First and foremost establish your budget. Once you have that range determined, than decide how much you plan to use it? Is it just for your snakes or are you planning on using for all of your other photos too? There are some great point and shoot style cameras that are typically less expensive, smaller, easier to handle and less confusing to learn. If you are more serious and have the budget, a DSLR gives you more options for lenses and have more features. Personally I like Nikon however Canon, Sony make great DSLR's as well. Do some research, go to a camera store and try some out. Craigslist is also a great place to find great deals on slightly used DSLR's, often you can find deals on mid - high end DSLR's, lenses, etc...

http://bythom.com is a great website with a ton of information and reviews - it is very Nikon based however, he does have a section on "other cameras" as well. In addition to reviews, there is a ton of great information on this site.

Good luck with your decision and let us know what you get!