Some Winter Florida Herps and Sun

There's no better place in the winter than South Florida. Here's a few shots from a recent outing into the wild swamps and pine flats of Florida.
A spring peeper taken from a hole along a marshy area. Breeding season is in full swing, and tadpoles can be seen diving into the sludge during January and February.
A softshell turtle casually maneuvering across a lonely dirt road.
An alert ribbon snake that didn't wind up like his DOR friend I saw previously on the road.
A little out of focus, but he's smiling for the camera.
Another water-loving snake, but this time a glossy crayfish snake.
Green anoles were out enjoying the beautiful weather, too.
Here's an alligator slide at the edge of a water hole that's beginning to dry up. He slipped into the remaining water, but left his tail mark and hand print behind (center of photo).Nice! Basking in a shallow, marshy field, this alligator has few places to hide.
I tried blindfolding him with my shirt, but he kept tossing it aside and growling at me. I'm not sure what I'd do with a 7-foot alligator anyway, but it was worth a try.
Hmmm....I have to get my shirt back now. He didn't like me in the water with him, so I saluted The Colonel and let him have his shallow bog back.

Some Florida Herping

South Florida has been a place that Devin and I have wanted to visit for some time. We managed to find many species that were new to us, as well as a few familiar guys. Pictured below is a crested anole from Key Biscayne, one of many introduced species to the state.Cuban treefrogs, also introduced, can often be found around suburban areas, in pipes, and in other cool, sheltered retreats.

Cuban treefrogs have several color/pattern variations. Below is a large, healthy green one.

What a good-looking specimen! The frog isn't bad, either.
Brahminy blind snakes are the smallest snake. Here are two sitting in the palm of my hand.Five-lined skinks are commonly found flipping boards and other surface debris.
Non-herps can be just as exciting to find sometimes. We came across two river otters that were not too happy to see us walking around in their territory. They would repeatedly bark and slap at the water.
Eastern garter snakes are abundant around moist areas.

A southern leopard frog seen hopping across the road in the rain.

A yellow rat snake that was found repeatedly in the same place, and even on different nights.

I had to dive to catch this black racer before it zipped into the thick vegetation.

A nice shot of a southern leopard frog in its habitat.

A spiny softshell turtle cruising near the surface. A juvenile Florida softshell was also seen, but not photographed.

A good-sized American alligator resting in the shallows.

We spotted this juvenile alligator sitting under a bridge.

Devin and I caught a nice-looking green iguana on Key Biscayne

A southern toad.

Maybe a bullfrog, maybe a pig frog. Who cares, we heard and caught both in the Everglades.

The introduced cane toad.

















A ringneck snake revealing its defensive posture.

A few ringneck snakes were found in a moist area while flipping debris.

Our smallest specie of toad, the oak toad.

This eastern garter snake was found with a rib protruding from its side.

An alligator on the prowl.

This spiny softshell turtle was seen walking around above a pond.

A non-native tropical house gecko.

Green treefrogs are a pretty, native specie.

This turtle is called a cooter, and they are a large and common specie.

An upclose shot shows the turtle's bunk eye on its left side. That's how we were able to approach it and catch it.

A greenhouse frog.

Catching this big boy was a lot of fun, and it involved Devin climbing a tree and me waiting underneath with a towel.

Devin holding the beefy green iguana.

Curly-tailed lizards tried their hardest not to be caught, but we eventually snagged one.

Ah, the classic green anole...only this one wanted to be brown today.

A ribbon snake that had recently been hit by an automobile but was still alive.
A corn snake in situ....ok, that's a lie. We found that there was better lighting in the car.

An awesome little scarlet snake.

Devin spied this glossy crayfish snake with his flashlight while it cruised around in a shallow boggy area. I waded into the slime and quicksand to pull it out for a photo session.

This was a fun catch and pretty specimen.
This large cottonmouth was coiled on the side of the road.

Here's a picture of Devin looking for an excuse to climb on top of me...and me looking for an excuse to climb on top of an American alligator.

This good-sized alligator was a handful and a lot of fun to catch.
Our trip to Florida was tons of fun, and this post represents a good sample of many species that we found and caught during our stay.