2018...Great Start to new year. January/February 2018


I found more of these Blunt Head Tree Snakes(Imantodes cenchoa) on this trip than any other species.

The onset of the dry season usually signifies that snakes are more difficult to find.  The beginning of 2018 seemed to be an exception for us.

We were in the Southern Zone of Costa Rica from January 4, until  February 19.  I walked the forest numerous times during the day placing the checking on and servicing the Camera Traps.  I also would spend 2-3 hours a night slowly walking trails near the house, observing what I could.

Below is a breakdown of the snakes encountered.
Vine snake(Oxybelis aenus)
Parrot Snake(Leptophis ahaetulla) -juvenile
Salmon belly racer (Mastigodryas melanlomus)X3
Blunt Headed Snake(Imantodes cenchoa)X7
Red Eye Tree Snake(Siphlophis compressus)X2
Garden Tree Boa(Corallus ruschenbergerii)
Terceopelo(Bothrops asper)X4
Cloudy Snail Eater(Sibon nebulatus)X3
Cat Eye Snakes(Leptodeira septentrionalis)4+1
Coffee Snake(Ninia maculata)
Mystery Brown Snake


I am always astounded how few Terceopelos we come across.   For as much time in the jungle as I spent during the day and the night looking for snakes, these just seemed scarce. Two of the four that I did encounter on multiple nights were on the edge of the  forest.

The darker of the two was about 20 inches(50 cm) and was in a coil by a palm tree for 3 nights in a row.  It disappeared during the day and on the fourth night was only the shed skin. The one next to it was on the edge of the pasture/forest and is likely a newborn.
The third one actually swam between my rubber boots in a creek when we were shrimping one night.  I had a machete in hand for dispatching shrimp and was asked by my fellow shrimpers why I didn't whack that snake.  I told them that it did not care about me and was just trying to escape.  I got back into their good graces back by their house when I relieved them of a garden boa from a very close mango tree.

The Garden Tree Boa(Corallus ruschenbergerii) turned into a knot on our Mango tree.


On our last night in Costa Rica, I was in the low-cut moist grass trying to get a Coffee Snake(Ninia maculata) out of the dirt, when I heard the familiar slithering noise of a big snake ahaed of me in the darkness. I looked over only to see a nearly 2 meter Terceopelo slithering down the hill up under our old shed.  I texted the wife to come down and look at it.  At that point I tried to direct it to a safe forest, but it would have none of that.  After a lunge or two at me or the flashlight, it coiled up under another part of the shed.  I decided to let it be for the night, and in the morning it was gone.
Nearly 2 meters of Bothrops asper!


Perhaps my eyes have become better adjusted to 'see' blunt head snakes.  They ended up being the most common one seen.  I encountered at least seven of them.  One night, two were about 20 meters apart.  Most of them were adults.
Defying Gravity. Blunt Headed Tree Snake(Imantodes cenchoa)


 A new species that I encountered on our property was the Cloudy Snail-eater(Sibon nebulatus).  In the rainy days of January, I found 3 individuals.  Two were in trees and the third was on the ground.  I'm not sure why I had never encountered them before.  I did expand my hiking route into another part of the forest.

2 of the the 3 Cloudy Snail Eaters(Sibon nebulatus)

One of the very cool snakes I saw lit up the jungle with unexpected color.  It was the Red-Eyed Tree Snake or Red Vine Snake(Siphlophis compressus).  We had seen a bright red juvenile years ago that was found near the house under an old satellite dish.  This one was about 2 meters up in some vines, hanging out looking for sleeping lizards or tree frogs.  Considered 'rare' in the Savage book another two of these snakes were found along along the road by our farm.
Siphlophis compressus, just hanging out.

In July of 2017, I placed nine pieces of old tin in different habitats.  Again they yielded nothing but a few spiders and Savage's Bullfrog.  In the U.S., tin left out in snakey areas are good places to find them, but so far in several months of checking, I have only seen one coral snake(Micrurus nigrocinctus)
Found on the trail originally then re-found under a piece of tin. Beautiful Micrurus nigrocintus.

I encountered one mystery snake.  I heard it rattling in the leaves down near the creek.  It was a small snake, perhaps 14 inches long(35cm), with a solid brown shiny dorsum and was a cream pale yellow on the ventral side.  It was wiggling like crazy and did not get a photo.  Maybe I'll see it again one night.

The snakes guides were a big hit with people we encountered in the field.  We have given over 60 of them away to people who are likely to encounter snakes where they live or work in the lower elevations of the Southern Zone of Costa Rica. While the listing of snakes is nowhere near complete, it is more or less designed to help rule out what is venomous and non venomous.  Based on space and size of non venomous snakes, we had to choose the larger varieties that are often targeted due to aggressive nature.  The venomous snakes omit the palm pit vipers of the southern mountains and the yellow bellied sea-snakes.  It also does not delineate the two coral snake species.  While this info is important to herpetologists and nature lovers, it is not necessary for quick a quick ID in the field.
Heavily laminated and waterproof, each guide is in Spanish or English.

 I have had many offers from folks wanting to buy them, in truth, they were never meant to be for sale.  However, now that I have noted their popularity I have over $300 of personal money in these.  So...If you would like one or more I will accept a payment.  $5.00 each and a dollar for postage.  So $6 gets one mailed to you in the U.S.  If you want to by an extra one in Spanish to give to a Tico friend, it would be much appreciated.  This is about myth-busting and providing proper information to those who need it. Just go to PAYPAL and send the funds to OchoVerde@gmail.com.  If you wish to pay another way OchoVerde at GMail dot com is my email address.  Send me a message and we can work it out. 

If you would like to see some of our records, you visit My listings on Herp Mapper.

If you would like to know about our camera trap project or my close encounter with a big Terceopelo, CLICK HERE!

To see our cool snake videos...CLICK HERE


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