Field Herp Forum

That is a great day! :thumb: Nice looking bulls too! Interesting about the hognose in the water. One of my son's took my 7 year old grandson herping yesterday and my grandson spotted a snake in the water of an abandoned rock quarry with a pointed nose. Turned out to be a hognose! Told him that was h...

Awesome post Brian! Too much to comment on but always like the red milks and the hellbender! Part 1 was equally impressive! I remember when you started posting several years ago on garden web or something like that. You have certainly came a long ways as a true herper! Congrats! :thumb: Good luck th...

Gary, Your son is quite a bit bigger than I remember! I love the finds you're seeing. I've never seen a banded ground snake in Missouri... I will keep looking though. The buttermilk black rat is super cool, thanks for posting it. Thanks Justin, they really do grow up quick which I'm sure you know t...

This is the same location as the year before. http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12135 2013 started out on the cool side. Still very cold on April 7 so decided to check out a new glade for later. Couldn't resist flipping just a few rocks and found our very first snake of the yea...

Congrats on a great year Chris! :thumb: I too thought that was very interesting about the flatheads! One latched onto one of my son's finger once and held on for quite a while. Maybe that is something they do occasionally but still surprising. Really like what you do with your Survey each year! Gary

Gary, that is a very handsome animal. Getting it as large as you have in mind seems reasonable to me. Controversial I know...I think you can grow most Colubrids long and fast with frequent small meals and give them all they want within reason(should equate to rapid and healthy growth, not regurgita...

I kept a leucistic opossum for a sort of pet for awhile. It never did tame down but it was the prettiest possum I have ever seen. Neat pictures. Mine was a Florida possum. Thanks Ted and welcome to the forum! Tamara, Gerry, PrimitiveTim, thanks for the comments! Where I lived as a kid, all of the o...

Sorry about the late reply!

herpseeker1978 wrote:box elder bugs

Thanks Josh!

El Garia wrote:That walking stick is amazing! Never have I found such a cool insect. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks! Now if I could only take photos like your last post here. Truly amazing!

Gary

Got this little guy in the Fall of 2010 as a non feeder. Finally took a few skinks and by July 2011 he ate a pinky. After that he eats every time now. Frustrating but still exciting at the same time when it seemed I tried every thing to get him on mice. Went from 7 grams on skinks to 9 grams by July...

Almost forgot about this which I think is caused by Carpenter Bees? They look a lot like the ordinary bumblebee but bore holes in wood. They also make you very nervous to have them flying all around you. Although I have heard they seldom sting. http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/Gary2sons/PICT35...

Thought this was really special until someone else recently posted one almost identical. Still pretty cool looking! http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/Gary2sons/774faaa7-f0f7-4045-88d2-781cc3a661b2_zpsccfebb8d.jpg http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/Gary2sons/IMG_0660_zps0c114e65.jpg These ne...

Where are the ground snakes! :lol: Seems that is about the only thing you didn't find! Just kidding of course but I remember your post from last year when you found them about the same time we found ours here in Missouri. We went back to the same spot this year and found some more which I need to po...

Aside from the general expertise one gains from familiarity (as expressed by the previous respondents), marbleds have 12 costal grooves, ringeds have 15. From the second photo I count 12. That is a nice photo documentation of a rarely seen life-stage. Here in Louisiana the metamorphs are unknown un...

I would sleep easy documenting that as a Marbled Salamander. Thanks Andy for the ID! We thought marbled but since we have found probably fewer than a dozen ringed salamanders I wanted to make sure it wasn't just an oddly colored ringed. Especially one that small. Rich in Reptiles, beemaster, condyl...

One of my sons works at a local city swimming pool and they find a few herps sometimes, mostly frogs but sometimes a salamander. One morning after a recent rain a central newt and this little salamander were found in the pool. He brought them home for an ID but both were dead the next day. My guess ...

Congrats on another great year so far Matt! :thumb: Your boys are certainly growing up fast, a lot of herping memories for sure! It really was an odd year for us too. A good year but quite a lot of odd finds and stats it seems. The one milk was a beautiful snake and an awesome find for an 8 year old...

Berkeley, Thanks for the info! Just what I wanted to hear. :thumb: It has been 2 days now and they were laying side by side today so everything seems OK. Haven't tried to feed the siren yet but it should be fun after I make some changes in my tank. I was really hoping someone on here had kept them t...

Cole, thanks for the web site! Very interesting! jimi, thanks for the info. Never thought about them escaping like that. Should be fun and I really do enjoy keeping the eel. They seem very easy to care for and I have never had any problems. Vic, hopefully I'll have some pics if this all works out. J...

I agree! Very cool! We have done that with milks and copperheads on our property but we have lots of tin and cover to check. Plus it is a very small area as far as size. There is large timber on 3 sides and pasture in the front so that also seems to be a reason they sometimes don't move much. Have a...

Anybody have any experience keeping these in an aquarium? It was a "rescue" much like the 16 inch american eel I have had for about 4 years. The eel started out at 6 inches after getting it from a live fish market. It is kept in a 55 gallon aquarium. The siren is about 11 inches and was also thinkin...

Good one, Gary, and good timing. I can think of no other hobby, save birding, that compliments herping so well, bonds you with your kids, teaches you patience and stealth, and reduces your blood pressure! I totally agree Bill, hard to beat small stream fishing! Very enjoyable! :beer: Thanks for the...

Gerry---Still a lot of darters down here. Funny story about your good times! Thanks for the comments! love the baby softshell, nice find Glad you liked it! Sort of like kids, all cute when they are little! Van---Thanks for your take on the soft shell. It was a very hot day with the sun out so that m...

With all the snow lately my thoughts went to fishing small streams here in Missouri. Can't wait until it warms up. Some years we are finding some of the smaller snake species by now! Found this little soft shell turtle trying to hide http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/Gary2sons/IMG_5749_zps22a8e...

Awesome post Dave! Really enjoyed all of it!

The first little softshell, the swimming cotton, the milks, EVERYTHING!

Congrats on a great year!

Gary

Congrats on a great year Brandon!

Very nice milks and really liked the habitat and insitu pics!

Nice channels and loved the little flathead!

Gary

Thanks Chris, Soro, and Verhoodled for the comments! Gary, Are those things using those rocky outcrops as hibernaculas? Are they more forest dwelling in MO? Dave I would say yes, Dave. Since we have seen more than a few disappear down holes and cracks in rocky outcrops over the years. We find most o...

Had a great year for coachwhips with a total of five. Struck out completely in 2011! Our first was an early March 18th find which turned out to be a fantastic day with lots of other finds! Posted this earlier, http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10768 The next weekend we hit anot...

Great post! Very large and impressive milksnakes with some amazing enclosures!

Also really liked this quote!

"Just plain good old het for nuthin black tipped Tangerine Hondurans"

Easy to understand for the sometimes het challenged like myself!

Gary

Thanks for the comments! Vic--- I have heard on raising the red ear sliders they sometimes just fence in a pond and have a sandy area where they will lay their eggs. Not sure if they gather them to incubate or let them hatch naturally and then collect them. Either way it must be very easy because I ...

You have had some great advice and I agree on trying several different ways. Our best tin is one completely in the sun in the middle of a field. So it doesn't hurt to have at least one in the sun. This one has been there about 12 years and is very consistent in finding speckled kings, prairie kings,...

Since I work for a fish hatchery and deliver fish all over the state I meet some interesting people. One gentleman had made what he called a maggot basket. He had friends bring him fish heads and such for his bluegill pond. Even had a couple dead chickens in the basket the day I was there! :lol: htt...

Awesome post!

Your photography skills are amazing!

Gary

Wow! That's a lot of herping!

Congrats on a great year!

So much to comment on but the king in the car hood and the coachwhip with the head raised that high were nice. Also some awesome hognose and I especially liked the pics of the aberrant snakes !

Gary

Thanks for the comments! Just wanted to say I would not recommend holding a wild opossum because they can bite but usually do not. And as Andy Avram said the rabies risk is always there with a wild animal. Hard to get a good take or feel on them also because they are so mellow and that makes them se...

Congrats on a good year! Always love the Kansas posts.

Liked the bullsnake with the reddish coloration and it is always cool to see a coachwhip with its head up like that!

Gary

Found this girl prowling around one of our out buildings at night. We see opossums and raccoons all the time but even though it was dark this one seemed very light colored. As I got closer I saw it was a white one! :D Grabbed it by the tail and took pics the next day. I had seen photos before but th...

Congrats on another absolutely awesome year Chad!

Great variety as always!

Good to see the end of the year posts starting since the Fall here was not all that good. The Spring was very productive so I can't complain. I will be posting our finds soon!

Gary

Great post and some fine looking herps!

Really liked that first pic of the mud snake under the water! And who can resist liking the juvie diamondback after a large meal!

Gary

Nice post! Awesome pics!

The Red Bamboo Rat Snake really caught my eye! Such a truly beautiful snake!

Gary

Some really nice looking kings Justin!

It will be hard to keep just one!

Glad to hear the larger egg hatched also!

Gary

I raised a few mice for a couple years. Fun but time consuming since I was new at it. I think you will have to place a slanted solid top on your basket or they will deposit droppings in their food. I used to place the food in an open container but had a lot of waste. After changing that I cut back o...

Congrats on the lifer whipsnake!

Looks like some really rugged country out there!

Always amazed on the color of those male collared lizards!

Gary

Truly a stunning post and awesome photos!

The kids looked like they were having a great time!

That was a very impressive Bubble Boa!!!

Gary

Mark...thanks, it was a cool day indeed! Mulebrother...I think there is a lot more on the border, just have to find them! Tamara...yes they certainly are beautiful little snakes! Daryl...I'm sure your sons regal likes them all! ;) Bill...thanks and like your analogy on a "good find" Andrew...I hear ...

Well said in your first paragraph!

Awesome trip and finds!

That red coachwhip was something else!

Congrats on a memorable outing!

Gary

Late April herpfriend and one of my sons headed out to a glade in southern Missouri. My son and I had never found a ground snake before. We had looked in an area where they had been found but had always failed to find one. This year we tried a different location. Our first glade we checked had been ...

Looks like you had a great Spring Brandon! Seems like it started early and really slowed down in May with the heat. Awesome syspila, you found many more than we did this year. I guess in a perfect world they would all be freshly shed! :lol: I always think what a certain snake would look like after s...

You are absolutely right Vic! :thumb: I thought the part at the bottum of the pic being the back would throw people off. They certainly are interesting fish having cartilage rather than bone for a skeleton. I found this in water is why I think only the flesh was gone. Some more pics http://i142.phot...

Getting slow on the fish forum here lately! :lol: Found these remains a while back and thought it might be enough for a post. http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r89/Gary2sons/IMG_7319.jpg I will post more photo's in a day or two. Some of you might ID it very quickly. The other pics will help a lot! ...

Wasn't real sure how I would do this post but my hypo ringneck died almost 3 years ago. At the time I just didn't want to "throw him out" so I layed him up on a shelf and forgot about him for several weeks. He was in a flat coiled postition and I was amazed what he looked like several weeks later. T...