Field herping in Fairfield, Ca

[RandyRhoads]

Since the last week of being here we've seen 3 gopher snakes and 3 california kings. They are everywhere around here i'll be taking pics soon and hopefully have some luck finding some racers. Unfortunately 1 of each didn't make it. One gopher was squished by a car (seems like a daily event here, but more taxidermy practice I guess)

The kingsnake was a terrible event.... I saw it wrigling on the ground as I approached it and it looked like it had been hit by a lawn mower. There were several eviscerations and it's jaw was half on. As much as it killed me there was no hope of saving it so I crushed it's head with a quick heavy blow, but it kept squirming. I hope this was just nerves and I didn't cause further sufering? If this happens again what's the quickest most humane way of killing it? Decapitation?

[stephanbakir]

One day in Costa Rica all i had to eat was crab and snake, skinned it and gutted it, all there was left was bones and muscle(no head) and it wriggled on the fire for a good 2 minutes. It was just nerves, don't beat yourself up.

Crushing the head is insta dead, when the brain turns into brain pudding its no longer in working condition:P

[RandyRhoads]

OK. Just felt bad because to me it was a bit more rare than the every day rattlesnake for barbequeing and the day before I experienced that king and another king mating in the wild. A larger one was chasing the smaller one down a hill and wrapping into a ball with it, tumbling around. We grabbed them both to move them off the road into the safety of the weeds and it got hit the next day anyway.

[stephanbakir]

Sucks man, I sincerely hope the next herps you find live long lives :)

[TeaNinja]

at least he probably knocked up a babe first. his legacy will live on!!! lol ;)

[RandyRhoads]

Lol. Does anyone know wich sex is the agressor in kingsnake mating?

[jhiggy69]

last week on I-680 in Cordiela I picked up one off the shoulder & relockated to creek nearby was 'bout 18"

[jhiggy69]

a racer....is what i meant to say

[zamaya]

i heard(from creeping on another thread) that snakes still have brain activity for an hour after their heads cut off

[infernalis]

i heard(from creeping on another thread) that snakes still have brain activity for an hour after their heads cut off


Yes.. That's why Randyrhodes is a hero, stomping in the skull is a hard thing to do, but it gets the suffering over quick.

I had to stomp a little brown snake that had been run over by a car once, it sucked.

[whoaxmary]

:(
I remember when I was little, I spent all day peeling snakes off the roads (we live in the country. lots of garters and red bellies) only to bring them home and ask my parents to 'fix them'.

Good for you Randy for doing the hard yet best thing. :) And even better for coming on here to discuss with everyone.

Look forward to seeing some herp pictures soon bud

[stephanbakir]

Kinda sad:( Did mom and dad go herping and replace em with live ones?:P

[RandyRhoads]

Found this guy yesterday. He looked pretty chewed up. I can't be positive but i'm pretty sure it's the same one we caught a couple weeks ago that looked like a cat got ahold of him. We gave him water and a couple days rest then returned him to the wild.

[JaySteel]

As much as it killed me there was no hope of saving it so I crushed it's head with a quick heavy blow, but it kept squirming. I hope this was just nerves and I didn't cause further sufering? If this happens again what's the quickest most humane way of killing it? Decapitation?


At my place of work they use poison to control rats and the other week there was a rat that was showing very obvious signs of poisoning. A crowd of people surrounded and laughed at the creature as it desperately ran round and round in circles continually getting up and trying to run off again. I'm no fan of rats but to see any creature suffer like this was quite saddening to me. I did the humane thing and hit it over the head with a shovel. It didn't make me feel good but I know I did the right thing. I then carefully disposed of the carcass to avoid the chance of other predators feeding on it and suffering from poisoning too.

[infernalis]

At my place of work they use poison to control rats and the other week there was a rat that was showing very obvious signs of poisoning. A crowd of people surrounded and laughed at the creature as it desperately ran round and round in circles continually getting up and trying to run off again. I'm no fan of rats but to see any creature suffer like this was quite saddening to me. I did the humane thing and hit it over the head with a shovel. It didn't make me feel good but I know I did the right thing. I then carefully disposed of the carcass to avoid the chance of other predators feeding on it and suffering from poisoning too.


Good one. I despise poisons as animal control.

[marionsclan]

One day in Costa Rica all i had to eat was crab and snake, skinned it and gutted it, all there was left was bones and muscle(no head) and it wriggled on the fire for a good 2 minutes. It was just nerves, don't beat yourself up.

Crushing the head is insta dead, when the brain turns into brain pudding its no longer in working condition:P

So you had snake meat for dinner and brain pudding for dessert? Sounds like a complete meal to me. ;)

[NennaMeerkat]

Between Marion and Stephan we got ourselves a regular peanut gallery around here! Yuck it up you two!!

Anyways, it's a good thing you did ending the suffering snake's life quickly. Considering snakes can go so long without eating, if it didn't die of infection imagine starving away for months on end. So very sad. As someone else said though at least he got to pass himself on in the end via his children. Hopefully they will be far away from any road.

[Coffee Black]

Poison is a coward's weapon, really. You don't want rats? Seal off the places they can get in and humanely dispose of the ones you already have. Best rat/mouse trap is a 2x4, a big bucket and some food. Put the food in the bucket, lean the 2x4 on it and when the rat/mouse falls in they can't get back out. Take it away and dump it. For big rats you will probably need a big damned bucket though.

[RandyRhoads]

Poison is a coward's weapon, really. You don't want rats? Seal off the places they can get in and humanely dispose of the ones you already have. Best rat/mouse trap is a 2x4, a big bucket and some food. Put the food in the bucket, lean the 2x4 on it and when the rat/mouse falls in they can't get back out. Take it away and dump it. For big rats you will probably need a big damned bucket though.


Lmao a cowards weapon? Most people aren't afraid of mice they just don't have time, space, or a desire to set up a live trap like that. Most people don't give two ****s about vermin, not really a fear thing. Have you ever tried to seal off ALL the places that a mouse can get into? LOL .

[RandyRhoads]

Coluber constrictor mormon

Curious about a few things...

1. Coluber is the genus for all "racer" snakes?

2. Racers and coachwhip snakes are a common name that is interchangeable?

3. Coluber lateralis lateralis or the "striped racer" is a racer!? - Do they sometimes hang out in water swimming and eating fish?


My whole life I thought this was a different species of garter snake. So if it doesn't have a stripe on top, it's the striped racer...?

[stephanbakir]

Colubrid? Never heard of coluber.

[RandyRhoads]

Colubridea is the family.

Family- Colubridae- Colubrids


Genus- Coluber -North American Racers, Coachwhips and Whipsnakes

[RandyRhoads]

...........And now he's loose in my house....

[stephanbakir]

Are your reptiles protected? Any chance he gets to them and possibly transfers something?

[RandyRhoads]

Not unless he can scale flat vertical surfaces and open locks.