Eyes in the Trees

*Big Eyed Tree Frog*

These beautiful frogs are known as big-eyed tree frogs.

Tree dwellers like these spend their whole life time in trees where it is safe.

These guys originate from Africa.

Tree frogs are small green frogs, who become more of a brown color as they mature.

The only time they will ever descend from the trees is to mate or lay their eggs.

Both male and females grow to only be 2 to 2 1/2 inches in length, females being slightly larger.

Males throats are a bit looser and can be a bluish shade of color.

The way males attract females is they will make a chirping or croaking sound.

Tree frogs are insectivorous, meaning they eat insects such as: small crickets, fruit flies, meal worms, wax worms, and any other small insect that is easy to ingest.

Big-eyed tree frogs have been recorded to living up to as long as 13 years.

*Photo Courtesy of:* http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benutzer:Werner,_Deutschland

A Serpent of a Different Color

*Indigo Snake*

Indigo snakes come from Florida, coastal plain of Southern Georgia, South Alabama, and Southeast Mississippi. 


These snakes are known to be the largest native snake species in the U.S. 
The largest one was measured to be 9 feet long.


Indigo's are known to frequent in multiple habitats such as: flat wood land areas, high pines, dry prairie, fresh water marshes, and human-altered habitats.


Indigo snakes are non-venomous, and are immune to venomous snakes like the rattlesnake.
The indigo snake gets it's name obviously from it's colorization.


They come in a blue-black color.
Some also come in a reddish-orange to tan color on the throat, cheek, and chin.


What these snakes feed on: turtles, toads, small birds, eggs, fish, frogs, toads, lizards, other snakes, and small mammals.


Female indigo's can lay about 4-12 eggs.
Here's something I didn't know, they are able to store sperm and delay fertilization. Indigo snakes are certainly an interesting reptile. Don't you think?
*Photo Courtesy of:* http://www.stewart.army.mil/dpw/fish/indigoaorlongDIRK2.jpg

Romeo

A Dear Friend that will be Missed


My little Buddy passed away yesterday morning around 3 am..the same day my father passed last year.
Keep dad company Romeo!


You will be missed my friend..

Rest In Peace Little Guy

The Art of Reptiles

Can you draw?


Our gallery doesn't just have to consist of photos of your reptiles. How about digging deep into your artistic side and send us some reptilian art!


You don't think you can draw well? I beg to differ.
Not everyone is Pablo Picasso.


I will even draw one myself! So, I look forward to seeing YOUR art.
Email me your picture-photo Sammysbaby725@gmail.com

To see my doodle go to our gallery ^.^ Hope you like it!

Don't Go Near That Clutch!

-*-Snakehead Fish-*-

Snakehead's originate from South and Southeast Asia.
They have a long dorsal fin, large mouth, and shiny teeth.


Most can grow to be 2-3 feet, "dwarf Snakeheads" grow to 10 inches.
This particular snakehead grows to be 1 meter long, that's a whole lot of fish.


Adults are dark brown, and has faint black bands across it's entire body.
Babies are reddish-orange. 


When still in egg form both parents guard them until they hatch.
Both parents make a nest out of vegetation during breeding time.


The female can lay up to 2,500 eggs and it takes 24 hours for them to hatch.
When anything comes to close to the clutch of eggs the parents will attack.


Snakehead fish eat frogs, water bugs, and smaller fish.


These guys are also oxygen breathing fish. 
They can last up to four days out of the water! 


Snakehead's use something called a subrabranchial organ, or a labyrinth organ.
This enables them to breath oxygen.


*Tidbit* During the dry season snakehead fish burrow themselves in mud.
*Photo Courtesy of:*
Wie146
*Thank you reader for your comment!! Anyone feel free to email me if you have an animal you wanna know about or if you have a strange fact you wanna share: Sammysbaby725@gmail.com*

A Fish Who Walks Among Us

Mudskippers, Why and How do They Breath on Land?

When underwater these little guys breathe through gills like other fish. Even though,they can use their gills in water, mudskippers can't stay underwater all the time. 

Other fish suffocate when taken out of water because, their gills stick together and are unable to take in oxygen. Mudskippers can retain water in enlarged gill chambers which lock shut on land. 

Kind of like reverse scuba gear, their gills remain moist on land. 

They rotate their eyes to wash or rinse out the water. Which is located in the gill chambers.

When doing this they move the water around, and keep the gills fluffed up and oxygenated. 

*Photo Courtesy of:*
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Periophthalmus_gracilis.jpg

A Turtle Really?

Did you know...


The fastest reptile in the world is a turtle!? 

Even though, turtles are slow onland in water, they are fast.
It's said that the Pacific leather-back sea turtle can swim at speeds up to 22 miles per hour!


The fastest reptile on land is the spiny-tailed iguana from Costa Rica.
They can travel at speeds of up to 21 miles per hour.


*Photo Courtesy of:* GIMP photo library

Be a Part of Our Gallery

Looking forward to seeing your reptilian or exotic pet(s)!!


Just simply email us the photos with some basic information about them.

• Name of your pet
• How large/small it is
• How old your pet is
• The amount of time you have had this pet

To contact us send an email to: Sammysbaby725@gmail.com

A Question Some People Get Wrong

Dinosaurs were they Reptiles?

 No, they were dinosaurs. Actually, dinosaurs eventually evolved into birds. Many dinosaurs, if not all, were thought to be warm-blooded. Reptiles are NOT warm-blooded they are cold-blooded.

*Photos Courtesy of:*

• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Field_dinos_2.jpg
• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Berlin_Diplodocus.jpg
• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stegosaurus_Senckenberg.jpg
• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Parasaurolophus_cyrtocristatus.jpg
• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Protoceratops-skeleton.jpg
• http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FMNH_Deinonychus.JPG

Blood Sucking Lizard

-*-Oriental Garden Lizard-*-

Oriental garden lizards are found in Asia, and are capable of rapidly changing colors.

Some of the colors you may see them come in are: brown, a grayish-olive, or even yellow.

These bright changeable colors are strange within male lizards.

During mating season its head, neck, and shoulders turn bright orange to red.

This gives them another common name: Bloodsucker Lizard. 

Of course they don't suck blood at all.

Oriental garden lizards eat small vertebrates such as; rodents and other lizards.

Their teeth aren't used for tearing apart, they are used for gripping.


Prey are swallowed whole.
Young oriental garden lizards can choke on a prey if it's to big to swallow.


The oriental garden lizards are related to the iguana.


Females can lay up to 10-20 eggs. They bury them in moist soil.

In about 6-7 weeks they would hatch.


They can grow to be 15-16 inches.

*Photo Courtesy of:* Jonathan Garcia- http://www.flickr.com/photos/opzjon/with/6330770423/

A Sluggish but Dangerous Creature

**:Gaboon Viper:**

The Gaboon viper lives in rain forests in parts of central, east, and west Africa.

You won't see them for they have the best camouflage. 

They lay on the bottom of the rain forest's floor in piles of leaves or out in the open.

The colors that they come in are usually a combo of brown, light brown, pink, and purple. Female gaboons can lay 50 to 60 live babies at a time. 

Gaboon vipers have a life span of 8 years in captivity.

Males and females have broad heads and also have horns.

Females are larger than males (that is common for snakes).

They range from 4-5 feet. Since they are short and fat they are very sluggish snakes. Even though they are sluggish their bite should not be misconstrued.

Their fangs are 2 inches long! When these guys feel threatened they rear their fangs, and hiss multiple times just before striking. 

Gaboon vipers eat small mammals and birds.

A bite to a small pray would instantly kill them. 

When they bite a larger pray they let them free and then later on track them down by scent. These vipers are venomous one bite could be fatal.

 Haemotoxic venom is extremely painful. Like all snake bites once bitten the venom attaches itself to platelets and vessels. 


Symptoms that will occur if you were bitten by one of these guys are:

• Intense pain.
• Inflammation.
• Oozing of haemolytic blood.
• Bleeding from the mucous membrane in the mouth, anus, and nose.
• Hemorrhages under the skin.
• Skin would be cold to the touch.
• Rapid pulse.
• Dilated pupils.
• Then finally you will slowly lose consciousness. 

**This typical snake should not be a house pet**

*Photo Courtesy of:*

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30775272@N05/

Gecko Chips

Gross...well yeah but, it's nature.


Most reptiles shed their old skin several times each year, and leave them behind. 
So here is my question, have you ever seen shedding from a Gecko?

If you haven't here is why:


Geckos actually eat their skin before it ever falls off.
This way they can retain the nutrients. Cool huh?

Zombie Snake

What is That Smell?!


The Hognose Snake has an upturned nose. Hognose snakes roll over on their back, open up their mouths, and let their tounges fall out and pretend to act dead. 


They also, let out an awful stench to really make their predators think they have been sitting there awhile.


The hognose snake, when threatened, raises its head off the ground, hisses, and rears it's back just like a cobra. This is only for show.

*Photo Courtesy of:* http://www.nps.gov/wica/Hognose_Snake-Western.htm

A Cold Blooded Mother with a Warm Heart

Talking Reptiles and Heart Warming Moments.

Alligators that talk? Alligator hatch-lings cry for their mommy's with a high pitched chirp when they are strayed from her or in trouble, and dominant male alligators have a deep roar to keep other males off their territory.




Most reptile eggs are deserted long before they hatch, but not alligator eggs. Alligator hatchlings are welcomed into the world by their mommy. 


I have never hear of anything more sweeter than an alligator mommy. She helps crack open tough egg shells. Then stores the babies in her mouth to keep them safe. She'll stay with her young for several months.

*Photo Courtesy of:* Norbert Nagel, Mörfelden-Walldorf, Germany

Bulls Eye!

Frog Legs You Shouldn't Eat.

You've heard of poison dart frogs right? 
Well poison dart frogs don't make their own poison.


They actually get the poison from insects they eat. 
It secretes the poison through their skin.


Some poison dart frog poison like the golden dart frog can be more potent then cyanide.
One poison dart frog can take down 100 grown men.

*Photo Courtesy of:* http://www.flickr.com/photos/deepinon/110593290/

Nocturnal Master

-*-Bushmaster Snake-*-

The Bush Master originates from Central and South America.
Bush Masters are the longest venomous snake in the Western Hemisphere.

These guys like to be near water like areas such as: rivers wetlands, and swamps. Bushmaster snakes are nocturnal. 


They come in shades of brown to pale pink, with dark brown or black blotch marking running the length of their bodies.

Their tail ends with a horny spine which sometimes vibrates when disturbed.


Bush Masters have large fangs. 
In large bushmasters, they can grow to be over 4 meters!
They primarily eats small mammals and insects.

Some of the mammals they will eat are:

Rats and opossums, in addition to frogs and lizards. But their young feed only on lizards and frogs.

Females lay eggs. There are about 12 in a single clutch.

Hatch-lings are more colorful than adults.

They can grow to be about 2-2 1/5 feet long.

Bush Masters can live for around 12-18 years.

*Photo Courtesy of:* en:Image:Lachesis muta muta.jpg

The Alligator who isn't an Alligator at all!

-*-Alligator Lizard-*-

These guys are from North America. Mostly seen in California.

The Southern alligator lizard like to hide in grass lands and forests.

 When in dry climates they tend to go towards near moist areas like streams.

You can also find them in your garden or even your yard.

They use their legs and claws to climb on limbs and branches (like most lizards).

Alligator lizards have slender bodies, and can reach between 7-21 inches in length. Also, they have a long tail that can be 2 times as long as their bodies.

Males have triangular heads. These lizards can come in a few colors like: brown to yellow.

 Adults have dark cross bands where as juveniles do not. The skin appears rough due to keeling (a ridge down the center of a tail).

Their diets consists of: young mice, birds, frogs, and other lizards.

Females can lay up to 20 eggs and incubation lasts for 55 days.

*Photo Courtesy of:* greenleafimaging.com

A Viper With Eyelashes

-*-Eyelash Pit Viper-*-

Eyelash Pit vipers range from southern Mexico through Central America to Columbia, Ecuador, and western Venezuela.


These vipers are one of the smallest poisonous snakes in Central America. They grow to be about 2 1/2 feet long.


The animals that they eat are: small mammals, birds, nestlings, lizards, and frogs. Juveniles eat small frogs.


When they do find a prey they will strike and wait for the prey to die until finally swallowing it whole.


 They fold back when they are not in use.
Eyelash vipers have slitted pupils, very long fangs, and painful bites. They don't generally bite humans unless they are taunted or trampled upon.


They are called "Pit" Vipers because of the heat sensing pits between the eyes and nostrils.  These pits make it simple for the eyelash pit viper to locate prey or predators in the dark.


Eyelash pit vipers come in yellow, green, and a pinkish hue.

Females are ovoviviparous:  is a mode of reproduction in animals in which embryos develop inside eggs that are retained within the mother's body until they are ready to hatch. 

Oviparous animals are similar to viviparous  species in that there is internal fertilization  and the young are born live, but differ in that there is no placental connection and the unborn young are nourished by egg yolk; the mother's body does provide gas exchange(respiration), but that is largely necessary for oviparous animals as well.

They can give birth to 6-12 live young.

Fact Courtesy of: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ovoviviparity


*Tidbits* Vipers use their sense of smell to find mates. The males go through a ritual called "the dance of the adders" when two vipers  are competing for the same female. 


They face each other with the head and the forepart of the body held straight up, while trying to push the other to the ground. This can go on for hours. Neither of the snakes bite while doing this.
  

The Eyelash pit viper gets it's name from scales that form above their eyes.

*Photo Courtesy of:* Benjamint444