Crawdads, turtles, frogs, toads, salamanders, bull snakes, lizards, rattle snakes and garter snakes are some of the creatures that live along the Poudre River corridor.
There are multiple species of snakes in Eastern Colorado. They live along the riparian habitat of the Poudre River Trail because of the abundance of small mammals for a food source. Some snakes are large, such as the Bull Snakes and the Rattlesnakes, but some are small and harmless, such as garter snakes. Some snakes even swim in the water. Snakes are a very important part of keeping an ecosystem in balance as they keep the rodent population in check. Bull snakes are common along the Poudre Trail. Don't be fooled, they look very similar to Rattlesnakes and even mimic their rattle, but they are not poisonous. Chances are that you won't come across one, but you should always be on the lookout for snakes, especially on warm sunny days when they are more active. Stay away from all snakes, and let them be. They are important to the ecosystem.
If you walk down the trail in the evening in late Summer, you will likely hear a chorus of frogs. Frogs lay their eggs in still water ponds, the eggs hatch into tadpoles, then tadpoles with legs, then froglets with tails, then mature into frogs. There are many species of frogs and toads in this section of Colorado, including: Western Chorus Frog, Northern Leopard Frog, Wood Frog, Bullfrogs, Plains Spadefoot Toad, Great Plains Toad, Woodhouse's Toad and others. Toads commonly sun on the Trail while finding plenty of crickets and bugs for food. Watch out and don't run them over if you are biking! They help control the insect population!
You may see one or two turtles sunning themselves on a log in the water. In Weld County the species of turtles are: Spiny Softshell, Snapping Turtle, Painted Turtle 
and a Ornate Box Turtle. Did you know that a turtle's shell is called a "carapace".
Some turtles, such as the Painted Turtle, are diurnal, meaning that they can live in the water or on land. Wild painted turtles prefer slow-moving shallow waters or ponds and marshes with soft, muddy bottoms. They forage on plants during the day, bask in the sun, and sleep underwater.
Crawdads occasionally come out of the water and can be seen on the Poudre River Trail in areas where the trail travels close to the river. Crawdads have a difficult time tolerating polluted water, so if you see one that means good things for the health of the river!