La Ventana Stories

I returned back to El Sargento from the United States on the 12th of September, just in time to catch the first big rain event of the year: Tropical Storm Ileana. I had been watching this storm form on radar, trying to figure out how to pronounce “Ileana.” I knew the area had not received much rain yet this year, and I was very excited at the prospect of a rainy arrival to Baja. When I arrived — the day before the storm — as I exited the terminal at San Jose del Cabo, I smacked into a wall of heat and humidity. Though I momentarily questioned my decision to return to the hot and humid desert, the idea of rain kept my spirits high.

I love rain events in Baja because Couch’s Spadefoot Toads — somewhat unexpected residents of the driest state in North America — erupt from the ground to breed. Historically, after a big rain, a toad pond has appeared in our neighbors’ driveway; due to construction, unfortunately, this one-week-wonder pond no longer fills. So I have been working on a replacement pond. The morning of the storm, I heard raindrops on my roof at around 5am. Iliana was now officially a tropical storm. As soon as the sun rose, I was outside. The first six hours or so were a bit anticlimactic because all we experienced was a steady drizzle, followed by the rain stopping all together. It had not rained enough to fill a toad pond. 

However, there were plenty of toads! Big ones, little ones, green ones and round ones. I even found a male calling in a little puddle. In the desert, standing water doesn’t last long, so these “toads” have one of the quickest breeding cycles of all frogs. I say “toads” because spadefoots aren’t actually toads; they are their own kind of frog that has evolved a very similar body plan. But anyway, these spadefoots will lay eggs, and the eggs will hatch within 48 hours! Then the tadpoles have a race to grow legs before the puddle dries up. They can transform from tadpole to frog in a little as seven days, although it is often a bit longer. 

Hopefully we will have a bigger rain later this year, but it is not unusual that spadefoots will go years without having a chance to breed. Sometimes they only come up out of the ground once a year, or less if there is no rain. They often bury themselves up to a meter underground!

After the rain ended, I checked all the local cattle guards for stuck creatures. I found and helped many trapped frogs. Unfortunately, stuck creatures are real problem in La Ventana. Cattle guards may be useful pieces of infrastructure, but we need to stop making them with big concrete traps at the bottom. If you are going to build a cattle guard, please try to make an escape route for small creatures. One of the best ways to provide an easy way out is to leave slanted edges, or even just dirt, on either or both ends of the trench so creatures can escape. 

Fall Reptile Walks! I am going to start this WhatsApp group for reptile walks, to make things a bit easier, and help account for uncertain weather conditions. Join the group here.

Isla Espíritu Santo is an incredible island off the coast of La Paz. It is home to many interesting creatures, including two endemic species of reptiles: the Espíritu Santo Whiptail (Aspidoscelis espiritensis) and the Espíritu Santo Striped Whipsnake (Masticophis barbouri). I have never been to the island, but I have received multiple trips as gifts that all managed to fall through one way or another. I will get there eventually, and hopefully find the interesting, beautiful and endemic whipsnake. 

Whipsnakes are some of my favorite snakes. The group includes coachwhips, like our Baja California Coachwhips, the big black snakes often seen zooming across roads in La Ventana and El Sargento.

Some other members of the whipsnake family are the Striped Whipsnakes. I have seen several, though I haven’t really got a good look at one because they are very rare in Baja. If you do manage to find one, all you will see is an explosion of hypersonic dust; it makes matters worse that they like to live in between boulders. 

If you would like to hear more about my quest to catch one of these lightning bolts, check out my new Substack newsletter: Beneath the Scales. There, I dive deeper into my adventures in search of rare and elusive creatures.

Isla Espíritu Santo is home to some cool land animals, but the unbelievable sea life is the real showstopper. Some years ago, the waters around the island were home to thousands and thousands of hammerhead sharks and an amazing diversity of fish. Life was beyond imagination and it was known as the world’s aquarium. Then, in just a few years, almost all of the hammerheads were fished for shark fin soup, and now the beautiful diversity is gone. I am no fish expert —that is William’s department— however, this seems important. 

The good news is that the ecosystem can recover in just a few years if we stop fishing the reefs. This will not only bring scuba tourism back to the area, but the fish will overflow out of the preserve and bring more fish for people as well. Isla Espíritu Santo is a national park but only 4% is protected. Right now, there is an active petition aiming to turn Espíritu Santo’s waters into a reserve, which could quickly become as rich as Cabo Pulmo. 

Help to bring life back! Learn More at Pelagios Kakunjá. Sign the petition here. 

Kingsnakes are beautiful snakes. They are not easy to find in Baja but, when discovered, these striking snakes can have quite an effect. In Southern Baja, we have one species: the California Kingsnake (Lampropeltis californiae). This species has quite a large range, inhabiting many different habitats from Cabo to Oregon. Often they will be black with white bands but they can also be black with white stripes down their bodies. 

Kingsnakes are loved by many people— even by those who dislike snakes — and it’s not because of their personality. Charming though they may be, Kingsnakes are famous rattlesnake eaters. Yet Kingsnakes also eat other snakes, rodents, lizards, amphibians and birds; they are true generalists, willing to eat whatever comes their way. 

Because of their beautiful colors and hardy nature, Kingsnakes are often kept as pets. This is a bit of a problem because they are frequently taken out of the wild for the pet trade. 

Kingsnakes are very secretive. It can be difficult to find them, even in places where they are common, unless you can find a window into their favorite habitat: the subterranean world. By flipping things over (like rocks, wood boards and especially sheet metal), Kingsnakes and many other snakes can be discovered. If you do this, however, make sure to carefully put their roof back just the way you found it to preserve their habitat. 

Some people mistakenly believe Kingsnakes to be venomous, but they are not. Instead, they are very powerful constrictors for their size. In some places, Kingsnakes mimic venomous coral snakes, looking almost identical, but there are no coral snakes in Baja except for a small area near the California border. So don’t worry about any colorful little snakes in La Ventana because they are all harmless.

This time of year many snakes are out, including rattlesnakes. I get a lot of questions about our local rattlesnakes and hear rumors about them, many of which are false, so here are a few facts about these beautiful and important snakes.

In La Ventana/El Sargento, we have three species of rattlers: the Red Diamond Rattlesnake (Crotalus ruber), the Speckled Rattlesnake (Crotalus mitchellii) and the Baja California Rattlesnake (Crotalus enyo). All of these species have rattles and are dangerously venomous and should be given space. As for which are the most venomous, I do not really have an answer. I would treat all rattlesnakes with equal respect.

The rattle-less rattlesnakes that I hear people talking nervously about are only found on Isla Santa Catalina; none of them live on mainland Baja. Occasionally, rattlesnakes will lose their rattles, but this is quite rare.

There are other ways of identifying rattlesnakes besides their rattles. Their heads are quite large and their eyes have vertical pupils, but so do the eyes of many non-venomous snakes. Most rattlesnakes have black and white colored bands on their tails before the rattles, and are quite heavily built, meaning they are relatively short and fat.

One thing I hear often is that baby rattlesnakes are more dangerous than adults because they don’t know how to control their venom. I believe this to be completely false. Even if baby rattlesnakes used all of their venom in one bite, which is very unlikely, they still have much less venom than adults, because their venom glands are smaller. Baby rattlesnakes are definitely dangerous, I just would not say that they are any more dangerous than adults.

One last thing to note: rattlesnakes are venomous, not poisonous. Venom is injected into the bloodstream, whereas poison is eaten or touched.

If there are any questions about our venomous neighbors, I would love to answer them! Please email me anytime. Here are a few pictures of rattlesnakes next to pictures of harmless snakes. Can you tell the difference? Photo credits thanks to Adam Clause, Jackson Shedd, and Stuart Young. California Herps https://www.californiaherps.com/

In the last few weeks, many reptiles have been out. April is probably the snakiest month of the year, as it is mating season. This time of year, snakes will leave their usual range and wander in search of other snakes, and food. Unfortunately, this means snakes are crossing roads much more than usual, which is very dangerous for them. Especially on the main roads, people drive fast, and many snakes move slowly. This spring I have seen more dead snakes than alive, and this truly breaks my heart.

Some snakes, like Coachwhips, move very fast, and can cross roads relatively safely. But others, like our beautiful and endemic Cape Gopher Snakes, and Rosy Boas, are very vulnerable. What I have noticed is that most of the snakes being hit are harmless species. I hope people do not run snakes over on purpose, but I know that they are often misconstrued as evil or dangerous, so I am afraid it is more common than I would like to know.

Accidental hits are unavoidable, but we can definitely reduce the number. If you see a live snake in the road, just stop the car in front of the snake and wait until the snake has crossed the road. This way you don’t even need to get out of your car, and the snake will make it across the road in one piece. If you help a snake in this way, or just see one, please try to take a picture, and I would love to identify it for you! I am starting a project studying which species of snake are found in La Ventana and El Sargento proper, compared to the surrounding desert, and every photo helps!

Happy Easter! This week, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about reptile eggs! Around here, all lizards lay eggs, which might not come as a surprise. Most lizards lay small clutches of eggs in the ground, bury them, and then go about their day. Believe it or not, with one controversial exception, none of our local reptiles watch their young; as soon as they come into the world, they are on their own. 

House Geckos lay only two eggs at a time, but lay many clutches each year. This strategy seems to work well, judging by the large amount of Asian House Geckos living here in La Ventana. 

All the local sea turtles lay eggs as well. They come up on the beach, dig holes, lay their eggs and leave! The challenge with this strategy is that their young are extremely vulnerable when they hatch on the beach.

All of the next type of reptile lay eggs as well. These reptiles will usually build nests in trees and raise their young until old enough to leave the nest. They are the only flying reptiles. However, I don’t need to talk too much about these flying feathered dinosaurs because they have their own column! According to our local expert, “They come in many pretty colors but they all look just the same.”

Yes, some people classify birds as a type of reptile. Sorry, David. All Things Reptile is coming for the Bird’s Eye View!

The last type of reptile does not always lay eggs, and this frequently surprises people. Most of our local snakes do lay eggs, but not all of them. Locally, rattlesnakes give live birth, and so do Rosy Boas and Cape Garter Snakes. Approximately 30% of all snakes worldwide give live birth.

Here in La Ventana/El Sargento, we have two species of iguana. I have been getting a lot of questions about them recently, so I decided it is time for another column spotlighting our largest lizards.

The first species is the Cape Spiny-Tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura hemilopha), which is a beautiful, arboreal (lives in trees or, in our case, cactuses) iguana that frequently invites itself into people’s yards. Before they know it, they have a new resident living on one of their Cardon cactuses or on their rooftop. The good news is that these Iguanas are always quite respectful; they just want to eat leaves, flowers and insects, and lie in the sun for hours on end.

Cape Spiny-Tailed Iguanas come in a few colors. Large adults will usually be black with a gray collar, but young adults will range from olive green to gray. In my opinion, the babies are the prettiest, pulling off a striking bright green for their first year or so.

The second species of local iguana is highly seasonal, and almost impossible to spot from December to March. Desert Iguanas (Dipsosaurus dorsalis) spend their winters underground, in extensive tunnel systems. These lizards do not climb trees; they prefer life on the ground. They are most often a sandy brown color, although sometimes they will appear much darker depending on the weather. They are a bit smaller than the other local iguana species. If you are here in June, you will see these lizards flash by at regular intervals. I would say they are the most common lizard in our area through the summer months. They are also ridiculously fast and quite skittish, so trying to get a good look at one can be like trying to examine a bolt of lightning. 

Throughout the fall, these iguanas exhibit an interesting behavior: many individuals will disappear, even though it is warm enough for these heat-loving reptiles. The adult iguanas move underground temporarily, which allows the young iguanas a window of opportunity. Since many of the adults are not around, the young ones get to eat more of the flowers, which in turn allows them to grow much bigger then they normally would when competing with adults for food. And being bigger and stronger gives them a much better shot at making it through the winter.