My boy and backyard herping

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justinm
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My boy and backyard herping

Post by justinm »

My son Silas is now a herper in his own right. I was pulling weeds in the garden and he was "helping". He then got excited and I found out why. I'm so proud right now, you guys have no idea.

Here he is telling me excitedly about his first find.
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This chunky Fowler's Toad has taken up residence in the Zuchini bush. I'm happy to have her.

Then later he showed me some Grey treefrogs. They come on out all over the house every night. Here he is closely inspecting them.

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He loves going into the snake room and asking to see his favorite animals. He loves the Rosy Boa, the best. It's so cool to hear him say Wow, and hold the snakes with pure wonderment in his eyes.

Thanks for looking,

Justin
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Hans Breuer (twoton)
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by Hans Breuer (twoton) »

Very, very cool. Seeing the world through your children's eyes is much more intense and fulfilling than just seeing it with your own.
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DaveR
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by DaveR »

Great shot of your son in the 1st photo. When my son was about the same age (nearly 35 years ago), I'd take him to an area near my house where we'd find tons of garters and browns, with the occasional ring neck, red bellied, or milk. I would surreptitiously "stash" a small, docile northern brown snake under a small flat piece of plywood, and let him discover it. What a reaction !! I wish that I had it on video. More excitment than Christmas morning. To this day he remembers details about our mini-"expeditions." Best of all, he has pulled the same general trick with my grandson - who has developed a strong interest/appreciation for herps and animals. it's great to see a little guy who would rather go explore the woods/fields than sit in front of a monitor playing video games.
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Hans Breuer (twoton)
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by Hans Breuer (twoton) »

Dave, that's excellent!!
RobK

Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by RobK »

Justin -

Great shot of Silas. Nicholas started going out with me when he was 3, that was 10 yrs ago. I feel very fortunate to have such a cool hobby that I can share with my son. I enjoy the one on one time, interesting discussions about life, camping out, exposure to nature, exercise, junk food that cancels out the exercise and all the cool people. The coolest part though, is that mom's not around to yell at us we get muddy and track it in the car.

Here's to many more herp finds for Silas and you. :beer:
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Denmeade
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by Denmeade »

That's amazing I remember when I was younger I would freak out and catch a snake and be so happy I would go show my mom but she always had a different reaction... It was always great though. Awesome finds I could only imagine your reaction to his reactions must be like... "This is what I love the most, why I herp" but awesome.
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BillMcGighan
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by BillMcGighan »

Very good post, JM.
The pic of Silas scrutinizing the tree frog is perfect. :)


Dave’s suggestion is a good one to keep up your son’s interest.


Another thing I did with two kids, and a few grandkids, while toddlers (2-3 yrs), was to talk up what to do if they see a snake without mom or dad: “don’t touch it; get an adult.”
(We do get Copperheads in our yard.)

Being too familiar with them brings an intrinsic danger, but manageable.
To culminate the drills and lessons, I would secretly put a fresh, DOR, harmless snake in the play area. Usually under the swing and let the child discover it on his/her own. This becomes a teaching moment.
hellihooks
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by hellihooks »

While sadly, I didn't get a pic... the image of my two youngest boys Trevor and Jason, hunched down together, looking at the first snake they found on their own (a neo gopher)... is forever burned into my mind. Thx for bringing that back... :thumb: A toddler and a toad... don't get no cuter than that... :D jim
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Gary2sons
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by Gary2sons »

Awesome stuff Justin! :thumb:

Nothing better than making memories like that!

I'm going through the grandkids phase now which is also great. Their appreciation and knowledge of nature is amazing. They see so much on the trails that adults seem to miss. Better hearing and eyesight I guess!

Gary
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justinm
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by justinm »

Thanks for all the nice comments. Silas has taken to calling this toad momma, because his momma said "that's one big momma". The toad is indeed a fat one. So to her chagrin, he's in the yard calling to the toad now, yelling momma and poking around in the flowers and the garden. It's very cute, and I'm very happy that at not quite 2 years old he's enjoying nature so much.
Coluber Constrictor
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Re: My boy and backyard herping

Post by Coluber Constrictor »

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