Herpetology
The Study of Reptiles and
Amphibians
Survey of Kansas Herpetofauna
Reptiles and Amphibians
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Snakes
Lizards
Turtles
Crocodilians
• Frogs
• Toads
• Salamanders
Herps are
Exothermic
• In the past
called “coldblooded”
• Rely on the
environment
for heat
• Requires
less energy
• Need less
food
• Hibernation
Amphibians
•
•
•
•
Frogs
Toads
Salamanders
Caecilians
Characteristics of Amphibians
• Moist skin
• No scales
or shells
or claws
• Need to
keep skin
wet or
moist
Reproduction
of Amphibians
• Salamanders
– Internal fertilization
• Frogs and Toads
– External fertilization
• Eggs have NO shell
• Hatch into tadpoles
• Tadpoles
Metamorphosis
– Aquatic - gills
• Frogs and Toads
– Terrestrial - lungs
Caecilians
• Legless amphibians
• Found only in
tropics
Salamanders
Order Caudata
• All in
Kansas
are mute
Tiger Salamander
• Kansas
State
amphibian
Smallmouth Salamander
• Diet is
mostly
earthworms
Eastern Newt
• Threatened Species, Miami and Linn Co.
Mudpuppy
• Totally aquatic
• External bushy gills
• Up to 15 inches
Frogs and
Toads
Order Anura
• More common in
Kansas then
salamanders
American Toad
• Belly is spotted
• Has not been
recorded in
Anderson Co.
but has in
Allen, Coffey,
Franklin, and
Miami
• May
interbreed
with the
American
Toad
• Belly notspotted
Woodhouse’s Toad
Plains Leopard Frog
Southern Leopard Frog
Bullfrog
• Largest
frog in
state,
up to 6
inches
Reptiles
•
•
•
•
Snakes
Lizards
Turtles
Crocodilians
Characteristics of Reptiles
• Dry scaly skin
• Feet have
claws
• Do NOT
depend on
water like
amphibians
Reproduction
• Most fertilize
internally
• Lay eggs on
land
• Some bear
live young
Cloaca
• Opening
that
contains
sex
organs
and
excretory
organs
Amniotic
Egg
• Prevents
drying out
• Allows for
laying on
land
Turtles
• Order
Testudines
Snapping
Turtle
• Kansas Record 32 lbs
• Aquatic
• Will eat about anything
Alligator
Snapping
Turtle
• From
Florida
• Can reach
175 lbs
• Rare in
Kansas
Common Musk
Turtle
• Semiaquatic
• Active
mostly at
night
• Gives off a
foul musk
• Semi-aquatic
Painted Turtle
Common
Map Turtle
• Semiaquatic
• Anderson
Co. is one of
only 6 were
found
• Threatened
Species
protected by
State Law
River Cooter
• Semi-aquatic
• Large, up to 15 inches
• Not reported in AC, but in Franklin Co.
Red-eared Slider
• Semi-aquatic
• Terrestrial
• Omnivorous
• No reported
in Anderson
Co.
Eastern Box Turtle
Ornate Box
Turtle
• Kansas State
Reptile
• Males have red
or orange eyes
Snakes and Lizards
Order Squamata
Lizards
Collared Lizard
• Eats mostly grasshoppers and moths
• Females have red-orange spots during pregnancy
Texas Horned
Lizard
• Sometimes
called
“Horny-toads”
• Eats mostly
ants and
other sm.
Insects
• Can squirt
blood from its
eyes
• Can lose
tail to
avoid
predators
Skinks
Coal Skink
Five-lined Skink
Broadhead Skink
Great Plains Skink
Glass “legless”
Lizard
• Largest lizard in Kansas
• Ear holes
• Will lose tail
Snakes
Fear of Snakes
• Ophidiophobia An unnatural or
unfounded fear
of snakes
Wildlife Laws & Snakes
• It is Illegal
to capture
or kill
snakes
without a
permit
Snake Physiology and
Characteristics
• Clear eye lids
• Not good vision
• Deaf, but can
detect vibrations
Jacobson’s Organ
• On roof of
mouth
• Snakes
“taste” the
air
Ball Pythons
• Other
snakes
also have
heat
sensing
pits
• Most
snakes in
Kansas are
constrictors
• They
squeeze
and
suffocate
prey
• What do
they eat?
Constricting
Eating
• Can disconnect top jaw
from bottom
• Can swallow prey larger
then their head
• Breathing hole
Swallowing
Common Snakes of Anderson Co.
Speckled (Common)
Kingsnake
Prairie Kingsnake
Great Plains Rat Snake
Yellow-Bellied Racer
Juvenile Yellow Bellied Racer
Rough Green Snake
Red Milk Snake
Black (western) Rat Snake
Juvenile Rat Snake
Bull (Gopher) Snake
Coachwhip
Northern Water Snake
Ringneck
Worm Snake
Brown Snake
Common Garter Snake
Plains Garter Snake
Ribbon Snake
Venomous Snakes of
Anderson County
• Includes Rattlesnakes and
Copperheads
• Pits between nostrils and eyes
• “heat detectors”
• Sense minute temperature changes
• Helps find prey
Pit Vipers
• About 1 in
1000 is
fatal
• 40% of
victims
are drunk
• In Kansas,
1 death
since
1950
Venomous Snake
Bite Stats
Snake Bite
• What should
you do and
NOT do?
Copperhead
Massasauga Rattlesnake
Timber Rattlesnake
Prairie
Rattlesnake
• (only in
western
Kansas)
Cottonmouth
• AKA Water
Moccasin
• Only in SE
corner of
Kansas
Coral Snake
• Red to
Yellow
• Not in
Kansas