Random Colorado Wildlife

[spinycheek]

I've been working on an ongoing research project with Colorado horned lizards and thought I'd share some things I see. It's heavy on the reptiles for obvious reasons

From this past Thursday, there was an explosion of baby reptiles. Almost 40 baby lizards and 4 baby snakes.

neonatal (baby) short horned lizard

Tiger Beetle

Neonatal Prairie Rattlesnake. This was one of 4, somewhere nearby their mother must have given birth.

This little rattler found me while we were filling out data sheets. I guess my foot looked like a nice shady spot.

Hatchling Lesser Earless Lizard

Curious pronghorn that came by with a herd of cows.

 

[SkyShark]

Very cool!

 

[spinycheek]

Adult Prairie Rattlesnake on the drive in. They always seem way crankier right away in the morning. Ones found at dusk almost never act defensively.

Helping me get his GPS coordinates

Quite possibly the rarest lizard in Colorado. Only a handful have ever been recorded in the state. Roundtail horned lizard (Phrynosoma modestum)

Far more common Short Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi). This is the "northern grasslands" color morph which is way prettier than the southern ones which are just kind of drab grey without spotting.

Brand spanky new short horned lizard

Texas Horned Lizard. This is the quintessential "horny toad", found only in southern Colorado.

Black necked garter snake. Very rare in Colorado, but when found, only found in low elevations in Southern CO and on Western slope.

 

[TheRealChrisBrown]

That Rattler in pic #1 will haunt my dreams forever! It's a great picture though, if it were only of a fluffy unicorn or something and not a snake! The lizards are crazy too, I had no idea so many were in Colorado. Are these mostly Southern and Western slope?

 

[SynDen]

That baby rattler is awesome! great shots all around. Ill bet the rattlesnakes are cranky in the morning because they are still cold and more vulnerable.

 

[spinycheek]

That Rattler in pic #1 will haunt my dreams forever! It's a great picture though, if it were only of a fluffy unicorn or something and not a snake! The lizards are crazy too, I had no idea so many were in Colorado. Are these mostly Southern and Western slope?

There are around 20-30 species of lizards in CO depending on which taxonomist you're talking to. The highest diversity is found in the warmer regions of the state like SE Colorado and the Western slope. We get 3-ish species along the front range (short horned lizard, six lined racerunner and fence lizards) plus a few more if you head East. In general, they tend to be more abundant where there are less people. Horned lizards are especially sensitive to population growth and land use changes.

 

[spinycheek]

That baby rattler is awesome! great shots all around. Ill bet the rattlesnakes are cranky in the morning because they are still cold and more vulnerable.

I always love seeing rattlesnakes, I have a soft spot for vipers. I think you're probably right about the cold. Plus they haven't had their coffee yet, so they just aren't into dealing with people so early.

 

[daskibum]

Some day I wil get a defensive rattler pose photo... If I can find a dang snake. Only ever seen one.

 

[spinycheek]

Some day I wil get a defensive rattler pose photo... If I can find a dang snake. Only ever seen one.

Drive along paved roads on warm nights in areas with large open spaces (no farms though) and you will probably see some stretched out on the shoulder basking on the warm pavement. Roads out on the Eastern plains tend to be pretty snakey.

 

[maxthedog2000]

Awesome and beautiful pictures even tho I'm not a reptile fan... Not in person anyway.

Carter