MEXICO
August 2012
4 of 5
MEXICO
August 2012
4 of 5
Thankfully, everyone else is making up for the meager results Ron and I are producing. Matt and Lorrie
contribute their fair share of high-quality finds, but Shaun and Jason leave us all impressed (and not a little
envious).
I’ve herped with a lot of dedicated road cruisers, and these guys are as good as any I’ve seen. I’d like to say
they have better luck than the rest of us, but clearly their success is not random. Night after night S & J consistently
bring back great finds for us to photograph the next day. After considerable analysis, I can summarize the reasons
for their superior performance:
1. They drive faster than us, covering more ground in the same amount of time, thereby increasing the odds of
herp encounters.
2. They drive smarter and farther than us, going the distance to where weather conditions are more favorable.
3. They are younger than us, with better night vision and faster reflexes.
4. They are mutants.
Here, then, are just some of the finds our friends bring back to share (all animals released after photos):
First, a bunch of Boas.
The way-cool Saddle Leaf-nosed Snake.
And its skinnier wannabe (minus the funny nose).
Though not many amphibians, the few frogs and toads are very nice.
In addition to the two toads, there are a number of other species I’ve found before in the United States, which I
previously thought of as “Arizona” herps. Seeing them this far south reminds me that AZ is just the northern tip of
their much larger range, and it’s more accurate to think of them as “Sonoran” species instead.
Matt and Lorrie are really stoked to find this snake, one of their top targets.
Of course, Jason and Shaun find one as well.
Mexican Lyre Snake
Trimorphodon tau
Sabinal Frog
Leptodactylus melanonotus
Mexican Leaf Frog
Pachymedusa dacnicolor
Couch’s Spadefoot Toad
Scaphiopus couchii
Red-spotted Toad
Bufo punctatus
Black-necked Garter Snake
Thamnophis cyrtopsis
Mexican Long-nosed Snake
Rhinocheilus lecontei antonii
Sonoran Gopher Snake
Pituophis catenifer affinis
Tiger Rattlesnake
Crotalus tigris
Green Ratsnake
Senticolis triapsis
