Januari 06, 2017
- i'm coyote peterson, and you're never going to believe the encounter i just had with the fastest lizard in the west. ow, he's biting me! ahhh, ow he's got a hold of my finger! (adventure themed music) as we begin our journey into the second season of breaking trail, i find myself at home in the desert. the southwest has always been one of my favorite places to explore, and if you can withstand the intense heat,
it is about 108degrees out here today. spine covered plant life oh my gosh, that thing is really wedged in my hand ahhhhh, i knew this was going to happen. and the venomous creatures, you might find yourself loving it just as much as me. i find that exploring in a washor narrow canyon near sunset almost always yields an animal encounter. some of which can reallykeep you on your toes.
(feet crunching in the dirt) (fast paced drums) got a snake, got a snake! yes, check this out! oh look at that! do you know whatspecies that is? that is a coachwhip. this is one of the fastest snakes that you're ever going to come across out here in the desert.
(sigh of relief) get this guy on the ground, you have no shotat catching him. i saw him just dartoff of that tree branch so i couldn't even give you any warning i just had to lunge for him. look at that. look how long andbeautiful that snake is. these snakes are feedingon lizards and any other
little rodents thatmight be running around out here in the desert. look at how beautifulthose eyes are, though! wow, so perfectly streamlined, that obviously allows them to move incredibly quick. the reason that they're called coachwhips is that you can see the snake pretty much looks like a whip. these snakes are nonvenomous, certainly have no interest in going after humans.
they're just out here to explore the desert and look for dinner. so cool. alright well let's gethim back up in his tree so that he can continue hunting. that was cool to see him climbing up into the trees. let's head up toward thebase of this mountain, some big boulders, let'ssee what we can find living up there.
in my book, any snake encounter has made the day but when i explore the desert my mind is fixated on one thing, and one thing only. lizards, and which ones will i try to catch this time? the sonoran desert, and it's expanse of beautifully rugged eco systems provides a home to many species. some of which are safe,and simple to catch, like the regal horn lizard.
and some that you shouldnever try to catch like the venomous gila monster. he doesn't want anythingto do with us right now he's just laying low to the sand saying "okay, don't get any closer." i love looking for andtrying to catch lizards because they always pose such a challenge. the skill of actually making a capture requires stealth, precision, and a whole lot of luck.
(chuckling excitedly) that is a collared lizard, do you see his little yellow head? - [off screen crew member] i can barely see him. - barely see him? alright, i'm going to leave my snake stick here, come up slow, try not to startle him. (feet crunching)(brush rustling) got him!
ow, ow, ow, or, he's biting me! i got a hold of him, he's got a hold of me. look at that, ow geez! i guess that's one way to catch a collared lizard? i can't even believe helet me get that close. holy cow, alright, um, woah. those teeth are super sharp. (grunting in pain) he is locked onto my finger.
ah, geez, didn'tsee that coming. as you can see, he kind of said, "you're going to catch me? "well guess what, coyote? "i am also going to catch you." this is just a totally,totally uncomfortable situation but i got him, and we're going to get the most beautiful and the fastest lizard in the southwest up close for you right now.
let me get off of this. okay. - [off screen crew member] what's that feel like? - it feels like a bunch oflittle tiny needles. (groaning) yes, thank you for letting go. ouch. alright, now let's try to get a better look at this beautiful, beautiful lizard. look at him.
this is one of the most aggressive species of lizards that we have out here. certainly not aggressivetowards humans, they're aggressive towards the other animals that call the desert home. this is kind of like a little mini t-rex, as he's roaming the hillsides here he is looking for anything that's unfortunate enough to get close to those jaws.
i can tell you first hand that their bite is a serious powerhouse. this is probably the fastest lizard species that we have here in the southwest. in fact, they are so quick that when they're running their front half will lift off the ground kind of like a basilisk lizard and they'll use these back feet to project themselves up inthe air and this long, skinny tail kind of works like a rudder to help direct them
through the environment. i would put him down and show you what that looks like but he is going to takeoff so incredibly quick we would not be able to catch him again. look how beautiful the coloration is on this lizard. he's got this bright yellow head and the reason they'recalled collared lizards is because you see thatdouble black striped collar on the back of his neck there?
the teal skin, the yellow and white speckling, unbelievably beautiful. you may be saying to yourself, 'gosh, this lizard "looks like it would really stick out in the desert "environment, it mustbe easy for predators to "pick this guy off?" actually, because this lizard is so fast it's almost impossible for predators to catch it. i'd say the only thing that's going to be able to
get one of these lizardsand turn it into dinner would be a road runner or maybe a coachwhip? what an awesome experience, getting close, actually catching, and then getting chomped by the eastern collard lizard. one of the most beautiful, and fastest lizards that we have here in the southwest. i'm coyote peterson, be brave, stay wild, we'll see you on the next adventure.
alright, you ready toget back up on your rock and not bite anymore coyotes? i hope so. this was only the second time in my life that i was able to capture a collared lizard. despite getting bitten, i'd consider this a lucky day. if you thought that was one wild adventure check out this gila monster encounter. and, don't forget, subscribe to join me and the crew
on this season of breaking trail. try to create a barrier between it, and it's den. alright. it's turning back towards us now, okay, i'm just going to go. (boots crunching in the dirt) (animal sounds)
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