2016 Herping Thread - Page 2

Bandit · 01-29-16, 09:31 AM

Yeah we are having a very mild winter here. It has definitely cooled down, but we still get a day or two a week that is warm enough for everything to come out. It's warmer today and should stay that way through Monday or Tuesday, so I'm planning on getting out in the field a couple of times. Surprisingly though, we really don't have any salamanders in my immediate area.

You should definitely make a herping thread once you start finding stuff. I always enjoy seeing what other people find.

Bandit · 01-29-16, 04:41 PM

I went out for a couple hours today and it was kind of a let down. It was absolutely beautiful outside, but there just wasn't a lot out. Here is one of the five water snakes I found. I will try again in a couple of days and hopefully see some more stuff.

Broad-banded water snake in shed

Sublimeballs · 01-29-16, 10:51 PM

Will do, only things I've found so far this year have been 2 two lined salamanders, several dusky salamanders, a slimy salamander, and a few upland chorus frogs. We got the cold weather after New Years. We had a nice warm December, I found a big spotted salamander and 3 slimys on Xmas eve. The next few days will be nice here for salamanders so I plan to try and flip some over the weekend and cruise when the rain comes on Tuesday. Wish me luck, you seem to be rather lucky so far.lol

Bandit · 01-31-16, 09:44 PM

Well I wrapped up January with one last herping trip to a spot I've never been to. Overall, it was as good as I could've expected for being January, but I will definitely be going back a lot during the spring as it seems like it will be promising.

I finished up January with almost 50 snakes of 10 different species. I also saw plenty of lizards(five species), frogs(five species), and turtles(two species). Here are two of my finds from today.

Western ribbon snake

A nice sized black-masked racer(55"). By far the darkest individual I have ever seen.

Bandit · 02-02-16, 02:06 PM

Well the dark coloring on this racer had been bugging me. It just looked too much like a southern black racer to me. The reason I was thinking black-masked was because in this particular area, that's usually all we see(and they tend to be darker than black-masks in other areas of the state, but not this dark). However, after consulting with some very knowledgeable people, I have come to conclude that this is indeed a southern black racer or possibly a mix of black-masked and southern black.

jpsteele80 · 02-10-16, 08:03 PM

I envy that you find all these cool finds, i cant find jack when i go out all i ever seem to see is deer, seen 1 you seen them all.

Bandit · 02-10-16, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpsteele80

I envy that you find all these cool finds, i cant find jack when i go out all i ever seem to see is deer, seen 1 you seen them all.

I'm sure you could find some herps out there. Just gotta look in the right spots at the right time!

Bandit · 02-13-16, 05:56 PM

Well February has been pretty slow for herping. It's been cool and even on the warm days I haven't been seeing a ton. Here are a few of my finds so far.

Common garter snakes

Diamond-backed water snakes

Dead three-toed amphuima. I suppose a large bird got to him before me.

Squirrel tree frog

Bandit · 03-02-16, 02:07 PM

Well now that February has come to a close, I can say I'm pretty happy with the end result. The beginning of the month was slow, but it picked up towards the end. So here are some of my favorite finds from this month. Also on a side note, when I was in Pensacola, FL for a weekend I apparently missed a Pygmy rattlesnake (which is one of my target species) by about 10-15 minutes. I'll hopefully get one soon though.

Speckled kingsnake. Easily my favorite find this year. I had been looking hard for one of these guys since I hadn't seen one since August.

Beautiful, but feisty little western cottonmouth

Mississippi ringneck. This is the smallest one I've found alive.

Lifer marbled salamander

Bandit · 03-02-16, 02:09 PM

Dekay's brown snake. This was also the smallest dekay's I've ever found. Incidentally it was in almost the same exact spot as the ringneck.

And last, but certainly not least, a couple of young gray rat snakes

Oleman · 03-03-16, 11:16 AM

I can't wait to be able to get out.
Unfortunetly in Montana our animals won't be out until early may.

reptiledude987 · 03-03-16, 12:14 PM

How did you even see that ringneck? thats too cute.

Bandit · 03-03-16, 01:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oleman

I can't wait to be able to get out.
Unfortunetly in Montana our animals won't be out until early may.

That's one reason I love being in the South! Even when we have long, cold winters we still get to herp for at least 9 months out of the year. It's usually more than that though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by reptiledude987

How did you even see that ringneck? thats too cute.

I just happened to look down and I was about to step on him lol. It was just mere luck that I looked down when I did!

Bandit · 03-29-16, 07:28 AM

I know I've been fairly absent from the forum, but that hasn't been the case in the field. March has been a great month for me in regards to herping. I've found over 100 snakes this month consisting of thirteen species, along with multiple species of lizards, turtles, and frogs. Pics coming soon.

Zelg · 04-02-16, 05:23 PM

I'm amazed at that ringneck. What a gorgeous little snake and I'm amazed you were even able to spot it. You're eyesight has got to be good, lol.