Barred forest racer (Dendrophidion vinitor), Costa Rica

A juvenile green iguana, an herbivorous lizard, lunches on a Hibiscus flower

a salmon-bellied racer searches high and low for the last remaining snails in the cracked mud of Palo Verde National Park at the end of the dry season

American crocodiles in the Tarcoles River

a deadly fer-de-lance on the rainforest floor in Corcovado National Park

a ctenosaur or spiny-tailed iguana on driftwood in the Manuel Antonio National Park

Olive Ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) return to the Costa Rican beaches where they hatched every year by the thousands. Driven by atavistic evolutionary traits, females makes this epic effort as they have done for millions of years in order to pass on their genes to a new generation. Emerging at the edge of light, the female turtles struggle to near exhaustion while laying the eggs. Two months later, hatchlings emerge and though as few as 1% may survive, a new generation is born, and the cycle continues.

Olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) laying eggs as the sun sets at Playa Ostional

Green sea turtle returning to Caribbean Sea after laying eggs on beach in Tortuguero National Park

ctenosaur in Manuel Antonio National Park

spectacled caiman eating an armadillo in a rainforest stream

Spectacled caiman, Tortuguero National Park

eyelash viper on fallen tree in a cloud forest

Costa Rican coral snake on rainforest floor

green iguana

a deadly fer-de-lance on the rainforest floor in Corcovado National Park

an anole lizard displays to attract a mate in the rainforest in Corcovado National Park

ctenosaurs in Manuel Antonio National Park

neotropical rattlesnake

a salmon-bellied racer searches high and low for the last remaining snails in the cracked mud of Palo Verde National Park at the end of the dry season

Olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) exhausting while laying eggs as the sun rises at Playa Ostional

emerald basilisk lizard

Olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) emerge from the ocean to lay eggs as the sun sets at Playa Ostional

green tree anole

black river turtle, Tortuguero National Park

Green sea turtle returning to Caribbean Sea after laying eggs on beach in Tortuguero National Park

slider turtle in Tortuguero National Park

canopy lizard

spectacled caiman

neotropical rattlesnake

emerald basilisk lizard

a deadly fer-de-lance on the rainforest floor in Corcovado National Park

green tree anole

emerald basilisk lizard

galliwasp

ctenosaur in Manuel Antonio National Park

ctenosaur in Manuel Antonio National Park

Hog-nosed rainforest pit viper (Porthidium nasutum)

anole lizard in Los Angeles Cloud Forest Reserve

spectacled caiman eating an armadillo in a rainforest stream

American crocodile and common basilisk lizard in Tarcoles River

American crocodile in Tarcoles River

American crocodile in Tarcoles River

galliwasp

galliwasp

Green iguana (Iguana iguana)

short-nosed vine snake

parrot snake

spectacled caiman

American crocodile in Tarcoles River

The tail of a canopy lizard (Polychrus gutturosus) pokes out from palm tree fruits in a lowland rainforest on the Caribbean slope of Costa Rica.

hog-nosed rainforest pit viper, La Selva Biological Reserve

galliwasp

bushmater

A baby Alligator Snapping Turtle in Costa Rica. This is a blend of two shots both at f/2.8 -- one for the turtle head and one defocused to accentuate the blurred highlights.

One of Costa Rica's most striking snakes, the yellow eyelash viper (Bothriechis schlegelii). This was an animal model shot under controlled conditions.

An emerald basilisk lizard on the grounds of an ecolodge near Costa Rica's Tortuguero National Park

Closeup of the hind leg of a spectacled caimin in Costa Rica's Tortuguero National Park

A Spectacled Caiman in Costa Rica's Tortuguero National Park

Speckled palm pit viper (Bothriechis nigroviridis), Talamanca Mountains, Costa Rica

a rainforest pit viper in a cloud forest in Western Ecuador. I used a vintage manual focus lens to give a dreamy look to this portrait.

a rainforest pit viper in a cloud forest in Western Ecuador. I used a vintage manual focus lens to give a dreamy look to this portrait.

An anole in the rainforest in Ecuador

A rarely seen juvenile Emerald Tree Boa in the rainforest in the Amazon region of Peru

Suction pads allow a Turnip tail gecko to climb smooth surfaces, Ecuador

Juvenile fer-de-lance, Costa Rica

Juvenile fer-de-lance, Costa Rica

Spectacled caimain, Tortuguero National Park, Costa Rica

Brown vine snake (Oxybelis aeneus) in a lowland rainforest in Costa Rica

Brown vine snake (Oxybelis aeneus) in a lowland rainforest in Costa Rica

Spiny iguana, Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica

Spiny iguana, Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica

A Yellow Eyelash Viper (Bothreichis schlegelii), Costa Rica

American crocodile, Tarcoles River, Costa Rica

A juvenile American crocodile lounges on the banks of Costa Rica's Tarcoles River

A spiny iguana (Ctenosaura similis) shakes off water and silt after crawling around a riverbank in a tropical dry forest in Costa Rica.

A common basilisk lizard on the forest floor in Costa Rica's Manuel Antonio National Park.