California
Reptiles & Amphibians

Short Videos

Snakes

Lizards

Frogs & Toads

Salamanders

These are short videos of reptiles and amphibians which are intended to show how a species moves or behaves and, in some cases, to illustrate its habitat. Some videos include sound, some do not. Click on the camera icon to watch a video. It might take a minute before it is available.
Snakes
	Chionactis occipitalis occipitalis - Mohave Shovel-nosed Snake	Two views of a Mohave Shovel-nosed Snake crawling.
	Chionactis occipitalis occipitalis - Mohave Shovel-nosed Snake	A Mohave Shovel-nosed Snake strikes repeatedly.
	Crotalus atrox - Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake	Several views of a Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake rattling and taking a defensive pose with head and tail elevated, then crawling away.
	Crotalus cerastes cerastes - Mohave Desert Sidewinder	A sidewinder crawls slowly then very quickly over the sand with its unique sideways locomotion.
	Crotalus cerastes laterorepens - Colorado Desert Sidewinder	A Colorado Desert sidewinder crawls with its unique sideways locomotion.
	Crotalus scutulatus scutulatus - Northern Mohave Rattlesnake	Several views of a Northern Mohave Rattlesnake rattling and taking a defensive posture.
	Masticophis flagellum ruddocki - San Joaquin Coachwhip	This slender and very fast-moving snake races across a dirt road.
	Phyllorhynchus decurtatus - Spotted Leaf-nosed Snake	As shown here, this snake is typically found on a paved desert road at night. Using a serpentine motion, it is capable of moving quickly over the asphalt.
	Pituophis catenifer annectens - San Diego Gopher Snake	A large adult gopher snake flicks its tongue then crawls away.
	Pituophis catenifer deserticola - Great Basin Gophersnake	A Great Basin Gophersnake crawls across a dirt road.
	Rhinocheilus lecontei - Long-nosed Snake	The snake moves away quickly into the brush. You can sort of see how the banded pattern merges into a blur as the snakes moves away.
	Salvadora hexalepis hexalepis - Desert Patch-nosed Snake	The cold and sluggish snake is gently poked with a stick to encourage it to move, but retaliates by racing away in a blur in typical Patch-nosed snake fashion. That was my only shot at this speed demon.
	Tantilla hobartsmithi - Smith's Black-headed Snake	A tiny black-headed snake crawls across a paved road at night.
	Thamnophis sirtalis fitchi - Valley Gartersnake	A Valley Gartersnake is discovered resting in the sun near the edge of a mountain pond which is still half-surrounded by snow. When I get too close, the snake races off, showing the speed with which this gartersnake can crawl and swim to safety.
Lizards
	Anniella pulchra - California Legless Lizard	A California Legless lizard crawls like a snake, then quickly burrows into loose soil.
	Aspidoscelis tigris tigris - Great Basin Whiptail	Two Great Basin Whiptails forage along the ground and on a rock outcrop with their characteristic slow and jerky movement.
	Callisaurus draconoides rhodostictus - Western Zebra-tailed Lizard	Several views of zebra-tailed lizards waving their striped tails to divert attention away from their main body, running off quickly, and doing the territorial push-up display.
	Coleonyx variegatus abbotti - San Diego Banded Gecko	A gecko crawls up the side of a boulder and slips into a crack. Note the slow and deliberate way this lizard walks.
	Coleonyx variegatus variegatus - Desert Banded Gecko	A night shot of a gecko crawling slowly and waving its tail.
	Crotaphytus vestigium - Baja California Collared Lizard	A Baja California Collared Lizard sits on a rock above a palm oasis.
	Dipsosaurus dorsalis dorsalis - Northern Desert Iguana	A desert iguana darts around on the sand and does a territorial push-up display.
	Elgaria kingii nobilis- Madrean Alligator Lizard	A Madrean Alligator Lizard moves with typical serpentine motion, flicks its tongue, and breathes using the fold along the lower sides of the body.
	Gambelis sila - Blunt-nosed Leopard Lizard	A lizard rests at the mouth of its burrow then runs off into its sparseley-vegetated habitat.
	Petrosaurus mearnsi - Mearns' Rock Lizard	In this short video, a rock lizard shows its rock climbing and jumping acrobatics, then ends doing a defensive push-up display.
	Phrynosoma cornutum - Texas Horned Lizard	A Texas Horned Lizard sits, eats an ant, and runs around in Douglas County, New Mexico.
	Phrynosoma coronatum - Coast Horned Lizard	Two separate Coast Horned Lizards are shown running quickly for a short distance then stopping to hide by blending in with the background, typical behavior for this type of lizard.
	Phrynosoma mcallii - Flat-tailed Horned Lizard	A Flat-tailed Horned Lizard runs rapidly across fine wind-blown sand and quickly buries itself with a final shake of its tail.
	Phrynosoma modestum - Round-tailed Horned Lizard	A round-tailed horned lizard is discovered sitting still, relying on its cryptic shape and color to blend in with the rocks. Then it quickly runs away.
	Sauromalus ater - Common Chuckwalla	A Chuckwalla emerges from its crack and does a territorial push-up display.
	Sauromalus ater - Common Chuckwalla	From a wide view of its habtat, we zoom in on a Chuckwalla high on top of a rock.
	Sceloporus graciosus vandenburgianus - Southern Sagebrush Lizard	A Southern Sagebrush lizard runs over the rocks and does territorial push-up displays.
	Sceloporus occidentalis bocourtii - Western Fence Lizard	A male, approaches a female, chases her, then does a push-up display after she rejects him.
	Uma notata - Colorado Desert Fringe-toed Lizard	A fringe-toed lizard runs slowly, then very quickly over the hot sand.
	Uma scoparia - Mojave Fringe-toed Lizard	A fringe-toed lizard buries itself in the sand to hide. This lizard was captive and sluggish and buries itself slowly and incompletely. In the wild a lizard runs quickly then dissapears in a flash as it dives into the sand.
	Uma scoparia - Mojave Fringe-toed Lizard	The llizard runs quickly over the sand. So quickly I almost missed it.
	Urosaurus graciosus - Long-tailed Brush Lizard	We slowly move up to and into the middle of a Creosote bush to find a Long-tailed Brush Lizard on a branch resting motionless and relying on its camouflage to stay hidden.
	Urosaurus graciosus - Long-tailed Brush Lizard	A Long-tailed Brush Lizard moves along a branch.
	Xantusia henshawi henshawi - Granite Night Lizard	A tiny night lizard, disturbed from its daytime hiding place, runs up the side of a boulder. Notice the wiggling, almost serpentine running motion of this lizard.
Turtles
	Gopherus agasizii - Desert Tortoise	A young tortoise walks along a rocky wash in the Mohave desert.
Frogs & Toads
	Bufo alvarius - Sonoran Desert Toad	Several Sonoran Desert Toads out at night in Arizona, hopping and running quickly across desert roads.
	Bufo boreas halophilus - California Toad	This toad moves across the wet ground both by crawling and by hopping
	Bufo canorus - Yosemite Toad	This male was calling on a cold afternoon from a high-altitude snow-melt pool in a wet meadow. The video has been edited in order to cut out the couple of minutes of silence between his calls.
	Bufo canorus - Yosemite Toad	A female toad hopping around with a male on her back (called amplexus). You can hear the female making the release call which begs for the male to release her. © Julie Nelson
	Bufo canorus - Yosemite Toad	A male Yosemite Toad calling for a mate. © Julie Nelson
	Bufo cognatus - Great Plains Toad	Two male toads call at night from shallow pools at the edge of an irrigated agricultural field in Riverside County. Other calling toads can be heard in the background.
	Bufo debilis - Western Green Toad	Male green toads call at night from a shallow pool.
	Hyla arenicolor - Canyon Treefrog	Several male Canyon Treefrogs call at night from the edge of a rocky creek in Arizona. At the end are several examples of a two-part high-pitched encounter call.
	Pseudacris cadaverina - California Treefrog	A male treefrog calling on a windy night from the edge of a small pond in San Diego County. He makes three distinct sounds - a low call, then several higher-pitched calls followed by some ratcheting notes, ending with another high-pitched call.
	Pseudacris cadaverina - California Treefrog	A male treefrog calls from the edge of a small pond.
	Pseudacris regilla - Pacific Treefrog	A male treefrog calls while floating on a mountain pond during daylight.
	Rana boylii - Foothill Yellow-legged Frog	A Foothill Yellow-legged frog calls at the edge of a small pool at the edge of a river with its head out of the water, producing a call that can be heard in the air and underwater. The sound is recorded with a hydrophone (an underwater microphone.)
	Rana boylii - Foothill Yellow-legged Frog	Scenes from a Foothill Yellow-legged Frog breeding site along a river in Oregon, including air and underwater calls. (The underwater calls were not recorded along with the video, they were added later, however, the frogs depicted underwater are male frogs who had been calling.)
	Rana cascadae - Cascades Frog	A look at a Cascdes Frog breeding pond high in the Cascades, including the pond surrounded by melting snow, male frogs in calling position, two calling males, and two episodes of male frogs attempting to mount other males with sounds of protest.
	Rana catesbeiana - American Bullfrog	A large male Bullfrog calls at night from a lake.
	Scaphiopus couchii - Couch's Spadefoot	Male spadefoots call at night from a temporary rain pool.
	Scaphiopus couchii - Couch's Spadefoot	Male and female spadefoots in amplexus in a temporary rain pool.
	Smilisca (Pternohyla) fodiens - Lowland Burrowing Treefrog	Two males calling at night while sitting on wet grass at the edge of a shallow rain pool in Pima County, Arizona.
	Spea intermontana - Great Basin Spadefoot	A spadefoot digs into sandy soil and buries itself. © Julie Nelson
	Spea multiplicata - New Mexico Spadefoot	A spadefoot calls at night while floating on top of a flooded pool in a wash in Hidalgo County, New Mexico. When another male comes close he makes a different snoring sound and swims around. Other spadefoots and Western Green Toads are heard in the background.
Salamanders
	Ambystoma macrodactylum sigillatum - Southern Long-toed Salamander	A larval salamander swims around in an aquarium, using its legs, body and tail to propel itself.
	Ambystoma macrodactylum sigillatum - Southern Long-toed Salamander	Larval salamanders swim around in a pond in a forest clearing on a sunny September day in Siskiyou County.
	Ambystoma mavortium nebulosum - Arizona Tiger Salamander	An Arizona Tiger Salamander crosses a road in the mountains of Arizona on a rainy summer night, moving away from a breeding pond and back into the woods.