii

    Desktop Wallpaper Version:

    1650 x 1100 wallpaper
    1650 x 1100 wallpaper

    Here was my view at about 8 a.m.

    Bradshaw Mountains
    Bradshaw Mountains
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
    Posted in Field Herping, Field Trips, HDR Photography, Photography | No Comments »

    Jun
    2nd
    2009

    Sonoran Lyresnake

    This is probably my favorite of the native colubrid snakes we have here in Arizona: a juvenile Sonoran Lyresnake (Trimorphodon lambda). They usually inhabit rocky areas in the mountains, but this one was found on flat ground many hundreds of yards from the nearest rocky outcropping.

    It is a bit on the venomous side, though a bite to humans won’t do more than potentially hurt like hell for a few hours. I took this one home with me, where it immediately devoured a greater earless lizard.

    Trimorphodon lambda
    Trimorphodon lambda
    Trimorphodon lambda
    Trimorphodon lambda
    [Slashdot] [Digg] [Reddit] [del.icio.us] [Facebook] [Technorati] [Google] [StumbleUpon]

    Tags: , , , ,
    Posted in Field Trips | No Comments »

    « Older Entries