Yes, we have mountains here in AZ. Not quite like they do up in Colorado, but still not to bad here.
It was a gorgeous day and I decided to go out for a nice little hike. I chose one of my favorite montane creeks to supply me with some nice reptiles.
First herp of the day was a wonderful Wandering garter...sorry no pics. It took off under some of the tall grasses, I really wished to get some garter pics today as well....
Second nice find was this cool skink, I believe a ssp of the Western skink. Very cool guys. They can have a bright red head and tail..just cool. This one is a little bit more drab in coloration, but still a nice find. I felt lucky to have caught it. They usually are gone faster than the whiptails, ducking into the ground litter, rocks and logs lying around. The skink has thrown its tail recently.
Next find was this Canyon Treefrog (Hyla arenicolor ). They blend in superbly into the granite rocks they inhabit. There were several of this guys attached to the sunny side of the rocks.
I took some pictures of the common Blue Bellies (Urosuarus ornatus). These are more than likely the most common herp in this area, if not the entire state. These are really cool none the less. Woderfully blue bellies they have. A very stunning blue.
...and that is the end of the day. It was nice to see a good variety of herps. I would hate to take these guys for granted.
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