Setting up a field herping area?

[CosmicOwl]

I'd looking for some tips on how to set up an area near my house where wild herps(primarily snakes) can congregate and I can find them. I already know about setting out tin and boards, and I will do that in more secluded places(because it's ugly). I'd like some more creative ways to attract them, or offer them a place to hide that I can periodically investigate.

[toddnbecka]

Hmm, might help if you scatter birdseed around to attract prey? A small pond or even a semi-buried water tub might also help, every animal has to drink. Toss in some small fish to eat mosquito larvae during their breeding season, might also attract frogs or toads to lay eggs in the spring.

[FWK]

Food! If you can encourage prey such as mice to hang out the snakes will to. I've found occasionally scattering around a bit of food like bird seed, deer corn, dog food and what not dramatically increases all the wildlife in the area over time. For example I've got a friend who has a lot more land than I do and he has deer feeders running year round. The cover near the feeders are almost always more productive than anywhere else on the property. You probably wont want to over do it or you'll start attracting raccoons and what have you. When I was a kid we raised poultry and the amount of wildlife their mess and uneaten food attracted was incredible. And obviously a lot of snakes showed up to eat the birds themselves. Providing a source of water (if there is not already water) and maximizing available cover helps as well. Do not cut the grass! Be patient with artificial cover, it usually takes a while for it to settle in and really become productive. A board that produces nothing for a couple years can suddenly turn up a few critters in a month. Then again it could produce something within a week of placement. Study the natural history of the snakes native to your area when setting up cover. With many species flipping cover is not the best way to find them at all. For example most Rat Snakes are highly arboreal and primarily crepuscular, often the best way to find them is to scan the trees just after dark with a flashlight. That white belly that makes them so hard to see against the sky during the day just pops when hit with a flashlight at night. Racers on the other hand are very active during the day and will often take advantage of tin early in the morning when the sun first begins to warm it. The window to find them under that tin is very small though, as soon as they are up to temperature they are gone. Most of the time I have the best luck by just moving very slowly and taking in everything that is going on around me. Sometimes if you just stop and sit down for a few minutes the world around you will come alive. If you are very still nature will often show herself to you. That nondescript little pile of leaves will suddenly begin to move and for the first time you'll see the snake that has watched you walk by a hundred times. Beware of cats! They will kill anything they can get their claws into, and they are very good at getting their claws into anything and everything that moves. I had a cat tear down a few birds nests a couple years ago. I had seen the cat early in the spring but let it past and it rewarded me by taking out nests and who knows what else. I will not make that mistake again. Be sure to be safe when in the field. Don't put your hands anywhere you can't see, use a tool of some kind to flip cover and memorize the scientific names for all venomous animals in your area.

[pet_snake_78]

Boards and tin roofing are the best ways to find them, but you cannot put those on public land (littering). Best to find someone who has land that borders up to a large amount of green space. You want to put those things in an old field or other open area.

[red ink]

What snakes live in your area?

What habitats to they prefer?

What are their prey items?