Herping after the rain?

[jaleely]

It's raining right now and is supposed to keep going through the night off and on until morning. We've been planning for a week or more to go on a hike tomorrow and see if we can do some herping! We've never done it before though. How will the rain affect it? We're going to go to the Devils Punch Bowl, in Santa Paula, Southern CA.
Anyone have advice?

[infernalis]

I find some of the best snake sightings right after a nice rain.

Rain=Food

Have fun.

P.S. take some garter pics!!!

[Gungirl]

I think a lot more animals come out right after a nice rain storm cools things off and livens things up a bit. I hope you have a good time and take a lot of pictures!!

[jaleely]

Thanks guys! Soooo taking the camera! I wanna try to catch something..buwahaha! but i probably won't..plus i was reading and i guess they are all crazy around here and if you get caught trying to find something, you get fined. If you don't have your FISHING license PINNED on the OUTSIDE of your SHIRT you get fined. really??? Yes, really.
Fishing? And are we in kindergarten??
jeez!

Anyway, i'm still going to do my best to try to find something without acting like i'm trying to find something. Man i wish i owned a huge lot of land for myself *lol*

[youngster]

That's dumb. But yeah I agree I always find the most stuff after rain. Red spotted newts come out in the hundreds at my house.
but it's like -10 degrees right now so I can't go herping for a while :)

Good luck and take a lot of pictures!

[beardeds4life]

It is raining by me to :) we both live in southern california so it is probably the same storm

[peterm15]

you guys suck...

I get like 2 months of herping and have to drive 6 hrs to find anything cool.
In my area all i will find is garters ( which is cool but NOT if its the only thing around)
Drive 6 hrs and i can find hognose, rats, milks waters and my fave. massassauga rattlers.

[alessia55]

Good luck herping! I'd take gloves/a hook if you wanna pick anything up. But I'm a bit more of a wuss about picking up wild snakes and getting bit :p I hope you at least get photos and post them here!! :D

[beardeds4life]

I find NOTHING in my area except sometimes a western fence lizard but those are very fast and usually hide before i see them and that is all I find ever

[RandyRhoads]

If you don't have your FISHING license PINNED on the OUTSIDE of your SHIRT you get fined. really??? Yes, really.
Fishing? And are we in kindergarten??
jeez!

No we are in the adult world where you must be licensed to take animals from their habitat. Last I heard DFAG wasn't enforcing it being visible, as long as you had a current license. But it's up to you to take the chance. It's a fishing and not hunting license because that's where they grouped reptiles and amphibians.


As for herping there, i'll be surprised if you have any luck. Not sure when you're going buy it's pretty cold there. If you do find anything keep us posted, i've never been herping in that area. Only north and south of there. I'm farther north. No reptiles in site for months, except for today. I found a fence lizard in a box on my porch frozen.

[SWALTERSFPPD]

In Florida it is the best after the rain only because in the summer it rains everyday

[jaleely]

Well we totally didn't see anything *lol* But...it was kind of way more of a hike than a herping expidition.
We wanted to try to get to the punch bowls...natural rock formations that hold water and have a waterfall...so there were *lots* of hiding spots and good looking areas, deer tracks etc., but we didn't see anything.
It' was a 4 hour long hike though, and it was kind of rough going. We didn't make it to the bowls, had to turn around and go back before it got dark!

And Randy, the website *did* say to pin it to the outside of your shirt *lol*
And actually i don't really have a problem needed a license to "hunt" or take the critters, its' more annoying that there isn't a designated area close enough to where we live to make it viable to even go there.
I also really think it was stupid that they said to pin it to the outside of your shirt *lol*

I just wanted to go poke some critters a bit, and take their pic! hehe

[infernalis]

In Florida it is the best after the rain only because in the summer it rains everyday

When I lived in Orlando, you could always tell when it was 3:30-4:00 ;)

[Swany]

When I lived in Orlando, you could always tell when it was 3:30-4:00 ;)

I thought they called Florida the sunshine state ? Or am I wrong (again) lol

[CK SandBoas]

I thought they called Florida the sunshine state ? Or am I wrong (again) lol


Swany, down there, it could be pouring buckets, ten minutes later, the sun is shining, and there is not a cloud in the sky, so the weather in Florida is unpredictable, to say the least, lol

[Swany]

Swany, down there, it could be pouring buckets, ten minutes later, the sun is shining, and there is not a cloud in the sky, so the weather in Florida is unpredictable, to say the least, lol

It's the same here. Without the sunshine lol

[youngster]

Swany, down there, it could be pouring buckets, ten minutes later, the sun is shining, and there is not a cloud in the sky, so the weather in Florida is unpredictable, to say the least, lol

The same could be same about New England!
This has to be the worst winter ever snow wise.

[CK SandBoas]

The same could be same about New England!
This has to be the worst winter ever snow wise.

For you guys up north, i bet! For us here in Massachusetts, we're still waiting for a big snow event.

[KORBIN5895]

When I lived in Orlando, you could always tell when it was 3:30-4:00 ;)

Bang on! When we visited my aunt's house for three month it seemed like 3-4 was storm time everyday!

[jaleely]

We have been thinking of moving to Florida. Better wages, and cheaper living. Also...warm scuba diving! Good lord it gets cold out here on the pacific coast!
Weather here is always moody. It's only slightly humid where i am, but it will be sunny one minute, rain the next, and the next day the Santa Ana winds are blowing (from the desert) and it practically melts you.

Ha and i always heard people liked coastal living for the weather. I hate it!! lol I miss my seasons!

[Lankyrob]

We have four seasons here - cold and rainy, windy and rainy, warm and rainy and finally cold windy and rainy :) :) :)

[youngster]

We have four seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter. BUT those seasons are very bi polar.
It snowed buckets on Halloween then it didn't snow properly until after Christmas!
:crazy2:

[Swany]

We have four seasons, spring, summer, fall, winter. BUT those seasons are very bi polar.
It snowed buckets on Halloween then it didn't snow properly until after Christmas!
:crazy2:

Eli here in Scotland we can have four seasons in one afternoon :-)

[SWALTERSFPPD]

Florida is great in all, weather is great but it also draws all the old people. It rains everyday from may thru September. Then winter is mild and barely rains. No matter where you live in Florida your never more than 2 hours from a beach . Yeah the cost of living is low but so is the pay. I am a native and have been through 7 hurricanes, 3 tornadoes, 1 earthquake ( yes in Florida). 1 snow storm ( yea in Florida ). I love Florida but I hate it too.

[alessia55]

Florida is great in all, weather is great but it also draws all the old people. It rains everyday from may thru September. Then winter is mild and barely rains. No matter where you live in Florida your never more than 2 hours from a beach . Yeah the cost of living is low but so is the pay. I am a native and have been through 7 hurricanes, 3 tornadoes, 1 earthquake ( yes in Florida). 1 snow storm ( yea in Florida ). I love Florida but I hate it too.

I'm in Miami and we are mostly young people there :D Miami beach especially. Personally I love the weather. Hot, sunny, rainy, and humid. I've been in FL for 11 years now and had way more than 7 hurricanes...not all big like Hurricane Andrew, but lots of Cat 1-3 ones. And then there's tropical snow storms, my personal favorite lol. I love Florida and I'd only consider living elsewhere if it was similar.... maybe California or something like that. Hmm..now that I think about it...I really liked Arizona's hot & dry weather too.

[SWALTERSFPPD]

I'm in Miami and we are mostly young people there :D Miami beach especially. Personally I love the weather. Hot, sunny, rainy, and humid. I've been in FL for 11 years now and had way more than 7 hurricanes...not all big like Hurricane Andrew, but lots of Cat 1-3 ones. And then there's tropical snow storms, my personal favorite lol. I love Florida and I'd only consider living elsewhere if it was similar.... maybe California or something like that. Hmm..now that I think about it...I really liked Arizona's hot & dry weather too.

I love the heat and humity, but I live by one of the biggest Eco killers in Florida "the villages".they destroy the natural ecosystems to make a fake one that looks fake but the old people love it. I loved Florida 10 years ago when our state was not compared to have the same population as new York state. The last time I was in Miami was after Andrew. I only wish that the villages retirement community was destroyed by the 2004-2005 hurricane seasons . But since we are in a la nina pattern we are going to have another active hurricane season

[*Don't Mind Me*]

That's dumb. But yeah I agree I always find the most stuff after rain. Red spotted newts come out in the hundreds at my house.
Wow, that would be awesome to see, I live in South California, but I've never seen any newts.

[*Don't Mind Me*]

California only has good weather during fall and spring. The winters are freezing during the night, always cloudy and gloomy, and rains go off and on. The summer is nothing but extreme heat, discomfort, insect bites, and not a single drop of rain. :eek: