Search found 180 matches

by billysbrown
October 20th, 2014, 8:21 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Ontario Herping & Nature Images 2013-14
Replies: 19
Views: 10638

Re: Ontario Herping & Nature Images 2013-14

I loved that blue-spotted salamander - how do these sit in the blue spotted/Jefferson's spectrum? [edit - sorry, just saw the discussion re slimies and W. VA. I'd love to see the local blue spots]
by billysbrown
October 10th, 2014, 6:43 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Singapore pythons
Replies: 7
Views: 3013

Re: Singapore pythons

Chrish, I actually would be just as happy to talk to someone about the other cities you mentioned - Singapore is just where I was aware they occurred. Do you know anyone with experience with urban pythons in Jakarta, Manila, or Kuala Lampur? I'd be happy to talk to someone in those places or someone...
by billysbrown
October 8th, 2014, 9:20 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Singapore pythons
Replies: 7
Views: 3013

Re: Singapore pythons

Thanks Hans,

I'm in Philadelphia, PA, USA, but a friend and I are working on developing an urban natural history podcast. Combining that hat with my herping hat, maybe the coolest topic I can think of is urban multi-meter pythons. :-)

Thanks for reaching out to Noel for me.

Billy
by billysbrown
October 8th, 2014, 7:13 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Singapore pythons
Replies: 7
Views: 3013

Singapore pythons

Hello,

I am doing a little research into Singapore's reticulated pythons as an urban herpetology topic. I have read about them living in the city's sewers, and I'm curious if any FHF folks have firsthand knowledge of this or could point me to people who do.

Thanks, and happy herping,
Billy
by billysbrown
September 17th, 2014, 3:36 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

Thank you. I'll say that seeing the specimens at the museum was really cool too - connection with someone else doing the same thing 85 years ago.
by billysbrown
September 16th, 2014, 7:39 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

So, I went to Grandfather Mountain. I camped on the Blue Ridge Parkway and first thing in the morning I went to the mountain. http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss338/billysbrown/090614grandfather1.jpg Turns out the mountain (part of which is a state park, the other part of which, which I was visiti...
by billysbrown
September 2nd, 2014, 6:02 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

Years ago I went on a hike up up a mountain in western NC and I definitely recall the slippery granite outcrop hiking. I'm used to rock with better traction in the Ridge and Valley Province and Poconos in PA, and the NC experience did spook me a little. I tend to think of rhododendron hell as simply...
by billysbrown
September 1st, 2014, 2:10 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

I am prepared for most common herping hazards, though I'm not sure about the mutant man-eating salamanders. :-) Now that you mention it, I'm curious where the salamanders in his satchel ended up. I'm also trying to track down the contemporary reporting, so that might give a clue. How cool would it b...
by billysbrown
September 1st, 2014, 4:41 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

Working off the quote from Adler, and assuming 'Rock Stack Creek' is the one we're looking for, then I think the location of the creek on this map http://www.grandfather.com/wp-content/u ... il-map.pdf just about nails it for me. Thanks everyone for posting.

Billy
by billysbrown
August 31st, 2014, 8:26 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Re: Weller's Doom

Dery is closest to the mark re my intentions (and thank you for the introduction to 'Google,' though I haven't found the specific slope of Grandfather Mountain through Google). I thought it would be especially neat, in a morbid way, to see a place where a guy like me (albeit much younger) died while...
by billysbrown
August 29th, 2014, 6:49 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Weller's Doom
Replies: 24
Views: 15124

Weller's Doom

I am thinking of a trip/pilgrimage to visit Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina and see where Worth Hamilton Weller (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worth_Hamilton_Weller) fell while collecting his namesake salamanders. Does anyone know where exactly this was?

Thanks, and Happy Herping,
Billy
by billysbrown
August 3rd, 2014, 5:06 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Turtling in AR and LA
Replies: 6
Views: 2944

Re: Turtling in AR and LA

Well now I feel bad for not mentioning the Raftemys 2, which I used on this expedition :-).
by billysbrown
August 2nd, 2014, 8:16 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Turtling in AR and LA
Replies: 6
Views: 2944

Re: Turtling in AR and LA: Update

So, in the end I struck out on ouachitensis. I tried a few spots to jump into creeks/rivers, and none worked out for a few reasons, most notably the Ouachita near Rockport where the dam release drove me out earlier in the day than I had hoped for, and where the frigid water made it tough to stay in ...
by billysbrown
July 6th, 2014, 5:43 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Turtling in AR and LA
Replies: 6
Views: 2944

Re: Turtling in AR and LA

Chris, you've hit on one of the toughest parts of picking spots to jump in. Clearer, rockier waterways tend to be relatively easy (relatively - all bets are off anywhere after a big rain), and I've had good luck in some rivers and creeks cutting through mostly forested terrain, assuming relatively d...
by billysbrown
July 5th, 2014, 6:49 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Turtling in AR and LA
Replies: 6
Views: 2944

Turtling in AR and LA

Good Morning South Central Herpers, Next week I am going to take a Southern turtling vacation. I'll be jumping into rivers to find map turtles (Graptemys species). For reference, here's an old blog post of mine about how I do it in the Delaware River up here: http://phillyherping.blogspot.com/2011/0...
by billysbrown
January 7th, 2014, 5:41 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Vermont Herps Wrong Number
Replies: 4
Views: 2782

Vermont Herps Wrong Number

Howdy, An old college friend who has absolutely nothing to do with herping (she is a scholar of Chinese History) and who teaches at Middlebury in Vermont, has discovered that her work phone number is on an old amphibians of VT poster http://www.vtfishandwildlife.com/vtcritters/factsheets/other/The%2...
by billysbrown
January 7th, 2014, 5:33 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: the South Philly Herper
Replies: 13
Views: 4174

Re: the South Philly Herper

Good to see you on FHF Mark, and again, that red salamander right on Forbidden Drive was fabulous.

Happy Herping (is that the worst thing I could say at today's temps?),
Billy
by billysbrown
October 31st, 2013, 12:09 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Yunnan herping 2013
Replies: 15
Views: 5110

Re: Yunnan herping 2013

I can't stop looking at that oligodon. I had never heard of that species, and it is gorgeous.

Thank you,
Billy
by billysbrown
June 9th, 2013, 4:30 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: herper seeking herper
Replies: 1
Views: 742

herper seeking herper

I was driving to go herping yesterday morning and I found myself driving behind a blue Toyota Tundra pickup with the tag "Clemmys." I'm assuming he's one of our kind. Anyone know who this is?

Happy Herping,
Billy
by billysbrown
May 14th, 2013, 8:53 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Monroevill, PA here I come
Replies: 1
Views: 671

Monroevill, PA here I come

Howdy, I am going to Monroeville, PA for work in a couple days. That's just east of Pittsburgh. I might have some time Thursday late-afternoon/evening to look for critters after our meetings are over, but nothing on the map seems immediately inviting (I usually head for State Game Lands). I'm not su...
by billysbrown
May 14th, 2013, 8:44 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Epirus, Greece. May 2013
Replies: 11
Views: 5594

Re: Epirus, Greece. May 2013

Great post - I love those tortoises.

Billy
by billysbrown
April 15th, 2013, 8:08 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: ... panhandling pituophids ...
Replies: 11
Views: 4389

Re: ... panhandling pituophids ...

My kind of neighborhood - thanks for posting.

Happy Herping,
Billy
by billysbrown
April 11th, 2013, 5:08 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil
Replies: 11
Views: 4535

Re: ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil

Thanks!
by billysbrown
April 11th, 2013, 12:54 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil
Replies: 11
Views: 4535

Re: ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil

You know, I was looking at the photo and thinking, 'that thing sure looks like a whip snake,' and then, 'but there are no Masticophis in Brazil.' I'm wrong on the second part, so maybe I'm right about the first part.
by billysbrown
April 11th, 2013, 12:12 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil
Replies: 11
Views: 4535

ID Please: Mystery Snake from Brazil

A friend who is on a birding trip to Brazil is looking to ID this snake: http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss338/billysbrown/11997_10201099672677738_1842776751_n.jpg My friend writes, "It was in the 'upper part' of Serra de Canastra National Park, Minas Gerais, Brasil. In cerrado habitat, spec...
by billysbrown
April 4th, 2013, 8:56 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Oligodon experts needed
Replies: 11
Views: 3300

Re: Oligodon experts needed

A few years ago I went through an Oligodon phase and read everything I could about them, but never got my hands on any. Someone in Florida I connected with who kept a formosanus noted that they would drink beaten chicken egg from a water dish. A keeper in (I think) the Netherlands who worked with pu...
by billysbrown
January 2nd, 2013, 11:03 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: 2012 wrap up, East Coast.
Replies: 16
Views: 4266

Re: 2012 wrap up, East Coast.

You know what I liked, but I also dug the shots of TRs on the crawl. I love that straight-line caterpillar-style crawling they use when they're cruising.

Great stuff,
Billy
by billysbrown
December 7th, 2012, 9:58 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Lizards in Machu Picchu Peru
Replies: 9
Views: 5960

Re: Lizards in Machu Picchu Peru

spiltbeerpirate wrote:as requested. Habitat pics added. :)
That's what I'm talking about. What I remember best about my time in the Andes and the Altiplano was my mind blown by the scenery every few minutes. Thanks for the reminder.

Billy
by billysbrown
December 7th, 2012, 9:55 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: 2012 EOY Turtle Report - NE Chapter
Replies: 13
Views: 21183

Re: 2012 EOY Turtle Report - NE Chapter

Good post from my home turtling country. I envy you those soft shells. I've spent more than a few hours in Maurice River system water looking for them and haven't lucked out yet. BTW, I saw no indication that you got into the water with the turtles. If you haven't strapped on a mask and snorkel, you...
by billysbrown
December 5th, 2012, 2:00 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: 2012 EOY Snake Report – MA/NY/CT (Pic Heavy like WOW)
Replies: 14
Views: 3420

Re: 2012 EOY Snake Report – MA/NY/CT (Pic Heavy like WOW)

If I had a nickel for all the discarded lingerie I've found herping...

Nice NE snakes post, and extra points for working 'meta' into a FHF post like that.

Thanks for posting,
Billy
by billysbrown
November 30th, 2012, 12:34 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Lizards in Machu Picchu Peru
Replies: 9
Views: 5960

Re: Lizards in Machu Picchu Peru

First, thanks for posting herps from the Andes, a seldom-posted area.

That said, I've been to Machu Picchu, and it's a crime you didn't post any habitat shots. Please, post a couple.

Thanks,
Billy
by billysbrown
August 14th, 2012, 10:41 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Black rat communal nest
Replies: 37
Views: 10254

Re: Black rat communal nest

That is really neat, but I even think it might be worth writing up for Herpetological Review as a natural history note. Then again I think that a lot and maybe this is more common than I realize. Nate, what do you think?

Billy
by billysbrown
August 14th, 2012, 10:38 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Grid Milksnake article
Replies: 10
Views: 2250

Re: Grid Milksnake article

Almost every PA field herp guide I own has confirmed finds for Milks, Coppers, Racers, and Black Rats within Philadelphia's limits. I guess Bill's explained the Milks, but every other one baffles me a bit. - Matt The milks are definitely around and pretty widespread through Upper Roxborough and the...
by billysbrown
August 13th, 2012, 6:20 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Grid Milksnake article
Replies: 10
Views: 2250

Re: Grid Milksnake article

Thanks guys, I figure the general appetite for herp articles is two or three per year. I did a frog (spring peepers) article earlier in the spring. I might get a two-lined salamander article in for the winter too. More herpetology for the masses :-). Fitz - in the print version the page is numbered ...
by billysbrown
August 11th, 2012, 7:55 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Grid Milksnake article
Replies: 10
Views: 2250

Grid Milksnake article

Hi Folks, I'm betting some are aware, some are not aware, that I write an Urban Naturalist column for a Philadelphia environmental magazine called Grid ( http://www.gridphilly.com/ ). I try to get a few herp articles in each year, and the latest issue has one about my obsession with finding Philadel...
by billysbrown
May 24th, 2012, 6:57 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)
Replies: 7
Views: 1926

Re: dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)

No one seemed bothered by the sex ratio. They do seem to disperse pretty widely (the adult female was from Tuckahoe, for example), so I guess it averages out okay overall. The biologist said 34 breeding pairs in PA, with a quarter of them in the Philly area. Pre-DDT it was 44, though most of those w...
by billysbrown
May 24th, 2012, 4:56 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)
Replies: 7
Views: 1926

Re: dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)

Matt, Indeed there are peregrines all over Philadelphia - the pair at City Hall and basically at every bridge over the Delaware. The nest is on the south side of the clock tower, so if you just stand on Broad Street with binoculars and watch, you'll see them, at least for another week or so until th...
by billysbrown
May 23rd, 2012, 6:46 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)
Replies: 7
Views: 1926

dig the guy with the broom (non-herp post)

This isn't about herps, but for an article I'm writing for Grid ( http://www.gridphilly.com ) I was observing a state biologist band baby peregrine falcons at Philadelphia's City Hall. The broom guy was stuck in traffic, so... http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/video?id=8674081 Then after work I hit a vaca...
by billysbrown
May 7th, 2012, 12:33 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Long Weekend in Search of Shelled Herps in Arkansas
Replies: 10
Views: 2992

Re: Long Weekend in Search of Shelled Herps in Arkansas

Nice turtle post. I particularly liked looking up the chicken turtle's pants with the reflection.

Billy
by billysbrown
April 26th, 2012, 8:38 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Mud and Musk Turtles
Replies: 10
Views: 1494

Re: Mud and Musk Turtles

The research area has multiple impoundments and they are drained in rotation every four years. The populations of Mud, Musk, and Spotted turtles are being tracked to determine if they rotate between impoundments when displaced by draining or if some of them actually leave the research area all toge...
by billysbrown
April 11th, 2012, 6:56 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Some turtles from today (edit with story)
Replies: 8
Views: 1657

Re: Some turtles from today (edit with story)

Overall, I caught (bare-handed with water shoes, the only manly way to do it)... Yes! Though for gender balance I'll demand the same style for women too. There's a pond in Philadelphia (in Fairmont Park, Centennial District, just west of Belmont for those in the area) that has snappers, and I want ...
by billysbrown
April 2nd, 2012, 8:40 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: first clemmys of the year
Replies: 3
Views: 875

first clemmys of the year

I'm sure others have been seeing these already this year - we've had some great weather while I've been stuck in the office - but does anyone else get as happy as I do at seeing the first spotted turtle of the spring? http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss338/billysbrown/040112spotty.jpg Happy Turtli...
by billysbrown
February 22nd, 2012, 8:37 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Missouri Trip Report
Replies: 14
Views: 5271

Re: Missouri Trip Report

Nice post Eitan - I loved the ringneck with the identity crisis.

Billy
by billysbrown
February 1st, 2012, 6:32 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: SE PA glutinosis question
Replies: 6
Views: 1298

Re: SE PA glutinosis question

Thanks guys. That does answer the question. Maybe I'll poke around some of my favorite piedmont areas outside Philly and see what I find. I was going through some old photos and saw one that made me want to see a live slimy. With this weather we're having...
by billysbrown
February 1st, 2012, 1:53 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: SE PA glutinosis question
Replies: 6
Views: 1298

SE PA glutinosis question

Hello Fellow Herpers, How southeast in PA have you found slimy salamanders? We have such beautiful slimies (big, brassy flecks) in the mountains, but I don't think I've ever flipped one in the piedmont (let alone coastal plain) of PA under the usual rocks, logs, and other debris. I've flipped like f...
by billysbrown
January 31st, 2012, 3:59 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: herpetological review article on longtail salamander ID
Replies: 3
Views: 1183

herpetological review article on longtail salamander ID

Congrats to Spinifer on his article in Herpetological Review!
by billysbrown
January 21st, 2012, 5:16 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Herp Lecture in Philadelphia
Replies: 1
Views: 825

Herp Lecture in Philadelphia

Hi Folks, Please forgive me for posting something that is not strictly about field herping in our region, but the herp curator at the Philadelphia Zoo has been involved in amphibian work in post-earthquake Haiti, and he'll be talking about it in the context of a wider preservation effort there on Ja...
by billysbrown
January 3rd, 2012, 11:42 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Mississippi Herp Photos
Replies: 12
Views: 3800

Re: Mississippi Herp Photos

jayder85 wrote:One of the Map Turtle species. I am not very familiar with these.
Image
Looks like a female G. flavimaculata to me. You also have G. gibbonsi in the Leaf/Pascagoula River system.

Happy Herping,
Billy
by billysbrown
December 28th, 2011, 10:00 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: My year in review TN, AL, GA
Replies: 34
Views: 4653

Re: My year in review TN, AL, GA

Great post! I'll echo the other calls for more info on the pine snake. I'll add a request for a bit more about that map turtle. As a map turtle nut, I'd love to know what kind of water you found it in and how you got it out of the water.

Thanks, and Happy Herping in 2012,
Billy
by billysbrown
November 23rd, 2011, 10:34 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: my 2011 - Europe, CA & Egypt
Replies: 19
Views: 4636

Re: my 2011 - Europe, CA & Egypt

I am curious about that amur ratsnake. Is that one from an established population?

Thanks,
Billy