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Since snakes are my favorite study organism, most of my books and knowledge are geared towards them. So this list is a little biased. There are certainly more excellent books on other herp groups but my books have a lot of emphasis on snakes. So here are some excellent snake books that I own.

My favorite book more than any other is

#1 - The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere

by Jonathan Campbell and William W. Lamar

This book is a must for anyone interested in venomous species. It lists almost every single species of venomous reptile in North, Central, and South America. $150 price tag but definitely worth every penny. Although it does contain 2 venomous lizards, Heloderma suspectum and Heloderma horridum, all the rest are venomous snakes so I consider it a snake book.

Snakes: The evolution of mystery in nature List Price: $30

by Harry W. Greene (2000) 351 pgs.

This book is great with incredible photos by Michael and Patricia Fogden. This book has become an instant classic for all herpetologist and for any enthusiast who wants to study snakes. Harry Greene did a great job on this book and goes into great detail about their biology and physiology not only as compared to other animals but also narrows it down to different behavioral and morphological differences between the individual families of snakes. A must for all serious snake studiers.

Biology of the Pitvipers

Edited by Jonathan A. Campbell and Edmund D. Brodie, Jr.

An absolutely magnificent book with tons of scientific articles from the top pitviper biologists on the planet. Many studies on different pitviper species in different fields of science. From "Molecular systematics of the Agkistrodon complex" to the "Autecology of the Mojave sidewinder" this book has tons of scientific studies on the most interesting species of snakes on the planet.

Biology of the Vipers

Edited by Gordon W. Schuett, Mats Höggren, Michael E. Douglas, and Harry W. Greene

Somehow they made this book even better than the "Biology of the Pitvipers"! This book came out several years later and is larger, with more contributors, and more scientific studies on species in this fascinating family of snakes. From "Phylogeography of the Western Rattlesnake" to the "Reproductive Cycle in Male Neotropical Rattlesnakes". Again the best viper and pitviper biologists came together to contribute chapters in this enormous volume.

Snake of the United States and Canada

by Carl & Evelyn Ernst

This is probably the most comprehensive book on the snakes of the United States and Canada that I have ever seen. I really love this book and think it is the best reference book for our snakes. It is just jam-packed with all sorts of information of every species of snake in the U.S. and Canada. It is also filled with photos on each species as well. An excellent buy even at the high cost.

Rattlesnake: Portrait of a Predator List Price: $50

by Manny Rubio (1998) 240 pgs.

Easily the best book on rattlesnakes out there. Manny Rubio is one of the best snake photographers I have ever seen. His images are incredible (even if most of the rattlesnakes are from zoos and private collections that he photographed in captivity). I don't have a problem with that as long as you admit to it (which he does). A very specialized book that has information just poured into it from a foreword by William S. Brown to discussing rattlesnake roundups and rattlesnake conservation. One of the most remarkable things about this book is that it not only covers photos and discussions about commonly heard of rattlesnakes like western diamondbacks and timber rattlesnakes but discusses most of the species of rattlesnakes found from North to South America, including the island rattlesnakes in the Sea of Cortez. The book has a photo of just about every subspecies of rattlesnake in the world, which is an unrealistic goal for almost anyone's expectations. This book is highly recommended by me for any one that wants to learn about rattlesnakes or vipers.

Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind List Price: $150

by Laurence M. Klauber (1984) 350pgs. List Price (Abridged Version): $20

I have both the abridged and unabridged versions of this book. The book itself is incredible except for a few personal opinions made by the author for what he sees in rattlesnakes. In my opinion the man did not respect rattlesnakes a lot and am not very fond towards his way of thinking. However, the book itself goes into great detail about the studies and histories of rattlesnakes. I would suggest that most people interested in venomous snakes should at least buy the abridged version of this great book. Klauber did a great job writing this book and collecting the data but if you read the book you will probably understand why I dislike some of his views. If you want to learn about rattlesnakes and see them for their true beauty then the best book for you is Manny Rubio's. Only buy this after you get that.

Snakes in Question List Price: $25 (I believe)

by Carl H. Ernst and George R. Zug (1996) 201 pgs.

This is a book great for future herpetologists wanting to greatly expand their knowledge with a lot of general information quickly. This book has so many facts that you can use. Almost every question that people have ever asked me about snakes is answered in this book. If there is a question that the general public would ask, it is asked and answered in this book. An excellent buy and another great for the semi-scientific book section on your shelf.

Texas Snakes

by John Werler and James Dixon

The only snake book you need for Texas. This book is incredible! It is large and jammed with important information. It has excellent distribution maps listing each county that the snakes are found in and separates them by subspecies. It also has tons of photos and is just an all around excellent book. A little large for a field guide but certainly capable of identifying anything you can photograph or remember. Excellent for references and exactly the kind of book you would expect from two great scientists of their caliber.

The Encyclopedia of Snakes List Price: $44

by Chris Mattison (1995) 288 pgs.

Another great book on snakes and one that is more for the average reader. Chris Mattison seems to go to great lengths to make sure that the reader truly understands all of the functions and behaviors of snakes. There are a lot of diagrams that explain just about every detail you'll ever need to know on snakes and how they function. This book allows people with little scientific experience to gobble up massive amounts of information on snakes with very little difficulty. I recommend this book to any person interested in snakes, especially ones that aren't scientists and want to learn as much as they can.

Snakes: A Natural History

by Roland Bauchot

In the same league as Chris Mattison's "The Encyclopedia of Snakes" book. A lot of good information for the budding snake biologist. Excellent scientific information given to the reader in a simple to understand form.

The Garter Snakes

by Douglas A. Rossman, Neil B. Ford, and Richard A. Seigel

The most comprehensive book on garter snakes. This book is an excellent reference book for anyone studying garter snakes. There is tons of information, good distribution maps, and great photos of each species, including hard to find Mexican species. Also includes chapters on captive keeping, behavior, ecology, dichotomous key, and much more.

Venomous Reptiles of North America List Price: $30

by Carl H. Ernst (1999) 236 pgs.

One of the best books for people who want to know a lot about the more dangerous reptiles in the U.S. An excellent read on the habitat, history, distribution, and other scientific information on pretty much every species and subspecies of every venomous reptile on this continent north of Mexico. There is even a photograph and description on just about every subspecies of venomous reptile in this book. You could actually use it as a field guide, though I would mainly see its use as a great read and good for research stuff. Even though this book is on venomous reptiles I still consider it a snake book since only one venomous lizard occurs in the book, the rest are snakes.

A Guide to the Snakes of Papua New Guinea

by Mark O'Shea

An excellent book on the snakes of Papua New Guinea. Photographs and a lot of information on each species of snake found there. Also good distribution maps with locations that each species has been found. Excellent scalation and morphology drawings as well for better identification purposes. Certainly a book I will be taking if I ever get the chance to go to New Guinea.

Australian Snakes

by Richard Shine

This is not a field guide to snakes of Australia but rather a comprehensive book on a lot of different information on just Australian snakes in general. The book has a lot of photos and useful information, from history of Australian snakes to relationships between Australians and their snakes this book has a whole lot of excellent data that will sufficiently assist anyone wanting to learn about the snakes in Australia.

Venomous Snakes of the World

by W.P. Mara

This is a good book geared towards a less technical audience. The book has great photographs, though most are of captive snakes and the text deals a lot with herpetoculture. It does have shorter contributions by other herpetologists such as Joseph T. Collins, Hobart M. Smith, Sherman Minton, Roger Conant, and Henry Fitch. A good book on a broad but non-indepth view of many venomous snakes but don't expect a lot of scientific facts or studies. This gives you a glance at many of the more popular species of venomous snakes that you are likely to see at zoos or in people's private collections.

Asian Pitvipers

By Gumprecht, et. al.

An excellent book with photographs of each and every species/subspecies of Asian pitviper. The main highlight of this book is its incredible photography however its main drawback is the lack of natural history information and distribution maps. Great taxonomic and morphology information on each and every species/subspecies. Slightly expensive but certainly worth it if you are looking for comprehensive taxonomic and morphological features. You can find this book at www.Geitje-Books-Berlin.de

Snakes of the Agkistrodon Complex

By Howard K. Gloyd and Roger Conant

This book is the authority on every pitviper species, new world and old world, that were recently in the genus Agkistrodon. This book has tons of natural history information and distribution maps of each species recognized in 1990. A large and excellent book.

Snakes of Iran

By Mahmoud Latifi (1991) 159 pp. $25

Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles: Contributions to Herpetology No. 7

Good plates and distribution maps of the snakes inhabiting Iran. Also contains information on snake bites and includes scientific names. Has some natural history on each species and good references.

Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind

By Laurence M. Klauber (1997) $150

Robert Jadin's Herpetology Journal

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