Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So I spent a week in July in the Amazon with the man himself, Bill Lamar. Tons of herps were spotted, caught and photographed. There really is too much to say about all the herps I saw, so I'll keep it simple. Highlights for myself included two ferocious Whipsnakes, related but different subspecies, the first four feet and the second a whopping seven feet long. Frogs were out in full force and we found two extremely rare species as pictured below. One of which deemed the "darth vader frog" really put on quite a show. We also found and caught two species of Caiman, the Speckled and a Smooth Front Caiman. Speckled were everywhere and we caught numerous specimens but the little Smooth Front we found was really something special. They are apparently quite hard to come by, a we were miles away from water, in the middle of a dry forest when this little guys' eyeshine gave him away. He was simply sitting in a small pool in the middle of nowhere, no significant body of water for miles! Quite a find. We also found numerous anoles, gecko species, tree frogs, hylids, sloths, freshwater dolphins, tarantulas, scorpions, and even caught a large bat! There's really too much to say about the Amazon, yet I could never do justice to what I saw by trying to explain it all. I'll post more pictures and scientific names later, but for now I will leave you with these. Thanks for looking.



haha, heres a picture of a fellow herper trying to keep his cool while I take a photo, does he look like he's havin fun or what?

Nice post!!
How was it travelling with a group??
I've always wondered.
I like the monkey treefrog. Kenny S>

Traveling with the group wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be. Most of the non hardcore herpers restricted themselves to the day hikes and when night fell it'd be just four or five of us with Bill leading the way. After the first night it felt just like herpin' with friends back home, good times. That monkey frog was a blast. We had a chick with us that is studying frogs and is dedicating her life to studies, conservation,etc. Needless to say she was beyond thrilled to find this guy. Apparently monkey frogs are extremely rare and reclusive. Bill said that some people he knows have spent twenty plus years in the Amazon never to find one.

I was on the same trip with Bill a few years ago. I think we caught the same sort of whipsnake. The nastiest snake I have ever seen. I seem to recall it even bit Bill in the face when he caught it. It was somewhere near 9-10 feet long.
Love the rainbow boa by the way... That must have been an awesome find.

if not the same species. Apparently there are four or five subspecies which all look relatively similair, the only difference being minute details. You're right though, the larger of the two really came out swinging!