The young fruiting bodies are initially white and spherical or egg-shaped, partially submerged in the ground, with dimensions of 2 to 3 cm (0.8 to 1.2 in) by 1 to 2 cm (0.4 to 0.8 in). As the fruit body matures, the egg ruptures and the spongy spore-bearing stalk emerges; fully grown, it may be from 1 to 15 cm (0.4 to 5.9 in) long and 1.5 to 2 cm (0.6 to 0.8 in) thick. The stalk is hollow and strongly wrinkled overall; its shape is cylindrical below, but it gradually tapers to a narrow apex with a small opening at the tip. The upper half of the stalk is bright red to reddish orange, and the color gradually loses intensity transforming into pinkish white below. The stalk may be straight, or slightly curved. A gelatinous greenish-brown gleba covers the upper third of the stalk in newly emerged specimens. The remains of the "egg" forms a volva around the base of the stalk. The odor of the gleba is foul; one author describes it as "sickly sweet or metallic". The spores are a greenish-brown color. Fruit bodies are attached to the substrate by whitish rhizomorphs that resemble plant roots. American mycologist Smith noted that the eggs are often slow to open, sometimes taking up to two weeks before the stalk expands.
The spores are 4–7 by 2–3 µm, oblong-elliptical, smooth, and embedded in the gleba. A 1982 study revealed that spores of species in the family Phallaceae, including Mutinus elegans, have a hilar scar (0.2–0.3 µm diameter) that is observable with scanning electron microscopy. The hilar scar is a circular indentation at one end of the spore, and it most likely results during the separation of the attachment of the spore to the sterigma of the basidium.


The water extract of X. parietina has good antiviral activity in vitro, inhibiting the replication of human parainfluenza virus type 2. In the past it was used as a remedy for jaundice because of its yellow color.


The vegetative body of the lichen, the thallus, is foliose, and typically less than 8 centimetres (3.1 in) wide. The lobes of the thallus are 1–4 mm in diameter, and flattened down. The upper surface is some shade of yellow, orange, or greenish yellow, almost green when growing in shady situations, while the lower surface is white, with a cortex, and with sparse pale rhizines or hapters. The vegetative reproductive structures soredia and isidia are absent in this species, however, apothecia are usually present.
The outer "skin" of the lichen, the cortex, is composed of closely packed fungal hyphae and serves to protect the thallus from water loss due to evaporation as well as harmful effects of high levels of irradiation. In Xanthoria parietina, the thickness of the thalli is known to vary depending on the habitat in which it grows. Thalli are much thinner in shady locations than in those exposed to full sunshine; this has the effect of protecting the algae that cannot tolerate high light intensities. The lichen pigment parietin gives this species a deep yellow or orange-red color.
Xanthoria parietina prefers growing on bark and wood; it is found more rarely on rock. Nutrient enrichment by bird droppings enhances the ability of X. parietina to grow on rock.


Laetiporus sulphureus is a species of bracket fungus (fungi that grow on trees) found in Europe and North America. Its common names are crab-of-the-woods, sulphur polypore, sulphur shelf, and chicken-of-the-woods. Its fruit bodies grow as striking golden-yellow shelf-like structures on tree trunks and branches. Old fruitbodies fade to pale beige or pale grey. The undersurface of the fruit body is made up of tubelike pores rather than gills.
Laetiporus sulphureus is a saprophyte and occasionally a weak parasite, causing brown cubical rot in the heartwood of trees on which it grows. Unlike many bracket fungi, it is edible when young, although adverse reactions have been reported.


Due to its taste, Laetiporus sulphureus has been called the chicken polypore and chicken-of-the-woods (not to be confused with Grifola frondosa, the so-called hen-of-the-woods).
Many people think that the mushroom tastes like crab or lobster leading to the nickname lobster-of-the-woods. The authors of Mushrooms in Color said that the mushroom tastes good sauteed in butter or prepared in a cream sauce served on toast or rice. It is highly regarded in Germany and North America.
Young specimens are edible if they exude large amounts of a clear to pale yellow watery liquid. Only the young outer edges of larger specimens should be collected, as older portions tend to be tough, unpalatable, and bug-infested. The mushroom should not be eaten raw. Certain species of deer consume this type of mushroom.


The fungus produces the Laetiporus sulphureus lectin (LSL), which exhibits haemolytic and haemagglutination activities. Haemolytic lectins are sugar-binding proteins that lyse and agglutinate cells. These biochemical activities are promoted when bound to carbohydrates.


Laetiporus sulphureus is widely distributed across Europe and North America, although its range may be restricted to areas east of the Rockies. It grows on dead or mature hardwoods and has been reported from a very wide variety of host trees, such as Quercus, Prunus, Pyrus, Populus,  Salix, Robinia, and Fagus, occasionally also from conifers, from August to October or later, sometimes as early as June. In the Mediterranean region, this species is usually found on Ceratonia and Eucalyptus. It can usually be found growing in clusters.


The fruiting body emerges directly from the trunk of a tree and is initially knob-shaped, but soon expands to fan-shaped shelves, typically growing in overlapping tiers. It is sulphur-yellow to bright orange in color and has a suedelike texture. Old fruitbodies fade to tan or whitish. Each shelf may be anywhere from 5 to 60 centimetres (2 to 23+1⁄2 inches) across and up to 4 cm (1+1⁄2 in) thick. The fertile surface is sulphur-yellow with small pores or tubes and produces a white spore print. When fresh, the flesh is succulent with a strong fungal aroma and exudes a yellowish, transparent juice, but soon becomes dry and brittle.


Zale lunata, the lunate zale, is a moth of the family Erebidae. The species was first described by Dru Drury in 1773. It is found throughout the east and west of North America. The wingspan is 40–55 mm. The moth flies from year round depending on the location. The larvae feed on various deciduous trees, such as maple, willow and Prunus.


Sphaerophoria scripta can reach a length of 7–12 millimetres (0.28–0.47 in) and a wingspan of 5–7 mm. Body is long and narrow, with yellow and black bands. The wings are transparent. Antennae are short and yellow. The face is yellow. Thorax is a bit dull, copper colored with broad yellow side stripes. Scutellum is yellow. Abdomen is long and cylindrical with four wide, yellow transverse bands. The legs are yellow. Females are brighter than the males. In the males the last two bands are often blurred.


The adult hoverflies can be found from April to November. The larvae feed on aphids, while adult hoverflies feed on nectar and pollen of various species of Asteraceae, as well as on Heracleum sphondylium, Galeopsis tetrahit, Malva moschata and Parnassia palustris.
These hoverflies can complete a full life cycle in as little as sixteen days (egg to egg-laying adult), and a maximum of nine generations may occur in a single year. This species is migratory and overwinter as larva.


This species has a worldwide distribution. It can be found in most of Europe, in the eastern Palearctic realm, in the Near East, in the Nearctic realm, in North Africa and in the Indomalayan realm.


This species lives in thickets, gardens and meadows rich of flowering plants.


Costaconvexa centrostrigaria, the traveller or bent-line carpet, is a moth in the  family Geometridae. It is native to most of North America, except the Arctic. It is an introduced species in Great Britain, the Canary Islands, the Azores and Madeira.
The wingspan is 17–23 mm. The wings are pale gray to reddish brown. The antemedial and postmedial lines form dark brown bands. There is a small black discal spot on all wings. The species is sexually dimorphic. Males have mostly grey wings while females have a dark median area. Adults are on wing from May to October in Ontario, March to November in north-eastern North America and year-round in Texas and the west. There are two or more generations per year.
The larvae feed on Polygonum species.


Samea multiplicalis, the salvinia stem-borer moth, is an aquatic moth commonly found in freshwater habitats from the southern United States to Argentina, as well as in Australia where it was introduced in 1981. Salvinia stem-borer moths lay their eggs on water plants like Azolla caroliniana (water velvet), Pistia stratiotes (water lettuce), and Salvinia rotundifolia (water fern). Larval feeding on host plants causes plant death, which makes S. multiplicalis a good candidate for biological control of weedy water plants like Salvinia molesta, an invasive water fern in Australia. However, high rates of parasitism in the moth compromise its ability to effectively control water weeds. S. multiplicalis larvae are a pale yellow to green color, and adults develop tan coloration with darker patterning. The lifespan, from egg to the end of adulthood is typically three to four weeks. The species was first described by Achille Guenée in 1854.


After they emerge from their cocoons, adult salvinia stem-borer moths spend the rest of their three- or four-week life span around their host plants, mating and laying eggs. Female moths lay an average of 150 eggs over the course of several days on the surfaces of host plant leaves or among hairs or leaflet structures. Moths prefer the host plant P. stratiotes for laying eggs due to its structure which provides abundant oviposition surfaces. Moths are not known to oviposit on E. crassipes. Adults are tan with darker markings on both sets of wings and a wingspan of about 20 mm. Adult size is not significantly affected by larval nutrition levels, however insufficient nitrogen during larval development does lead to reduced egg production in female moths.


Oedipoda caerulescens frequents dry areas with low and open vegetation: dunes, heathlands, grasslands on sand and sunlit limestone rocks. Many stations correspond to land recently used for human activities, such as coal spoil heaps, quarries and pits, the ballast of railway tracks, etc. It is exclusively a terrestrial insect, and its cryptic coloration often matches its substrate. It  presses itself to the ground and remains motionless, and jumps only at the very close approach of danger. A remarkable behavior is the "hook" landing which serves to confuse potential attackers. Thus, the grasshopper lands and swings round to face the direction it has come from. The sudden disappearance of the blue hind wings of the adult makes it difficult for predators to shift quickly enough to a different kind of search to relocate the prey. The female lays her eggs in bare, dry soil. In this species, acoustic emissions are virtually nonexistent. The diet consists mainly of grasses.


This species occurs in Europe, North Africa and Asia.
It was recently rediscovered in the Maltese islands.


Potamarcha congener is common through much of its range, which stretches through parts of South Asia, South-East Asia, and Oceania, including in countries such as India, Indonesia, China, Australia, and Vietnam. Owing to its wide distribution, the species has been classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.


Potamarcha congener, known as a yellow-tailed ashy skimmer, common chaser, or swampwatcher,
is a medium-sized dragonfly with a bluish black thorax and yellow tail with black markings. Face is olivaceous yellow to steel black or brown. Eyes are reddish brown above and bluish grey below. In male adults, the thorax and first four segments of the abdomen are covered with bluish pruinescence. In young adults, yellow markings are visible through the pruinescence. The rest of the abdomen is black with orange markings, with the last two segments entirely black. The female thorax has yellow and black stripes on the sides. The abdomen is black with dull orange markings, and has prominent flaps on each side of segment eight. The flaps may serve to hold the eggs in place during oviposition.
This dragonfly is found in terrestrial areas with standing water. This can include near small ponds, rice fields or marshes where it breeds.


The wingspan of D. elpenor that have been collected in Europe measure to be around 60–70 mm. There is also very little variation between the male and female D. elpenor. Adults are the most active during the month of June. They visit flowers and feed on the nectar at night, and are especially attracted to plants such as honeysuckles (lonicera).


Deilephila elpenor, the elephant hawk moth or large elephant hawk moth, is a moth in the family Sphingidae. Its common name is derived from the caterpillar's resemblance to an elephant's trunk. It is most common in central Europe and is distributed throughout the Palearctic region. It has also been introduced in British Columbia, Canada. Its distinct olive and pink colouring makes it one of the most recognisable moths in its range. However, it is quite easy to confuse the elephant hawk moth with the small elephant hawk moth, a closely related species that also shares the characteristic colours.
These moths are nocturnal and therefore feed on flowers that open or produce nectar at nighttime. The elephant hawk moth has very sensitive eyes that allow it to see colour even at low-light, and it was one of the first species in which nocturnal colour vision was documented in animals. The moth is also known for its hovering capability, which it utilises when feeding on nectar from flowers. This behaviour is costly in terms of energy and can help explain why the moth has evolved such enhanced visual capabilities for efficient feeding. The moths also have an important role as pollinators throughout their habitat.


The adult's wingspan is 18–21 mm; in their core range (e.g. Belgium and the Netherlands) they can be seen between April and November, but in outlying regions they may only be regularly encountered in late summer and early autumn, when vagrant individuals abound. This species is strongly sexually dimorphic: Males are light brown with a wavy pattern of whitish lines and a broad darker band running across the wings, forming concentric semicircles when the moth is at rest. There is a small whitish-rimmed black spot within the darker band between the centre and the leading edge of each forewing. The females are slightly larger and much darker, almost uniformly blackish brown with an indistinct lighter pattern and a forewing spot like the males have.
Adult caterpillars are greenish or brownish coloured and slightly tapered towards the head. The sides are yellowish, from the middle body segments light, dark-lined diamond spots which are black cored stand out


The caterpillar larvae feed on a wide range of low-growing core eudicots, but prefer asterids. Host plants recorded from the Central European part of its range include:
Euasterids I
Gentianales: Rubiaceae
Galium (bedstraws)
Solanales: Convolvulaceae
Convolvulus (true bindweeds)
Euasterids II
Asterales: Asteraceae
Anthemis (dog-fennels)
Chrysanthemum (chrysanthemums)
Eupatorium (bonesets)
Senecio (ragworts and groundsels) – e.g. common groundsel (S. vulgaris) in the British Isles
Eurosids II
Brassicales: Brassicaceae
Alyssum (alyssums)
Nasturtium (watercresses)
Basal core eudicots
Caryophyllales: Polygonaceae
Polygonum (knotweed)
Rumex (docks and sorrels)


Orthonama obstipata, the gem, is a moth of the family Geometridae. The species was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1794. It is a cosmopolitan species. In continental Europe though in the northeast, its range does not significantly extend beyond the Baltic region and it is absent from northern Russia. This well-flying species is prone to vagrancy and able to cross considerable distances of open sea; it can thus be regularly found on the British Isles (though mainly in the south) and even on Iceland.
Under its junior synonyms Nycterosea brunneipennis and Geometra fluviata, the gem is the type species of genera Nycterosea and Percnoptilota, respectively. The latter is treated as junior synonym of the former, but Nycterosea, though usually included in Orthonama these days, may warrant recognition as an independent genus after all.


Zygaena lonicerae have a wingspan of 30–46 millimetres (1.2–1.8 in). The forewings reach a length of 16–19 millimetres (0.63–0.75 in) in the females, while they are slightly smaller in males. The forewings usually show five crimson to vermilion spots and a black basic colour, with a strong bluish or blue-green reflection. The third spot is smaller than the fourth one. Head, thorax and abdomen are black and moderately to strongly hairy. The antennae are long and slender and slightly clavate (club shaped) and tapered. The females are similar to males, but the top of the front wing is slightly rounded and the abdomen and the thorax are less hairy. However this species is very variable. Usually the moth populations in alpine areas are much larger, while those from southern Europe are darker.


The moth flies during daytime from June to early August depending on the location. They suck nectar of the preferred blue violet flowers, such as on field scabious (Knautia arvensis), dove pincushion flower (Scabiosa columbaria), meadow knapweed (Centaurea jacea), panicle knapweed (Centaurea stoebe), creeping thistle (Cirsium arvense), bulbous thistle (Cirsium tuberosum) and ring thistle (Carduus).
The females lay eggs in July on the underside of leaves of the host plants or on plants that grow close to them. The eggs are pale yellow. The caterpillars reach a length of 19 to 28 millimetres. They are bluish green or pale yellow, with long pale hairs and a few rows of almost rectangular black spots.
The larva feed on various low-growing plants, including Trifolium (Trifolium medium, Trifolium montanum, Trifolium pratense, Trifolium repens)  and Lathyrus species (Lathyrus pratensis, Lathyrus linifolius, Lathyrus sativus), as well as Vicia, Lotus corniculatus, Lotus uliginosus, Onobrychis viciifolia. Larvae and pupae are occasionally parasitized by Tachinidae species (Phryxe magnicornis) and by some species of wasps.
The larva eat until late summer and early winter, and continue to develop in the following year. At the end of May the caterpillars are fully grown. The not fully grown caterpillars overwinter a second time. The caterpillars pupate in an elongated or spindle-shaped yellowish or white cocoon on grasses and other plants. The colour of pupa  varies from brown to black.


This species can be found in most of Europe, from Ireland to Fennoscandia, up to west of China. In the southern Europe the species is widespread from northern and central Spain to Turkey and the Caucasus.


The wingspan for this butterfly is 39 to 66 mm.


Colias interior, the pink-edged sulphur, is a species of North American butterfly in the family Pieridae.


There is one flight between June to August. The adult female lays eggs on blueberry plants.


Adults have dark brown wings with white bands and spots, and a small orange ring on each of the hindwings. Males have a wingspan of 70–80 millimetres (2.8–3.1 in), and have a purple-blue sheen caused by iridescence that the slightly larger (80–92 mm) females lack. The larvae (caterpillars) are green with white and yellow markings, and have two large "horns" at the anterior end and a smaller one at the posterior.


Females spend most of their lives in the tree canopy, favouring dense and mature oak woodlands, coming down only to lay their eggs on the small willow bushes that grow in clearings and bridleways. Males also spend much of their time in the tree tops, defending their territory from rivals, though they will sometimes descend to drink from puddles or feed. Unlike most butterflies, the purple emperor does not feed from flowers but instead on the honeydew secreted by aphids, sap oozing from oak trees, and on dung, urine, and animal carcasses.
Richard South noted that collectors once used animal carcasses "in a somewhat advanced state of decay" to lure the males down to the ground, adding that this practice was "unsportsmanlike"; otherwise one needed a "high net" mounted on a pole about 14 or 15 feet (about 4.5 metres) in length to capture them. Heslop et al. noted that the males' penchant for roadkill can often cause them to be killed by cars.


Apatura iris is widely distributed in dense, broadleaved woodlands throughout Europe including southern Britain, and across the Palearctic to central and western China. Different subspecies are found across the region (see below).


They lay eggs in late summer on the upperside of sallow leaves, preferring the broad-leaved sallow, Salix caprea, but they will also use the narrow-leaved sallow, Salix atrocinerea, and various species of poplar. (Poplar is a more common food plant in continental Europe than in the British Isles.) After hatching, the larvae will lie along the midrib of the leaf where they are well camouflaged, and feed only at night. During the winter they hibernate in the forks of sallow branches, where they change colour from green to brown to match their surroundings. (The larvae are variously stated to be reach 35–40 mm long when fully fed or 55–56 mm; it is hard to give definitive measurements, given that they lack a rigid structure.) The following June they form a pale green chrysalis, 30–35 mm long and 12–15 mm in width, resembling a leaf shoot. The adults usually emerge in July, flying well into August.


This moth is mostly white with brownish patches across all of the wings. There are small areas of pale gray on the forewings and hindwings. They resemble bird droppings while resting on the upper surface of leaves.The wingspan is 38 mm. to 48 mm. The wings are thinly scaled and partially transparent, with a white ground colour. The forewings are yellow-brown at the base and have a large, yellow and black spot at the dorsal edge, otherwise scattered, light grey spots, some of which form a cross-band in the outer part of the wing. The hindwings have a yellow and black spot at the edge of the inner edge, otherwise scattered, light grey spots. The larva has black and yellow longitudinal stripes.


The adults fly from late May to early August. They are attracted to light. The moth is nocturnal and is easy to find during the day. They are easy to find resting during the morning. The moth starts being active at early dusk. The moths eat the plants Betula, Corylus, Fagus, Ulmus, Prunus, and Frangula. Caterpillars appear from mid-July to early October. They overwinter as a pupa. The body of the caterpillar is distinctive because it is marked with longitudinal black and yellow stripes. The caterpillars feed on wych elm and European elm. The pupa hibernates underground. The caterpillars live on several deciduous trees such as Fagus sylvatica, Ulmus glabra, and Ulmus procera.


The species can be found from Europe to Japan. The moth can be found in forests, thickets, and sometimes parks on various deciduous trees.


Platynota exasperatana, the exasperating platynota moth, is a species of moth of the family Tortricidae. It is found in North America from Quebec to Florida, west to Texas and north to Michigan and Ontario.
The wingspan is about 13 mm. The forewings are pale grey, shaded with darker grey to blackish in the median and basal areas and marked with traces of black lines. The hindwings vary from light to dark brownish grey. Adults have been recorded on wing from July to August.


The immature Meadowhawk dragonflies feed on a various organisms that can be found in aquatic environments. Some of these insects include fly larvae, mosquito larva, mayfly larvae, shrimp, and other types of fish.
The adult Meadowhawks feed on smaller, typically flying insects. Many of their diet consists of insects from the order Diptera. This includes mosquitoes, flies, moth, mayflies, and even insects like mites or termites.


Sympetrum danae, the black darter or black meadowhawk is a dragonfly found in northern Europe, Asia, and North America.  At about 30 mm (1.2 in) long, it is Britain's smallest resident dragonfly. It is a very active late summer insect typical of heathland and moorland bog pools.
Members of the genus Sympetrum are known as darters in the UK and as meadowhawks in the US and Canada.


Commonly found in ponds, marshes, and on the edges of lakes and slow-moving streams, and creeks, adults and larvae feed on other insects, small crustaceans (crabs/crayfish), tadpoles, snails, and small fish. The adult swims with the aid of its hind legs. A pair of front fore limbs is used for capturing and latching onto its intended prey, which it then injects with digestive toxins through a somewhat retractable proboscis much like that of a mosquito. L. americanus tends to let its prey digest for 10–15 minutes before eating. Multiple L. americanus bugs have been seen to hunt and then share the same prey animal. Under water, the adult breathes air that it traps under its wings using two snorkel-like tubes that extend from the rear of its abdomen.
Commonly known as "toe biter", L. americanus may deliver a painful bite if handled or disturbed. However, it prefers to avoid humans rather than engage them whenever possible. If disturbed in the water, the speed of L. americanus allows it to quickly break away while its natural camouflage easily conceals it. Even if agitated on dry land, L. americanus will first attempt to escape or play dead before raising its fore limbs and hind quarters in what resembles a fighting stance. If agitation continues, L. americanus will use its fore limbs to latch onto the source of the agitation and attempt to deliver a painful bite. Also known as the "electric-light bug", it may be attracted by electric lights while flying at night. L. americanus is differentiated from a similar insect, Benacus griseus, by grooves found on its fore femora to accommodate the tibiae when folded tightly; L. americanus is very similar to L. uhleri.
Eggs are laid on vegetation located at the water's edge and may be guarded by an adult. The young nymphs then hatch about two weeks later. Adult females will alternate between feeding and mating, laying about 150 or more eggs in their lifetime. However, few nymphs survive to maturity due to cannibalism and other predators. Adults die over winter.


Lethocerus americanus is a giant water bug in the family Belostomatidae, native to southern Canada and the United States (north of 35°N; other Lethocerus species are found southwards). It typically has a length around 5–6 cm (2.0–2.4 in). It was originally classified as a species in genus Belostoma.


Three-lined potato beetles are found on plants in the family Solanaceae and are often agricultural pests to crops. They are commonly found on tomatillo (Physalis ixocarpa), which they can severely damage. They also feed on tomato and potato plants, but far less frequently.  They can also infest sacred datura. The larvae hatch in late June or July, feed on their host plant, and are often found in groups. The larvae cover themselves with their own excrement, probably as a natural defence against predation.


Adults can be found from April to August. They are polyphagous, mainly sucking vegetable juices of grasses, but also of other plants (Arrhenatherum elatius, Dactylis glomerata, Urtica dioica, Filipendula ulmaria, Aegopodium podagraria, etc.),
They can easily fly and are also equipped with very effective saltatory back legs, allowing jumps of up to 70 centimeters. They can extend their hindlegs in under a millisecond to execute a jump, implying elastic storage of energy for sudden release.
When they mate Cercopis male and female stay side by side with an angle of less than 45°. The female lays eggs at the end of summer in plants and trees that overwinter. Larvae live underground on the roots of various plants, inside a typical foam nest, that protects them from dehydration and against enemies. The nymph sucks vegetable juices out of the roots of the host plants. The nymph comes up in spring.


This species is present in most of Europe (Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Greece, Spain, the former Yugoslavia, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Hungary, Great Britain and Italy).


Bombus perplexus is a species of bumblebee known by the common name confusing bumblebee. It is native to northern North America, where it occurs across Canada and into the eastern United States.
The queen is 1.7 to 2.1 centimeters long and just under a centimeter wide at the abdomen. It is mostly black with areas of pale hairs. The worker female is 1.2 to 1.4 centimeters long and half a centimeter wide. It is hairier than the queen and has more yellow hairs. The abdomen is black and yellow. The male is the same size as the worker. The mandibles have reddish tips. It has white hairs on the head and legs and yellow and white hairs on the thorax.
This species occurs in the maritime regions of Canada, taiga, tundra, temperate forests, and the Canadian Prairies. It can be found in wetland habitat, wooded areas, and urban gardens. It feeds on many kinds of plants, such as bellflowers, thistles, honeysuckles, penstemons, pickerel weeds, and lindens. It may be a host to Fernald's cuckoo bumblebee (B. fernaldae).


Cecrita guttivitta, the saddled prominent moth, is a species of moth of the  family Notodontidae. It is found in North America, including Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Ontario, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
The wingspan is about 40 mm. Adults are brownish to greenish grey with white or black spots on the forewings.  There is one generation per year.
The larvae feed on the foliage of a wide range of woody plants, including apple, birch, blueberry, dogwood, hazel, maple, oak, sumac and walnut.


Polistes wasps, including Polistes instabilis, are large social wasps with yellow, brown and reddish markings. Body size ranges between 0.51–0.98 in (13–25 mm) with wings that are about 0.55 in (14 mm), which are folded longitudinally against the body. Male Polistes are typically smaller than females, have a yellow face, and hold their antenna curled at the tips, while females hold their antenna straight at the tips and have more dark markings on their faces.
Nests are constructed with paper substance made by chewing up plant fibers, and they are typically connected a surface by a stalk. The cells of the nest are not covered as they are in some other wasp species.


Polistes instabilis, a type of paper wasp, is a neotropical, eusocial wasp (family Vespidae) that can be found in tropical and subtropical areas such as Central America and South America. It can be easily identified with its characteristic yellow, brown, and reddish markings, and it builds nests made from chewing plant fibers and making them into paper.
Colonies are usually initiated in the spring after the foundresses have emerged from the winter. Either one or a few queens found each colony by laying eggs, which develop into workers. Although there are no morphological differences between queens and workers, queens can be identified easily by their dominant interactions with workers. While queens are responsible for laying eggs, workers are responsible for gathering materials for the nest, tending to the young, and foraging for food. This species tends to feed on nectar as well as arthropods such as caterpillars.


Platynota rostrana, the omnivorous platynota moth, is a species of moth of the family Tortricidae. It is found from the United States (where it has been recorded from Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia), south through Mexico and Central America to South America (including Venezuela and Brazil). Its native range also includes the West Indies. It has been recorded from Europe, where it may temporarily establish through accidental importation in tropical plants.
The wingspan is 13–17 mm.
The larvae feed on various plants, including Citrus species. On Citrus, they have been recorded damaging unripe fruits and leaves. First instar larvae scrape the leaves and fruits. They use plant debris, feces and silk strands to build cocoons from which they emerge to feed and in which they remain until pupation. Later, they feed through fruit skin or bore holes.


Carcina quercana is a species of moth of the family Depressariidae. It is found in Europe. It has been introduced recently in North America, British Columbia and western Washington. It is occasionally known by several common names including oak lantern, long-horned flat-body, and oak-skeletonizer moth (the last most common in North America).
The wingspan is 16–20 mm.The forewings are light ochreous, more or less purple-tinged, sprinkled with dark fuscous ; costal edge purple ; a yellow blotch along costa near base, and another beyond middle ; a fuscous transverse line at 1/4, followed by a
yellowish suffusion towards dorsum ; stigmata dark grey, plical usually faint ; a terminal purple line ; cilia bright yellow except on tornus. Hindwings are yellow-whitish, apex rosy-tinged.The larva is pale green; dorsal line dairker, paler -edged; head yellowish-green,
The larvae feed on various deciduous trees, including oak and beech.


Caterpillars feed on plants from the families Acanthaceae, Amaranthaceae, Malvaceae, Rubiaceae, Tiliaceae and Verbenaceae. Recorded species include Alternanthera sessilis, Barleria cristata, Barleria prionitis, Blechum pyramidatum, Cannabis sativa, Corchorus capsularis, Dyschoriste repens, Eranthemum pulchellum, Hemigraphis schomburgkii, Hygrophila auriculata, Hygrophila costata, Hygrophila lancea, Lepidagathis formosensis, Lepidagathis incurva, Nelsonia canescens, Ophiorrhiza japonica, Phyla nodiflora, Ruellia tuberosa, Sida rhombifolia, and Strobilanthes formosanus.


Junonia lemonias, the lemon pansy, is a common nymphalid butterfly found in Cambodia and South Asia. It is found in gardens, fallow land, and open wooded areas.


Eggs are laid singly on the underside of leaves. The egg is green and barrel shaped with longitudinal ridges.


Recorded food plants of the larvae include Fraxinus and possibly Quercus species.
Larvae then dig underground to pupate.
Most common predator is the Guiana Striped Scorpion, which feasts on the moth's egg clusters.  The common proximity of the two species, sometimes showing up as the moth lays her eggs, has resulted in erroneous conclusions that the moths give birth to the scorpions, and the resultant name "Scorpion Moth."


It is found in the United States, and southern Canada, east of the Rocky Mountains. Adult moths are strictly nocturnal, hiding away as dawn approaches (Fullard & Napoleone 2001).


The common crow is a glossy-black butterfly with brown undersides with white markings along the outer margins of both wings. The wingspan is about 8–9 cm and the body has prominent white spots. The male has a velvety black brand located near the rear edge on the upperside of the forewing. On the underside there is a white streak in the same location. This white streak is present in both male and female. In its natural position this streak is hidden behind the hindwing and can be seen only when the butterfly is captured and observed closely.
Excerpt from Fauna of British India: Butterflies, volume 1:
Upperside dark brown, broadly paler along terminal margins; Fore and hind wing with subterminal and terminal series of white spots; on fore wing the former more or less oval, curved inwards opposite apex, the latter series often incomplete, not reaching apex, the spots smaller; often there is a small costal spot, and very rarely a spot in apex of cell and one or more discal spots; on the hind wing the inner series of spots are elongate, the outer conical.
Underside similar, but ground-colour more uniform; cell, costal and discal spots on both fore and hind wing nearly always present.
Race godarti (=E. godarti) (Northeast India and Myanmar) Fore wing subtriangular, tornus more rounded than in E. core. Hindwing broadly ovate. Upperside dark brown, broadly paler along the terminal margins, especially on the fore wing. Fore wing with more or less incomplete and obsolescent series of subterminal and terminal small white spots, and a powdering of violaceous-white scales at apex, varying very considerably in extent from a mere trace of violaceous between the veins to a large and very conspicuous patch occupying the whole of the apex. Hind wing with a subterminal series of oval or inwardly conical and terminal series of more rounded white spots.
Underside paler brown, the white spots larger, more clearly defined. Fore wing not violaceous at apex, a spot (sometimes absent) in apex of cell, and two or three discal spots. Hindwing: a spot in apex of cell, also sometimes absent, and a discal series of five small spots beyond. Antennae, head, thorax and abdomen very dark brown, and, the antennae excepted, sparsely spotted with white.
— Charles Thomas Bingham, The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Butterflies Vol. 1


(Euploea core) with hair pencils everted to disperse sex pheromone at Sattal India
It is found in southern Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Russia, and Australia.
In its range E. core is found at all elevations, right from sea level up into the mountains to 2,400 metres (8,000 ft). It can be observed in all layers of vegetation and in all types of regions from arid land to forested areas. It can as commonly be seen gliding over the treetops as flitting about a foot off the ground searching for nectar flowers. In thick forests it is often seen moving along open tracks or following the course of a river.
The butterfly, being protected by its inedibility, has a leisurely flight. It is often seen flying about shrubs and bushes in search of its host plants. It visits a large variety of flowering plant species. When gliding E. core holds its wings at an angle just greater than the horizontal plane, maintaining its flight with a few measured wingbeats.
E. core is a nectar lover and visits flowers unhurriedly. It seems to prefer bunches to individual flowers. When feeding the butterfly is unhurried and is not easily disturbed. It can be approached closely at this time.
On hot days large numbers of these butterflies can be seen mud-puddling on wet sand. E. core is an avid mud-puddler often congregating in huge swarms along with other Euploea species as well as other danaids.
This butterfly also gathers on damaged parts of plants such as Crotalaria and Heliotropium to forage for pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are chemicals precursors to produce pheromones. During courtship the males of E. core release these sex pheromones to attract females. Once a female is in the vicinity the males glide around and with the help of a couple of yellow brush like organs extending out from the tip of the abdomen they disperse the scent in the air.
Along with other danaids, such as the tigers, E. core is one of the most common migrating butterfly species. Males and females in equal proportions have been seen to migrate.


Euploea core, the common crow, is a common butterfly found in South Asia to Australia. In India it is also sometimes referred to as the common Indian crow, and in Australia as the Australian crow. It belongs to the crows and tigers subfamily Danainae (tribe Danaini).
E. core is a glossy-black, medium-sized 85–95 mm (3.3–3.7 in) butterfly with rows of white spots on the margins of its wings. E. core is a slow, steady flier. Due to its unpalatability it is usually observed gliding through the air with a minimum of effort. As caterpillars, this species sequesters toxins from its food plant which are passed on from larva to pupa to the adult. While feeding, it is a very bold butterfly, taking a long time at each bunch of flowers. It can also be found mud-puddling with others of its species and often in mixed groups. The males of this species visit plants like Crotalaria and Heliotropium to replenish pheromone stocks which are used to attract a female during courtship.
The common crow is the most common representative of its genus, Euploea. Like the tigers (genus Danaus), the crows are inedible and thus mimicked by other Indian butterflies (see Batesian mimicry). In addition, the Indian species of the genus Euploea show another kind of mimicry, Müllerian mimicry. Accordingly, this species has been studied in greater detail than other members of its genus in India.


Eggs are laid on the underside of young leaves of the host plants. The egg is shiny white, tall and pointed, with ribbed sides. Just before hatching the eggs turn greyish with a black top.


Feltia subterranea, formerly known as Agrotis subterranea, and commonly known as the granulate cutworm or tawny shoulder, is a moth of the family Noctuidae. It is found in North America, from Massachusetts and New York to California and the southern parts of the United States and Mexico. It is also present in Central America and South America where it has been reported in Honduras, Costa Rica, Cuba, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, South-East Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, the Antilles.
The wingspan is 38–44 mm.
The larvae feed on a wide range of plants, including over 61 hosts of economic importance.
The adults are a pollinator of fetterbush lyonia.


Diaphania hyalinata, the melonworm moth,  is a moth of the family Crambidae. It is found in eastern North America, south to Central and South America, including Suriname and the Caribbean.
The wingspan is 27–30 mm. The wings are pearly white centrally, and slightly iridescent, but are edged with a broad band of dark brown. Adults are on wing from October to November in the northern part of the range and all year round in multiple generations in Florida and further south.
The larvae feed on various plants in the cucumber family, including cucumber, melon, pumpkin, and squash. They construct a loose silken structure under the leaves of their host plant.


The larvae feed on Helianthus annuus, Medicago sativa, Linum usatissimum, Gossypium hirsutum, Sorghum bicolor and Atriplex species.


Achyra affinitalis, the cotton web spinner, is a moth of the family Crambidae. It was described by Julius Lederer in 1863 and is found in Australia and New Zealand.


The adults do not eat much but their diet consists of nectar and plant juice. The larvae diet consists of grubs of wood-boring beetles. The larvae are voracious on wood borers, and that during their development caged specimens were observed to devour more than 200 cerambycid larvae each.


This species is present in Central and North America. It can be found in deciduous/mixed forests and woodlands.


Eggs are laid in soil or on standing deadwood. Many larvae from the click beetle family Elateridae are commonly referred to as wireworms and are prominent agricultural pests that feast on plant matter. However, the larvae of Alaus oculatus are unique among wireworms because they are predatory to other beetle larvae feeding in decaying wood, especially Cerambycidae. The larva pupate in rotting logs or below the ground and the adults emerge in the spring and are commonly found until September.


The wingspan is 51–58 mm. Palpi with black spots on 1st and 2nd joints. Forewings brownish fuscous. There is a basal orange patch with two subbasal black spots and a series of three spots on its outer edge, that matches the coloration of the scales of the thorax. The veins are streaked with white. There is a white spot at lower angle of the discal cell. Hindwings are orange yellow, with a black spot at the end of the discal cell, one beyond, one below vein 2 and a submarginal irregular series which sometimes becomes a nearly complete marginal band. The veins crossing the band are yellowish. Larva black above, with two dorsal white bands, a sub-dorsal black spot on each somite. A series of lateral black specks present with sparse black hairs. Ventral coloration brown, head capsule is reddish.


Asota caricae, the tropical tiger moth, is a species of noctuoid moth in the family Erebidae. It is found from the Indo-Australian tropics of India and Sri Lanka to Queensland and Vanuatu.


The larvae have been recorded on Ficus, Broussonetia, Mesua, Tectona and Shorea species. Pupation is in a slight cocoon, fixed to a leaf. The species is found in forest and agricultural areas.


This species is widespread throughout the Mediterranean region (Corsica, Greece, Italy, Morocco, Sardinia, Sicily).


Charadra dispulsa is a moth of the family Noctuidae. Its range spans from Texas southward and westward to at least San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
The wingspan is about 34 mm. Adults are on wing from March through May and July in southern Texas.
Nothing is known of the larval stages or food plants, but the larvae are possibly oak feeders.


Anicla infecta is a moth of the family Noctuidae, described by Ochsenheimer in 1816. It is known as the green cutworm when a caterpillar and the green cutworm moth when mature. It is found from south-eastern Canada (Nova Scotia and Quebec) through the eastern United States and until Uruguay.
The wingspan is 30–35 mm. Adults are on wing from June to September depending on the location.
The larvae feed on beets, grasses and tobacco. Adults are a pollinator of fetterbush lyonia.


Loxura atymnus, the yamfly, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia.


Loxura atymnus  uses Smilax zeylanica  (Order:  Smilacaceae)  and  Dioscorea pentaphylla (Order: Dioscoreaceae) as host plant. Smilax  zeylanica is preferred for Oviposition and  eggs are laid singly  at  the  base  of  young  shoots. Before hatching parts of the egg shell are consumed. Just  after their emergence from the egg shells the hatchlings (1.23 ± 0.11 mm) consumed the  remaining  part  of  the  egg  shell, then they start feeding leaves. The first htree instars take 2–3 days. The fourth instar stops feeding after four days and attaches itself with a silk girdle and builds the pupal case. 15  to  16  days after hatching from eggs the pupation takes place. The adult butterflies emerged from the pupae after 7.7 (±0.27)  days.  The  total  life  cycles  were  completed  in  23–26  days in laboratory conditions and may be change with temperature changes. This short duration of life cycle enables the butterfly species to complete several life  cycles  within  a  year.


Micrathyria hagenii, the thornbush dasher, is a species of skimmer in the dragonfly family Libellulidae. It is found in the Caribbean Sea, Central America, and North America.
The IUCN conservation status of Micrathyria hagenii is "LC", least concern, with no immediate threat to the species' survival. The population is stable. The IUCN status was reviewed in 2017.


Vespa affinis forages close to the ground in grassy areas, forest and wasteland. It has a versatile diet of both carbohydrates such as tree sap, nectar, fruits and larvae saliva and proteinaceous food such as carrion, paper wasps (Polistinae) and bees (Apidae)). Its diet is mainly composed of liquid foods such as nectar from flowers. It also eats bees and collects meat from freshly dead insects. In Singapore it preys on flies attracted to carrion.
The nest of Vespa affinis are built high in trees, but also low in shrubs as well as on houses. Nests built in high trees are generally elongated. In tropical areas the nest is pear-shaped or drop-shaped, but in subtropical regions it is oval with a rounded top. Small nests are ball shaped with a side entrance while larger nests are vertically elongated and may have multiple entrances. The nests have an imbricate envelope with many individual overlapping circular layers of papering. It can reach more than 60 cm in length in tropical regions.
Vespa affinis has gained notoriety in Indonesia for its aggressive behavior and powerful sting, which has a potential for causing a life-threatening anaphylaxis. In 2018, it is reported that seven people died from V. affinis stings.


Vespa affinis, the lesser banded hornet, is a common hornet in tropical and subtropical Asia.


In subtropical Hong Kong, the queens awake from hibernation in April and the colony usually dies in late November or December. In tropical areas, it remains present all year.
In tropical areas, the lesser banded hornet is known for multiple queen founding and swarm founding (pleometrosis), where several queens or multiple queens with a swarm of workers from the old nest start a new one together.


Male. Upperside dark brown, with a more or less violet tinge. Forewing usually with three short orange-red transverse bands in the upper part of the wing, these bands are of various lengths in different specimens, and all descend from near the costa downwards, the sub-apical band the shortest, the discal band the longest, in some examples there is an orange- red sub-basal mark, and another on the costa at its middle, and there is also an indication of a sub-marginal band. Hindwing with an anal orange-red patch, which in most examples narrows upwards for a short distance sub-marginally, a small black spot in the anal lobe, another on the margin between the two tails, both with some silvery-blue scales attached to them; tails black, with minute white tips, the orange-red colour of the anal patch running half way up both of them; both wings with black outer marginal line and whitish cilia with a black base. Underside pale whitish-sulphury-yellow, bands red-brown edged with dark In-own, with inner silvery macular lining. Forewing with a thin sub-costal basal streak, a short, club-shaped medial basal streak, a broad band from the costal fourth to vein 2 with a dark brown mark below it which extends inwards to the base, a medial band forked upwards above its middle, is outwardly oblique and touches the sub-marginal band, a little above the sub-median vein, a short sub-apical band composed of two conjoined oval spots, from the costa to the middle of the interspace below vein 4, where it touches the sub-marginal band; all these bands have irregular edges; the sub-marginal baud. which is narrower than the others, is nearly straight and ends in a diffuse brownish space at the hinder angle, a slightly narrower marginal band, without the inner silvery lining. Hindwing with five transverse bands from the costa all ending in the diffuse greyish anal patch; the first basal, commencing in al macular form, and then curved outwards close to the abdominal margin, the next three straight down from the costa, sub-basal, medial and discal, the sub-basal band ending in a slightly outwardly curved point which nearly touches the middle band, the discal band joins the curved fifth band at vein 2, this band runs from the apex of the wing in a somewhat recurved form and nearly joins the termination of the middle band; in some examples the anal patch is somewhat rufous, in others it is rufous-grey; the anal lobe has a large black spot and there is a somewhat smaller spot on the margin between the two tails, and there is a sub-marginal row of four black lunules from the outer tail upwards, and a short streak with silvery specks in it, above the anal lobe along and near to the abdominal margin. Antennae black, with white segmental dots, club with a red tip; frons white, with a black middle stripe; head and body above and below concolorous with the wings.
Female. Upperside of a duller and paler brown colour. Forewing with all the orange-red bands broader and more extended hindwards, with an additional orange-red macular band close to the outer margin which varies in extent and distinctness in
different examples. Hindwing with bands of the underside often more or less visible through the wing, the anal orange-red patch extended on each side forming a band attenuated upwards close to the outer margin and usually ends a little above the

middle. Underside as in the male, but the bands are broader and usually more red.
— Charles Swinhoe, Lepidoptera Indica. Vol. IX
The wingspan is 26–34 mm.


They are difficult to disturb when nectaring on flowers but are able to fly fast erratically. Even when disturbed they return to the same spot a moment later. Mainly, they are found near their host plants.


Cigaritis vulcanus, the common silverline, is a species of lycaenid or blue butterfly found in Asia. It was first described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775.


This species is native in the Palearctic, but has also spread to the Nearctic and Oriental region. It has been found outside its native range countries such as Australia, South Africa, Kenya, India, China, Canada, the United States, and Chile, often through intended introduction to control crop pests.
This species mainly inhabits fields, meadows, gardens and shrubs, more than bushes and trees. It prefers dry, rough vegetation.


Micrurus tener, commonly known as the Texas coral snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to the southern United States and northeastern and central Mexico. Five subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies, Micrurus tener tener, which is found in both the US and Mexico, and is also commonly known as the Texas coral snake. The species Micrurus tener was once considered to be a subspecies of the eastern coral snake (Micrurus fulvius).


The Texas coral snake has the traditional coloration associated with coral snakes: black, yellow, and red rings. It is capable of growing to 48 in (122 cm) in total length (including tail), but most are closer to 24 in (61 cm). Males are typically smaller than females. It has smooth dorsal scales, a rounded head, and the eyes have round pupils. Albinistic (lacking black pigment) and anerythristic (lacking red pigment) specimens have been found in the wild. "Pastel" (pink, translucent cream, and very light blue) coloration has been noted, and completely black (melanistic) specimens, are known. The Texas coral snake is somewhat larger (longer and stouter) than the eastern coral snake (Micrurus fulvius), and has a somewhat larger venom yield.


Lampropeltis getula, commonly known as the eastern kingsnake, common kingsnake, or chain kingsnake,  is a harmless colubrid species endemic to the United States and Mexico. It has long been a favorite among collectors. Nine subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.


L. getula eats other snakes, including venomous snakes such as copperheads (Agkistrodon contortrix), which are responsible for more venomous snakebites than any other in the United States, as well as coral snakes (Micruroides and Micrurus), massasaugas (Sistrurus catenatus), and other rattlesnakes (Crotalus and Sistrurus). Among the non-venomous snakes preyed upon include common garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis), common watersnakes (Nerodia sipedon), ring-necked snakes (Diadophis punctatus), smooth earth snakes (Virginia valeriae), and worm snakes (Carphophis amoenus).
It has developed a hunting technique to avoid being bitten by clamping down on the jaws of the venomous prey, but even if envenomated, it is immune. It also eats amphibians, turtle eggs, bird eggs (including those of the northern bobwhite [Colinus virginianus]), lizards (such as five-lined skinks [Plestiodon fasciatus]), and small mammals (such as white-footed mice [Peromyscus leucopus]), which it kills by constriction.
Due to their diet of eating other snake species, kingsnakes are a key factor in the spread of Ophidiomycosis. This is a relatively new snake fungal disease originating from the fungus, Ophidiomyces ophidiicola. This disease has a variety of impacts on snakes and the extent of this impact is still being researched.


Adult specimens of the speckled kingsnake, L. g. holbrooki, are the smallest race at 91.5 cm (36.0 in) in snout-to-vent length (SVL) on average, while L. g. getula is the largest at 107 cm (42 in) SVL on average. Specimens up to 208.2 cm (82.0 in) in total length (including tail) have been recorded. Weight can vary from 285 g (10.1 oz) in a small specimen of 87.2 cm (34.3 in) in total length, to 2,268 g (80.0 oz) in large specimens, of over 153 cm (60 in) in total length.
The color pattern consists of a glossy black, blue black, or dark brown ground color, overlaid with a series of 23-52 white chain-like rings. Kingsnakes from the coastal plains have wider bands, while those found in mountainous areas have thinner bands or may be completely black.


The preferred habitats of L. getula are open areas, particularly grassland, but also chaparral, oak woodland, abandoned farms, desert, low mountains, sand, and any type of riparian zone, including swamps, canals, and streams. A study on the habitat use of the Eastern Kingsnake found that overall they prefer and can be found in sites with thick layer of leaf litter and dense shrubbery. From their observations throughout the course of research, they found that 79% of their tracked specimen spent the majority of their time concealed under the cover of soil and leaf litter.
Although commonly described as diurnal, some reports suggest that the Eastern Kingsnake are crepuscular or nocturnal during the hottest parts of the year
It has been found that Eastern Kingsnake home ranges often show little-to-no overlap.
Some studies show that Eastern Kingsnakes (L. g. getula), especially males, are territorial, and will commence in combat if their territory is threatened by another snake.


L. getula is oviparous. Adult females lay up to several dozen eggs that hatch after 2.0-2.5 months of incubation. Hatchlings are brightly colored and feed on small snakes, lizards, and rodents. Eastern Kingsnakes (L. g. getula) are active from April–October in most parts of their habitat range and breeding occurs in the spring months. Neck-biting is a common behavior when mating.


Long a favorite among collectors, L. getula does well in captivity, living to 25 years or more. Some of the most popular subspecies of the common kingsnake kept in captivity are the California, Brooks', Florida, and Mexican black kingsnakes.


Harmless to humans, these lizards are known to run from potential threats.  When disturbed, the chuckwalla enters crevices between rocks and inflates its lungs using a gular pump. Lung inflation distends its body and wedges the lizard tightly in place.
Males are seasonally and conditionally territorial; an abundance of resources tends to create a hierarchy based on size, with one large male dominating the area's smaller males. Chuckwallas use a combination of color and physical displays, namely "push ups", head-hobbing, and gaping of the mouth to communicate and defend their territory.
Chuckwallas are diurnal animals, and as they are ectothermic, spend much of their mornings and cooler days basking.  These lizards are well adapted to desert conditions; they are active at temperatures up to 102 °F (39 °C). Chuckwallas brumate during cooler months and emerge in February.
Mating occurs from April to July, with five to 16 eggs laid between June and August. The eggs hatch in late September.


Primarily herbivorous, the chuckwalla eats creosote bush flowers, leaves, fruit, and occasionally insects.


Sauromalus ater, also known as the common chuckwalla, is a species of lizard in the family Iguanidae.  It inhabits the Sonoran and Mojave Deserts of the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Its range extends from eastern California, Utah, and Nevada south to Baja California and Sonora.


The common chuckwalla is a large, flat-bodied lizard with a large, rounded belly, and a wide-based, blunt-tipped tail.  Reaching a total length of 20 in and a weight of .9 kg (2.0 lb).  Small scales cover its body, with larger scales protecting the ear openings.  The coloration of these lizards varies by location and between juveniles and adults, as well as between males and females. In adult males, the head, shoulder, and pelvic regions are black, while the midbody is light tan speckled with brown.  Adult females are brownish in color with a scattering of dark red spots. Young chuckwallas have four or five broad bands across their bodies, and three or four on the tail which are lost in adulthood by males, but retained somewhat by females.


Natrix maura is a natricine water snake of the genus Natrix. Its common name is viperine water snake or viperine snake. Despite its common names, it is not a member of the subfamily Viperinae. This nonvenomous, semiaquatic, fish-eating snake was given its common names due to behavioural and aesthetic similarities with sympatric adder species.


The viperine snake looks like an adder and behaves like one. It is known to strike like an adder, but not bite. However, when in water, the viperine snake then looks like a grass snake and hunts its prey in the same way. This snake is diurnal.
Viperine water snakes are not aggressive and rarely bite. They spend most of their time in water hunting fish, frogs and other aquatic animals.


The viperine snake is found in southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa. Specifically, N. maura is found in the European countries of: Portugal, Spain, France, northernwest Italy, and even into Switzerland. It has spread to areas of England, as well. It is found in African countries of Morocco, northern Algeria, northwestern Libya, and northern to central Tunisia.


N. maura is gray, brown, or reddish dorsally, with a black zigzag vertebral stripe, and lateral series of black ocelli with yellow centers. The labials are yellow with black sutures. It has a diagonal dark band on each temple, and another behind it on each side of the neck. Ventrally, it is yellow or red, checkered with black, or all black.
The strongly keeled dorsal scales are arranged in 21 rows. The ventrals are 147–160; the anal plate is divided; and the paired subcaudals number 47–72.
Adults may attain a total length of 85 cm (33 inches), with a tail 17 cm (7 inches) long.


The viperine snake is found in rivers and lakes, and has also been recorded from areas of brackish water.


Emerald swifts are diurnal, arboreal lizards. In the early morning they forage for insects, and then spend much of the day basking in the sun. They will retreat to a burrow, or under a rock or log if the temperature becomes too high or to sleep. Their life spans are believed to be between three and five years. Unlike most iguanid lizards, emerald swifts are ovoviviparous, giving birth to six to 15 young yearly.


Emerald swifts are distinctly bright green in color, with males typically being more striking than females, having bright blue patches on either side of the belly. They grow from 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) in length. Like other species in the genus Sceloporus, their scales tend to be fairly stiff and heavily keeled, giving them a spiny texture.


Adults may attain a total length of 172 cm (68 in), which includes a tail 59 cm (23 in) long.
Dorsally, Leptophis ahaetulla is bright green, golden, or bronzy. The keels of the dorsal scales are black or dark brown. The head shields and the dorsal scales may be edged with black. On each side of the head is a black streak which passes through the eye. The upper lip and the belly are white or yellow. The species was thought to be non-venomous, but it is mildly venomous with localized pain, swelling and a feeling "pins and needles" being the symptoms of envenomation. Symptoms disappear after a few hours.
The head is elongated and distinct from the neck. The eye is large with a round pupil. The body is slender, and the tail is long.
The dorsal scales are arranged in 15 rows at mid-body and are strongly keeled except in the first row on each side (the row adjacent to the ventrals), where they are smooth.  They are also smooth on the neck and tail.
Ventrals 151-167 are strongly angulate at the sides, the anal plate is divided, and subcaudals 140-173 are divided.
The loreal scale is absent, and the prefrontals extend through the loreal region to contact the upper labials. There are usually 2 postoculars, and the temporals are 1 + 2. There are 8-9 upper labials, of which the 4th & 5th (or 5th & 6th) enter the eye. The anterior chin shields are shorter than the posterior chin shields.


It feeds on lizards, frogs, and small birds.


Leptophis ahaetulla, commonly known as the lora or parrot snake, is a species of medium-sized slender snake of the family Colubridae. It is endemic to Central America and northern South America.


Leptodeira septentrionalis, the northern cat-eyed snake, is a species of medium-sized, slightly venomous snake, found from southern Texas to Costa Rica.


The northern cat eye is primarily arboreal and entirely nocturnal. At night it hunts for frogs and their eggs, it is particularly known for feeding on those of the red-eyed tree frog. It swallows eggs and small frogs alive but kills larger frogs with mild venom from its enlarged, grooved rear fangs. When threatened it is able to flatten its head and spread its jaws although it rarely bites people.


The northern cat eye is medium size (up to 1 m). In general females are slightly longer than males. They have smooth scales, with dark brown line or spot beside the eye and dark brown blotches (which can fuse to form a zigzag) running down their backs, these spots may vary in pattern geographically. Its head is distinctly wider than its neck and it has large bulging eyes with reddish irises and light brown elliptical pupils.


The northern cat eye is found in North America: US (S Texas), Mexico (Chiapas, Nuevo León, Quéretaro, Oaxaca, Puebla, Coahuila, Jalisco, Campeche, Yucatán, Quintana Roo, Nayarit), Guatemala, Honduras, Belize, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. It is found at elevations of 0–1940 m above sea level.
Within Costa Rica it is found on both Caribbean and Pacific coasts up to 1200m above sea level in a wide variety of habitats but most common at edges of ponds where amphibians breed. Including in Golfo Dulce.


The Northern cat eye is oviparous and produces clutches of 6–13 eggs. As in other snake species delayed egg fertilisation can occur (fertile eggs can be laid up to several years after copulation). Developing snakes are nourished by a yolk sac for 79 to 90 days at which time they break through the outer shell using an  egg tooth. The egg tooth is lost after hatching. Young northern cat-eyed snakes appear identical to adults but feature much fresher coloration. The snakes will continue to grow throughout their entire lives.


Holcosus festivus, commonly known as the Central American whiptail, the Middle American ameiva, and the tiger ameiva, is a species of lizard in the family Teiidae. The species is native to Central America and northern South America.


Lampropholis delicata, the delicate skink, dark-flecked garden sun skink, garden skink, delicate garden skink, rainbow skink or  plague skink, or the metallic skink is native to Australia and invasive in New Zealand and Hawaii where it is commonly found in gardens. The species is known for their color dimorphism between males and females; striped morphs and non-striped morphs exist in this species, however the stripe is less pronounced in males. This species' diet consists of a wide range of prey, such as spiders, bees, larvae, and termites. Mating occurs in the late summer and generally one clutch of 2 to 4 eggs are laid per year by each female.


Lampropholis delicata was accidentally imported to the Hawaiian islands from Australia around the 1900s via shipments of plant materials and lumber. It was noted as an unreported specimen taken on the Oahu island and identified as a Lipinia noctua at that time. However, it was later classified as Lygosoma metallicum (the metallic skink) because of its physical appearance. L. metallicum, which is now known as L. delicata, are most common on the Oahu island but are also present on other islands in Hawaii, including the main island and Kauai. These lizards bear great importance in Hawaiian zoogeography because they have established high-altitude records amidst all the Hawaiian reptiles at 1220 meters on the Kauai island and 1130 meters on the main island. In fact, these lizards prefer and thrive at much higher and wetter altitudes in Hawaii and other species of lizards. Because these lizards are semi-mountainous and found in dry to wet sclerophyll forests, they are distributed throughout the dry lowland and wet upland.
The three populations of L. delicata found on the main island, Oahu, and Kauai differ with respect to their average body length and in the numbers of eggs they produce. Female lizards at a sexually mature age are larger on the big island and Kauai relative to those on Oahu. The Oahu females average about 38.6 millimeters in body length while those from the main island and Kauai average a length of 41.2 millimeters and 41.8 millimeters respectively. It is theorized that Oahu females grow to a relatively smaller body size because of their higher population densities, thus creating competition amongst individuals for food and space availability.  Competition against other species might also be a possibility, and the inter and intraspecific competition experienced by Oahu females may also serve to explain the reduced egg production, as generally body size correlates to clutch size (smaller individuals with less internal body capacity lay fewer eggs than larger individuals). As such, Oahu females have a lower average number of eggs per clutch relative to the sexually mature female lizards on the main island and Kauai. Female lizards from Oahu have an average of 2.9 eggs, while the main island females average 4.7 eggs per clutch and Kauai females average 4.1 eggs per clutch.


As a result of topographic and dry habitat barriers, Lampropholis delicata have evolved to demonstrate a complex mosaic of non-overlapping, geographically oriented clades and subclades. Since the accidental introduction of L. delicata into eastern Australian habitats, many biogeographic barriers and climatic oscillations have contributed to the evolutionary history of these lizards. They reside over a vast array of moist habitats, including woodland and heaths, sclerophyll forests, and rainforests, while also making appearances in suburban gardens near the eastern coast. L. delicata can be classified into nine main clades, which diverged during the late Miocene through Pliocene epochs. This divergence correlates to a period of a drying climate in the rainforest habitats, which restricted the rainforests to a series of disjunct remnants. L. delicata, which resides on the fringes of the rainforest, thus probably also encountered similar fragmentation and reduction. Dry habitat corridors suggest that drier vegetation served as effective barriers to enable these mesic-adapted lizards to disperse, and high elevation areas—which are patchy remnants of the moist rainforests—located more inland have also created such geographic isolation, as they offer a wetter and cooler refuge for these lizards. Additionally, the phylogeographic breaks demonstrated by L. delicata along with many other lizard species is believed to be caused by cycles of marine inundation experienced by the area since the Miocene epoch.


Dendrelaphis pictus (painted bronzeback) is a species of snake found in Southeast Asia and India.


In the painted bronzeback the maxillary teeth number from 23 to 26, the eye is as long as the distance between the nostril and eye. The rostral scale is more broad than deep, and is visible from above. Internasal scales are as long as, or slightly shorter than, the praefrontal scales. The frontal scale is as long as its distance from the rostral or the tip of the snout, but shorter than the parietal scales. The loreal is long and there is one preocular and two postoculars. The temporal scales are 2+2, 1+1, or 1+2. There are nine (seven or eight) upper labials, with the fifth and sixth (or fourth to sixth) entering the eye. This snake has five (four) lower labials in contact with the anterior chin shields the latter shorter than the posterior, which are separated by one anterior and two posterior scales. Scales are in 15 rows, vertebrals about as large as the outer; Ventrals number 151–204, the anal scale is divided, and subcaudals number 103–174.
The snake's colouration is olive or brown above with a yellow lateral stripe, bordered below by a dark line between the outer scales and the ventrals. A black stripe on each side of the head passes through the eye, widens or breaks up into spots, separated by bluish-green bands on the nape. The upper lip is yellow, and the lower surface yellowish or greenish. Length of head and body approximately 740 mm and the tail 440 mm.


Pantherophis emoryi, commonly known as the Great Plains rat snake, is a species of nonvenomous rat snake native to the central part of the United States, from Missouri to Nebraska, to Colorado, south to Texas, and into northern Mexico.


Great Plains rat snakes prefer open grassland or lightly forested habitats, but are also found on coastal plains, semi-arid regions, as well as rocky, moderately mountainous regions. They can often be found on farmland, which often leads it to be erroneously called the chicken snake, and other areas with a relatively high rodent population, which is their primary diet. They will also eat birds, and occasionally snakes, lizards and frogs, all of which they subdue by constriction. They are primarily nocturnal, and oviparous, laying clutches of as many as 25 eggs in the late spring. Like most rat snakes, when agitated, the Great Plains rat snake will shake its tail vigorously, which by itself makes no noise, but when it shakes amongst dry leaf litter, it can sound remarkably like a rattlesnake, and often leads to misidentification. Great Plains rat snakes tend to remain still for a majority of their time awake, which is odd for a nocturnal being. On average, the Great Plains snakes only move 188 meters per day. The Yellow-Bellied Racers, a snake that often lives in the same habitat, moves more often than the Great Plains snake - which could lead to a decline in their population as they are not as mobile.
Warning signs of agitation are curling up tightly, shaking its tail rapidly. Though this snake has very small teeth and is nonvenomous, it will bite. However, as a whole, this species of snake is very calm and non-aggressive.


The Great Plains rat snake is typically light gray or tan in color, with dark gray, brown, or green-gray blotching down its back, and stripes on either side of the head which meet to form a point between the eyes. They are capable of growing from 3 feet to 5 feet long.


Haldea striatula (formerly Virginia striatula), commonly called the rough earth snake,  is a species of nonvenomous natricine colubrid snake native to the Southeastern United States.


H. striatula eats invertebrates. It feeds almost exclusively on earthworms, although slugs, snails, sow bugs, insect eggs and larvae have also been found in the stomach. H. striatula is not venomous and does not constrict prey; rather, it swallows prey without subduing it. The pointed snout of the rough earth snake helps in burrowing in moist soil where prey are found.


The rough earth snake is fossorial, hiding beneath logs, rocks, or ornamental stones, in leaf litter, or in compost piles and gardens. The species is found in a variety of forested habitats with plenty of ground cover, as well as in many urban areas. It can reach very high densities in urban gardens, parks, and vacant lots.


H. striatula is gonochoric. It is also viviparous, giving birth to 3 to 8 live young in mid-summer. Newborns are about 10 cm (4 inches) in total length. The young somewhat resemble the ring-necked snake (Diadophis punctatus) with a light-colored neck collar, but they are much drabber and lack a brightly-colored belly.
Many sources refer to snakes that give birth to live young as either ovoviviparous or viviparous. In reality, the distinction between these two terms is not very sharp, and the diversity of reproductive modes is better thought of as a spectrum or continuum between matrotrophy (embryonic nutrients come directly from the mother) and lecithotrophy (embryonic nutrients come mostly or completely from egg yolk). Viviparity is the most extreme form of matrotrophy, whereas oviparity is the most extreme form of lecithotrophy.


Eulamprus quoyii are by nature opportunistic predators and feed on both aquatic and terrestrial prey. Their diet consists of, but is not limited too: water beetles and other aquatic insects, snails, tadpoles, spiders, small fish and smaller lizards. The Eastern water skink has also been known to feed on native fruit and other plant materials when available. Like others in the Scincidae family, Eastern Water Skinks have no need to eat every day but will do so when the conditions are favourable. Their range of dietary options for are extensive due to favourable habitat selection factors and the presence of small bodies of water in their chosen habitats. This leads to a more active ecosystem and offers a wider variety of food options available for both scavenging and predation by the skink.


Eulamprus quoyii, more commonly known as the eastern water skink, eastern water-skink, or golden water skink, is a viviparous species of diurnal skink. Eulamprus quoyii belongs to the family Scincidae and is considered a common garden animal in Australia. The skink is endemic to Australia and found only along the east coast of the country. It makes its home in creekside habitats along the east coast of Australia and in urban garden areas with high amounts of moisture. The species can be identified by the twin, long yellow stripes that run along its body from the top of the eye, as well as by several more specific character derived states. The pale yellow dorsolateral stripes are most likely where its common name, the golden water skink, is derived. Like other ectotherms, the skink can often be seen basking in the sun on rocky outcroppings in order to regulate its body temperature. Its diet mainly consists of both aquatic and terrestrial insects, tadpoles and small amounts of plant matter. The skink both hunts for food and scavenges when necessary and is considered an opportunistic feeder. It is prey to larger lizards, snakes, cats and birds and so will often be seen moving quickly into hiding when other organisms are present.


Eulamprus quoyii is a large water skink that can grow to approximately 115mm in snout-vent length (SVL). They have sharply-defined, narrow, pale yellow dorsolateral stripes that start from above the eye and extend down the body but lack the typical black vertebral stripe of other species in the genus. Its body is medium-sized and has a long slender tail. It has a blackish upper lateral zone with pale spots and its head and snout are moderately acute. Each of its two front limbs have five fingers while the two back limbs have five toes. Its ventral area is cream in colour with some randomly scattered darker spots that differ between individuals. Its throat is white with darker black patches.
There is minor sexual dimorphism within the species resulting in the females having a slightly longer snout-vent length and the males to have proportionately longer limbs and heads. It should be noted however that the difference in SVL between females and males is not statistically significant. There is a significant difference in shape between sexes of both adult and neonate E. quoyii. In adult male water skinks the distance between the forelimbs and hindlimbs, or the trunk length, are typically shorter than females. Males are known to have longer limbs, wider heads and a greater mass than females of the species. In male E. quoyii specimens; forelimb length, head width and overall mass all increase significantly more quickly with increased SVL growth than in females. However, this does not apply to hindlimbs or trunk length which both increase at the same rate in females and males as the SVL increases. In neonates, body shape is much more similar between the sexes with the exception of the female trunk length which is significantly longer than the male counterparts.
Within the Eulamprus complex several features are shared by all species including E. quoyii. Individual organisms' nasal passages are separated medially while they do not have any supranasal and postnasal scales. Individuals have two subequal loreal scales and a single preocular scale with a moveable lower scaly eyelid. The iris and pupil are both black and are indistinguishable from each other during the skinks life. The Eastern water skink has three presubocular scales, one of which penetrates downwards in front of the scales on the upper lip and upper jaw.  The Eulamprus species show two or three scales beneath the eye and four above the eye, these are called subocular and supraocular scales respectively. Some of the supraoculars will be in contact the frontal scales. Two or three postocular scales lie behind but in contact with the eye and sit between the posterior supraciliary scale and the parietal eye.
The E. quoyii species group specifically shares four derived character states that separate it from other species within the Eulamprus genus. The first of which is a third pair of chin shields separated by five smaller scales. Secondly, E. quoyii do not have inguinal fat bodies in both males and females that is commonly seen in other Scincidae species. This is what causes the species slender, elongated appearance. The third character state is the single row of distal supradigital scales seen on E. quoyii as opposed to the usual two or more rows observed in other species. Lastly, each lamellae on the underside of the toes are grooved and divided at the base.


When Eulamprus quoyii breed, male and females of the species mate in Spring and will give birth to up to nine babies per clutch in the Summer. Unlike many other reptile species, the Eastern Water Skink is a viviparous species and will give birth to live young following their long gestation periods. Due to the length of these gestation periods, it is common for female E. quoyii individuals to mate only once a year. Male individuals differ from the females in that they can be classified into two categories: Territorial/Resident males and Floater Males. Resident males are suspected to be more active over a longer period, producing clutches with a higher yield of offspring. Floater males are predicted to have larger home ranges and move greater distances while active, leading to fewer clutches and offspring per year. Sexual selection in the E. quoyii species is not believed to have a direct correlation to performance and fitness traits such as bite force or speed as it does in other lizard species. Previous research has shown that there does seem to be a correlation between SVL and sexual selection in E. quoyii, however, due to the adoption of alternate reproductive tactics (ART) in the species, there is the chance that specific performance traits are correlated with other unmeasured behavioural, morphological or physiological traits.


Nerodia erythrogaster, commonly known as the plain-bellied water snake or plainbelly water snake, is a familiar species of mostly aquatic, nonvenomous, colubrid snake endemic to the United States.


Plain-bellied water snakes are active in the warmest months of the year. During the hottest months of summer, they will be active both during the day and at night. In warmer months, they are typically found basking on logs or near bodies of water, swimming, or traveling over land. During hot, humid weather, they will travel long distances away from water. They tend to spend more time in terrestrial habitat than other water snake species. They hibernate during the coldest months of the winter.
The species gets most of its food from the water. They feed primarily on  fish, crayfish, salamanders, and frogs. Because of the amount of time they spend on land, the snake's diet includes a large quantity of amphibians. Like most other snakes, it will hunt for prey, but this species has been observed submerged in water sources waiting for prey to approach them. They apprehend and swallow prey alive without using constriction.


The plain-bellied water snake is a large, thick-bodied, solid-colored snake. Subspecies can be brown, gray, olive green, greenish-gray, and black in color. Some lighter colored snakes display dark dorsal blotches. This snake can be distinguished from other water snakes by its plain, unmarked underside varying in color from red to yellow. It gets its common name because it has no marking on its underside. Its scientific name erythrogaster comes from the Greek word “erythros” meaning red and “gaster” meaning belly. This species exhibits geographically defined phenotypic variation which results in a number of different subspecies. Adults vary in size from 24 to 40 inches (76–122 cm) in total length. Juvenile snakes have banding patterns similar to banded water snakes, but can be identified by their unmarked bellies.


Plain-bellied water snakes are found in every southeastern state of the U.S., from Florida to southeastern Virginia on the east coast, to the borders of eastern North Carolina and western Tennessee, and as far west as Oklahoma and Texas. They are not found in the Appalachian Mountain Range, which excludes them from eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. The snakes are almost always found near a permanent water source. They are usually seen near rivers and floodplains, lakes and ponds and any natural wetlands in their geographic range.


This species bears live young (ovoviviparous) like other North American water snakes and garter snakes. The snake breeds from April until mid-June in the southeast U.S. The female gives birth during the months from August to September. Large broods have been observed, but a typical litter size is around eighteen. One female was observed with a litter of fifty five hatchlings in North Carolina. In 2014 a captive female produced two healthy offspring via parthenogenesis.


Opheodrys aestivus, commonly known as the rough green snake, is a nonvenomous North American colubrid. It is sometimes called grass snake or green grass snake, but these names are more commonly applied to the smooth green snake (Opheodrys vernalis). The European colubrid called grass snake (Natrix natrix) is unrelated. The rough green snake is docile, often allowing close approach by humans, and seldom bites. Even when bites occur, they have no venom and are harmless.


The diet of O. aestivus consists mostly of insects and other terrestrial arthropods, but some snails and tree frogs are eaten as well. This snake is not a constrictor; most prey are grabbed and simply swallowed alive. O. aestivus has been shown to rely heavily on visual cues for prey detection and to prefer living prey items. As foraging activity increases, the
tongue evolves greater elongation and deeper forking, and the abundance of chemoreceptors increases in the vomeronasal organs, the chemosenory responsiveness is adjusted to match diet and orthopterans constitute 16.9% and arthropods about 98% of dietary volume of the rough green snake. Rough green snakes exhibit greater chemosensory investigation of chemical cues from their insect prey than from representatives of several other taxa because of the linked importance of insects to their diet.


The rough green snake ranges throughout the Southeastern United States, from Florida, north to coastal Maine, Indiana, and west to Central Texas. The snake is commonly found in the Piedmont and Atlantic coastal plain, but is not found in the higher elevations of the Appalachian Mountains. It is also found in northeastern Mexico, including the state of Tamaulipas and eastern Nuevo León.


The rough green snake (Opheodrys aestivus) is bright green above and has a yellowish belly, affording it excellent camouflage in green vegetation and making them difficult to see in the wild even though they are relatively common in their habitat. It has keeled dorsal scales, which are arranged in 17 rows at mid-body. It grows up to 116 cm (45+3⁄4 in) in total length (including tail) and is very thin.


The preferred habitat of O. aestivus is moist meadows and woodlands, often near water. It is highly arboreal, frequently found climbing in low vegetation, and is also a good swimmer. However, it is often found on the ground as well. Unlike many snakes, it is largely diurnal. At night it is found coiled in the branches of trees. Preference is given to perches based upon distance from the shoreline, height of branches, and thickness of the individual branch.


The male rough green snake reaches sexual maturity at an age of 2 around 245 mm long. For the male, plasma androgen levels and the diameter of the sexual segment of the kidney
have a bimodal cycle with one peak in the spring and the second in late summer. Spermatogenesis occurs in June, reaching its peak in July and August. This is a post-nupital cycle. The rough green snake breeds in spring, and sometimes again in fall. Courtship behavior expressed by males include head-jerking, tail waving, and chin-rubbing. Males align copulatory organs with females in an average of 2 minutes and 45 seconds, and copulation averages 16 minutes and 4 seconds. Females lay 2-14 eggs, occasionally in a communal nest shared by more than one female. Up to 75 eggs have been found in one such nest. The nest site varies: under boards, under bark in rotting stumps, in deep mulch, or under a rock. Hatchlings from spring breeding typically emerge in August or September, and each is about 18–20 cm (7.1–7.9 in) in total length. Male rough green snakes reach sexual maturity in two years. At maturity, males begin storing abundant amounts of sperm in their vas deferens. They are able to mate in the spring of the next year (year 3 of life).


Crotalus scutulatus (common names: Mojave rattlesnake, Mojave green,) is a highly venomous pit viper species found in the deserts of the southwestern United States and central Mexico. It is perhaps best known for its potent neurotoxic-hemotoxic venom, which is considered one of the world's most potent rattlesnake venoms. Two subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.


C. scutulatus is most active from April to September, and brumates alone or in small groups during the winter. Ambush predators, they eat mostly small rodents and lizards. Females bear live young, from two to 17 (average about eight), from July through September. Although they have a reputation for being aggressive towards people, such behavior is not described in scientific literature. Like other rattlesnakes, however, they will defend themselves vigorously when disturbed.


This species grows to an average of less than 100 cm (3.3 ft) in length, with a maximum of 137.3 cm (4.50 ft).
The color varies from shades of brown to pale green depending on the surroundings. The green hue found among Mojave rattlesnakes has led to them being known as "Mojave greens" in some areas. Like C. atrox (the western diamondback rattlesnake), which it closely resembles, C. scutulatus has a dark diamond pattern along its back. With C. scutulatus, the white bands on the tail tend to be wider than the black, while the band width is usually more equal in C. atrox.  Additionally, C. scutulatus has enlarged scales on top of the head between the supraoculars, and the light postocular stripe passes behind the corner of the mouth. In C. atrox, the crown is covered in small scales, and the light postocular stripe intersects the mouth.

Campbell and Lamar (2004)  support the English name "Mohave (Mojave) rattlesnake", but do so with some reluctance because so little of the snake's range lies within the Mojave Desert. They do not support the spelling "Mojave", because the name "Mohave" derives from the Native American term hamakhava.


The desert spiny lizard feeds on a variety of insects including ants, beetles, and caterpillars. It also feeds on spiders, centipedes, and small lizards.


Sceloporus magister, also known as the desert spiny lizard, is a lizard species of the family Phrynosomatidae,  native to the Chihuahuan Desert and Sonoran Desert of North America.


An adult male desert spiny lizard usually have conspicuous blue/violet patches on the belly and throat, and a green/blue color on their tails and sides. Females and juveniles have large combined dark spots on their back and belly areas, and the blue/violet and green/blue coloring is absent. Both sexes have brownish/yellow triangular spots on their shoulders. A female desert spiny lizard will lay anywhere from 4 to 24 eggs during the summertime. A fully grown desert spiny lizard will reach a body length of up to 5.6 inches. Besides their bright colors, the desert spiny lizard changes to darker colors during the winter to allow them to absorb more heat from the sun, and become lighter during the summer to reflect the sun's radiation. It is frequently seen doing push-ups, pushing its body up and down, as a form of territorial display. The first recorded case of Leukemia in the family Phrynosomatidae was found in this species.


Biotic communities including Sonoran Desertscrub, Great Basin Desertscrub, Semidesert Grassland, Interior Chaparral, and woodlands are home to this lizard. It is usually encountered on lower slopes, bajadas, plains, and low valleys, often in the branches of trees or in the vicinity of ground cover such as wood piles, rock piles, and pack rat nests.  The desert spiny lizard is a primarily arboreal species that prefer cottonwood, yucca, Joshua trees, and ironwood.


The species is often encountered in male-female pairs. Mating takes place in spring and summer and one or two clutches of eggs are laid in spring and summer. Clutch size ranges from 2 to 12 eggs. Hatchlings may appear as early as late May but usually begin to emerge in July.


Like other skinks of the genus Plestiodon, they feed primarily on insects, preferring larger prey such as grasshoppers.


Plestiodon inexpectatus, the southeastern five-lined skink is a common skink in the southeastern United States.


Southeastern five-lined skinks are common inhabitants of wooded areas of the southeastern United States. They are commonly found on small islands off the southeastern coast even in the absence of fresh water and vegetation.


Southeastern five-lined skinks are oviparous; the clutch size varies from 6 to 12, with the number of eggs diminishing with higher latitudes. The female broods the eggs and protects them from predators, including other skinks. The hatchlings appear about one month after the eggs have been laid near the beginning of summer.


The common five-lined skink's diet consists primarily of a variety of arthropods, particularly spiders, crickets, beetles and other insects. However, they have been reported to also eat newborn mice, frogs, and other lizards. Those who own a pet skink are advised to supplement the skink's diet with fruits and vegetables. In addition to eating insects, skinks enjoy a variety of fruits and vegetables. This can help supplement your skink's diet by adding some extra nutrients. Brussels sprouts, carrots, greens, and peas are good vegetables to serve your skink.
Fruits that skinks enjoy include blueberries, mangos, raspberries, papayas, cantaloupes, strawberries, and figs. Studies have indicated that the majority of the five-link skink's diet is mostly invertebrates, which for some of the many prey species the effect is negligible, but because of its voracious diet, its predation may be a major ecological factor.


The (American) five-lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to North America. It is one of the most common lizards in the eastern U.S. and one of the seven native species of lizards in Canada.


The American five-lined skink is small to medium-sized, growing to about 12.5 to 21.5 centimetres (4.9 to 8.5 in) total length (including tail). Young American five-lined skinks are dark brown to black with five distinctive white to yellowish stripes running along the body and a bright blue tail. The blue color fades to light blue with age, and the stripes also may slowly disappear. Females however, are more likely to retain the blue tail color as they age. The dark brown color fades, too, and older individuals are often uniformly brownish. The southeastern five-lined skink, P. inexpectatus, of the Southeastern United States is very similar to this species and there is some overlap in range. The two species can be distinguished by their scales. The broad-headed skink, P. laticeps, is similar, and may be difficult to distinguish from P. fasciatus. The former species usually lacks the two enlarged postlabial scales characteristic of P. fasciatus. Adult male broad-headed skinks, with their large size and swollen red head, are readily distinguished from P. fasciatus. Research suggests that are sexually dimorphic in terms of size. The males are often larger than the females, but this depends on the area they live. Their claws are short and curved downward; they make a right angle at the axis of each toe.


The American five-lined skink is a ground-dwelling animal. It prefers moist, hardwood areas with a permanent water source such as rivers or streams, as well as sites to bask in the sun. It can also be found in broken, rocky areas at the northern edge of its habitat. While little is known about any hibernation patterns, Plestiodon fasciatus is rarely seen throughout winter and the surrounding months. It is assumed by scientists that they are sheltered and dormant under rocks, logs, or leaves provided by the hardwood areas it inhabits.