Reptiles

Respect your elders, or else.

Quick! Name three things about rattlesnakes! If, like me, your knowledge comes from westerns and the bad guy from Rango, …

Well it needs something to get your attention, now it’s no longer the most venomous snake.

Did we call it that just to make it feel better?

Choose wisely.

It doesn’t need a mask to hide its secrets.

Fighting for conservation, or handbags at dawn?

The black mamba will keep you away. By fair means or foul.

The tuatara’s ancestors survived the dinosaurs, the comet, and the Ice Age. So losing to rats is just embarrassing.

Yes, like the decidedly less cute creatures on this list, the scorpion and spider, this little gecko doesn’t have a …

All that’s missing is the electric-blue fire breath and a ring of flattened skyscrapers. Fortunately, the Philippine sailfin lizard is …

The blue-tailed skink says “hi!” from Christmas Island! Rather than partying in the wild like the famous Christmas Island crabs, …

A “dragon” that fits in your hand is awesome by default. It’s only been found in two areas so far, …

Search for “Puerto Rican boa” and you’re presented with various snakes with saucer-sized eyes, in bright yellow or green, or …

Zhou’s box turtle already lives in a “box” shell and likely a “box” in captivity. Will it keep out of the underground kind?

The inland taipan could definitely kill you, but it doesn’t usually feel like it.

The gharial is probably the least deadly croc, but we give it the most crap.