# Peruvian Amazon 6 -- Santa Cruz Snakes



## moloch05 (Feb 24, 2010)

We departed Madre Selva at about 11am and then set off for Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz was many hours up the Amazon and it required more than a day of travel. The boat journey continued into the night until we finally pulled up against the shore around midnight. I think that the night travel was wonderful. Ted, Ed and I sat on the deck and watched fishing bats flash by the bow lights. On occasion a nightjar or a potoo could be seen. It really was a magical experience.

During daylight hours, my friends and I used the time to catch up on sleep but also scanned the shoreline for birds. At times, we travelled only meters from one bank or the other and this gave us many birding opportunities. Some of the birding highlights included species such as the White-cheeked Jacamars, Black-capped Heron, Cocoi Heron, Oriole Blackbirds, Yellow-hooded Blackbirds, Donacobius, Magpie Tanagers, Bare-necked Fruitcrows, Gilded Barbets, Red-and-Green Macaws and so many more. I think that everyone was impressed by the dazzling colours of the Masked Crimson Tanagers that we saw in riverside growth from time to time.

Eventually, we reached the village of Indiana. Here, we stopped and then used taxis to transport us a few kilometers to Mazan on the Rio Napo. A fast boat (the one with the green metal hull) awaited us there to carry us upstream to Madre Selva.







The trip up the Rio Napo was not long and soon we reached the trail head to Madre Selva.






Near the river, I saw many palms. I was told by Percy, our Peruvian bird guide, that these were Moriche Palms. We saw thickets of these in places and they are known among birders as the preferred habitat of a number of species such as the Moriche Oriole or the nicely named Point-tailed Palmcreeper.






The trail passed through cleared areas, banana plantations and secondary forest.

















Madre Selva was covered mostly with secondary forest and it appeared to be quite young. Many areas were almost impenetrable.






There were small areas with large trees. Here is a photo of a patch of forest near a creek. 






... a recently cut tree:







After walking for a couple of kilometers or so, we reached the headquarters of Madre Selva. 






Birding at Santa Cruz was not nearly as productive as at Madre Selva. We found few birds of the forest interior such as antbirds, trogons and motmots. We did hear the wing snaps and buzzes of White-bearded Manakins but failed to find other forest birds such as Wire-tailed, Blue-crowned, White-crowned and Red-headed. Reptiles and amphibians, however, were numerous and did not seem to be adversely affected by the young successional forest. Our group and guides found many species of snakes, lizards and amphibians.

This post will cover the snakes that we encountered at Santa Cruz.

Amazon Tree Boa (_Corallus hortulanus_): Our group found two of these. Dick and Patti Bartlett came across this juvenile at about head height not far from the headquarters. It was a richly marked snake:











Doug and Young walked along the trail to the river. Doug was excited to find this adult as it climbed out of a banana tree.












Rainbow Boa (_Epicrates cenchria_): These would have to be one of the most beautiful snakes found on the trip. Courtney stayed out until the early am hours and was determined to find an Amazon Tree Boa. I don't think that he ever succeeded, but he did encounter this animal that was crawling on the ground near his feet.










... a very proud Courtney.






Konrad found a second animal that was a little smaller than Courtney's but it had a similar pattern. This snake managed to get out of its bag at night in the dormitory. I heard Jerry, who was sleeping next to me, stir before sunrise. He then begin to scramble about and finally turned on a light. He had felt a snake crawling against his head but had no idea what it might be. We were all hoping for Bush Masters and the thought of this definitely worried him. At first, he did not know whether it was safe for him to move or not. Eventually, he was relieved to see that the snake was a boa. Jerry has a good story to tell!



Earth Snake (_Atracus major_): Ted found this snake while he, Ed and I were on a night walk. Ted was studying a termite trail and followed it from high in a tree to the ground surface ... and then exclaimed "There's a snake!". This large and colourful earth snake was crawling slowly through the leaf litter at the base of the tree. It was much more brightly marked than another individual of the same species that we recorded at Madre Selva.


















Big-headed Snail-eating Snake (_Dipsas indica_): Our group found another of these odd-looking snakes.












Swamp Snake (_Liophis cobella_): I found this snake laying motionless on the river trail. It was not far from a creek. I was reluctant to touch it until I could see the head well since it resembled photos of one of the corals (_Micrurus langsdorfii_). Have a look at Micrurus langsdorfii on Flickr - Photo Sharing!.










... the snake had a colourful ventral surface:







Green-striped Vine Snake (Xenoxybelis argenteus): For some reason, only a single individual of this lovely species was found on this trip. I was told that they are normally more common. 






This would have to be one of the oddest snakes that I have seen. It would hold its tongue rigidly outstretched like this while moving about.






Santa Cruz was a good place for the beautiful Calico snakes. I had long wanted to see these after seeing photos on FHF from Central and South America. These are rear-fanged colubrids that feed on lizards.

Yellow-headed Calico Snake (_Oxyrhopus formosus_): Matt and Courtney found this brightly marked animal while they walked to the river on the morning of our departure. The snake was laying next to the trail with only its head and a portion of the next exposed. This animal was one of the unpatterned form. Other forms are banded like the other two species included below.

















Black-headed Calico Snake (_Oxyrhopus melanogenys_): I think that a total of three of these snakes were found. Here are photos of two.

snake 1:





















snake 2:







Banded Calico Snake (_Oxyrhopus petola_): Note that a white-headed juvenile was included in the Madre Selva post.
















Dusky Mud Snake (_Pseudoeryx plicatilis_): Another Margarita Tour group arrived on our final morning at Santa Cruz. These people were here to see and collect freshwater fish. They captured fish with nets or seines but sometimes they captured other animals as well. This glossy little snake was one of their by-catches.












Red Vine Snake (_Siphlophis or Tripanurgos compressus_): These were stunningly beautiful snakes. Doug and Young found one at night along the river trail.





















... some of the participants admiring the snake the next morning. These included (right to left) Doug (holding the snake), Jerry, Courtney, Patti and Lorrie (partially hidden).







Western Ribbon Coral Snake (_Micrurus lemniscatus_): This poor snake was found right in the open one night. It was emaciated, could hardly move and was near death. It died before dawn. The snake was a large adult. We don't know what caused the problem ... its age, parasites or some other illness. It certainly was a nicely coloured animal.












Western Striped Forest Pit Viper (_Bothriopsis bilineata_): This snake would have to be one of the best finds of the trip. Konrad and his guides located on the final night at Santa Cruz on one of the marathon night walks. The snake was found on the ground in a damp area of remnant old forest. By day, it sat quietly when posed. It did vibrate its tail rapidly when it was first extracted from the bag in a manner that was reminiscent of a rattlesnake. Dick indicated that after all of these trips over the years, they have only encountered the species once and this was at Madre Selva. We were indeed lucky to see it!

























Matt and Young photographing the snake the next morning (Photo compliments of Jerry Schudda).






Regards,
David


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## melgalea (Feb 24, 2010)

that western striped forest pit viper is absolutely stunning. and so tiny. the photos are so deceiving. it is so nice. what was its temprement like. 
awesome photos. i have really enjoyed looking at them all in all the threads u have posted. 
cheers
mel


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## Dragontamer (Feb 24, 2010)

absloutley amazing thread! those snakes are so colourful and diverse !


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## moloch05 (Feb 24, 2010)

Thanks, Mel and Dragon.

Mel,
The viper was a gentle little creature by day. Apparently, it is more likely to bite at night. During the day, it watched us and would vibrate its tail but it never attempted to strike. It really was a cutie!

Regards,
David


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## gus11 (Feb 25, 2010)

i thought the viper looked much bigger til that last photo, you really saw some amazing animals


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## jessb (Feb 25, 2010)

Thank you so much for sharing such a stunning collection of pics! That big-headed snail eating snake is the weirdest looking creature! 

I'm so glad you got pics of a rainbow boa - they are number one on my list of exotics if I ever move overseas!


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## Sock Puppet (Feb 25, 2010)

Wow, they have some amazing looking snakes over there! Those boas were sensational, as were the calicos. The green striped vine snake is a ripper too, but as seems to be the crowd favourite, my fave also was the Pit Viper, love the light blue/aqua colour with the cracked pepper over its back.


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## moloch05 (Feb 25, 2010)

Thanks, gus, jess and Sock.

Gus,
Macro shots can definitely be deceiving! This little viper would have been so hard to see if it was coiled in a vine.

Regards,
David


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## moloch05 (Feb 25, 2010)

Here are a few additional photos. The first two are of the third Black-headed Calico Snake (Oxyrhopus melanogenys): 










Another shot of the same Banded Calico Snake (Oxyrhopus petola): 






... and another shot of the Green-striped Vine Snake (Xenoxybelis argenteus): 







Regards,
David


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## morgs202 (Feb 25, 2010)

Jealous doesnt even begin to describe it! But seriously, amazing pics of what would appear to be an amazing trip. Thanks for posting!


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## wizz (Feb 25, 2010)

love the Pit Viper great pics


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## phoebe (Feb 25, 2010)

My faves would have to be the pit viper and amazon tree boa. Absolutely stunning


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## krusty (Mar 10, 2010)

great pics,looks like you had a great trip.


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## Macmilliam (Mar 30, 2010)

awsome pics cheers for sharing


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