EOY 2018 - Lots of Lampro - (TX, WA, OR, CA, CO, LA)
Posted: December 12th, 2018, 12:18 pm
This has been another fantastic year for herping. While I've spent significantly less time in the field than in years past, individual outings have been much more productive. My focus has, as usual, been mostly on lampropeltis, and this year I spent a good bit of time searching for alterna in west Texas. I've been fortunate to be able to spend a time herping with some of my best friends, and through time in the field have made some new ones.
I know the forum isn't visited as much nowadays, but I still enjoy putting these End-of-Year posts together as a way to reminisce over my herping experiences during the year. I've including a few field herping stories and summaries of trips throughout the post. Hope you enjoy!
Early in the year while we're still ensnared by the chill of winter, I try to occupy myself by going out and setting cover and scouting out new areas. Here is one of a few dozen sets of tin laid out in a handful of spots this January in south Texas. I've set cover in both of the drone shots as well. See if you can spot it!
South Texas by Kyle, on Flickr
Milky Dunes by Kyle, on Flickr
South Texas Thornscrub by Kyle, on Flickr
Despite the generally cold temperatures we experience in January, warm days can be productive. I managed to find my first January milk snake while herping the Sabine River bottoms near the end of the month.
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In February, the right kind of warm day starts being more productive, especially closer to the coast. I managed to find my earliest-in-the-year yet prairie kingsnake south of Houston, just after Valentine's day. A couple days later, my friend Andrew and I got a coral snake hat trick from the same set of tin!
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Near the end of February I went to visit Armin and Brennan in Louisiana to search for mudsnakes with our friend Tim and his girlfriend. We were unsuccessful in our search for Farancia, however quite a few kingsnakes, cornsnakes, nerodia and other miscellaneous snakes were found.
Atchafalaya Basin by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In March, snakes begin to flip reliably, and I had a handful of finds early in the month near Houston.
One morning I met up with Andrew for about an hour before work to try out a couple of spots near my apartment. We didn't flip anything, but Andrew nearly tripped over this beautiful speckled king that was basking in the grass. A few days later I set several boards at this spot that have since had a good bit of snake activity. Not bad for small parcels in the city!
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
I turned up this ringneck, west of Houston, along with a pair of calligaster in the same afternoon. Ringnecks used to be more common in the area many years ago (so I've been told) but now are a rare treat. I almost let this one run off when I flipped the board, thinking it was just an earth snake. Upon catching a glimpse of the collar I knew I had a small snake worth photographing!
Diadophis punctatus (Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
A few days later, my friend John came down from Washington to herp east and south Texas with me. After picking John up from the airport, we headed down to the coast to look for kings. We flipped a handful of large getula, but sadly neither of us took time for photos other than some selfies. The following day we worked our way up to a some parts of northeast Texas that are reliable for milk snakes. It took some effort, but we managed to turn one up in the early afternoon, along with some copperheads and ratsnakes!
Kingsnakes by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
A couple days later we met up with Armin, Tim, and Todd to start our week in south Texas. We flipped our way down from Houston, ending up at a favorite cruising spot for annulata that evening. Flipping wasn't very productive that day, but in the evening we did road cruise a handful of snakes, including a coral snake and desert king as the highlights. Early the next morning, we went to a favorite flip spot that produced well for us last year. It was no surprise then, that the same sheet of tin that held a milksnake last year, was holding one this year as well!
Milk Selfie by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti schotti (Schott's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
The rest of the trip was spent in similar fashion, tirelessly flipping tin by day and roadcruising at night. Sadly the conditions were so dry this year that very few snakes were using cover, yet night time temperatures weren't high enough to facilitate much snake movement, and with the dry conditions most snakes on the road were diamondbacks. That said, we still managed to see most species through the week. Highlights were several Texas indigo snakes, all walked up while going to turn cover early in the morning. We also managed to flip a desert king, and on the last day flipped a second annulata, under the same sheet of tin we found the first one!
Lampropeltis getula splendida (Desert Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula splendida (Desert Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Arizona elegans arenicola (Texas Glossy Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Arizona elegans arenicola (Texas Glossy Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber flagellum testaceus (Western Coachwhip) by Kyle, on Flickr
Flip-Dozer by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Texas Tortoise by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti ruthveni (Ruthven's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti ruthveni (Ruthven's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Milk Selfie by Kyle, on Flickr
Pop Milk! 2018 by Kyle, on Flickr
I put together a 10 minute video of clips from this trip. There's some nice flip action on film here!
A couple weeks later, in early April, I flew up to meet John in Washington. We tried our hand along the Columbia river searching for zonata, which went about as well as you'd expect. Despite cool and drizzly weather, we managed to locate quite a few lizards and a couple of snakes, even cruising a garter snake in rain and temps in the 40's! We decided to head further south into Oregon and then northern California, where cool and wet conditions were less likely to follow us as closely. Starting with a spot in the Willamette Valley in the early morning, we rapidly got drenched as we navigated a flooded field to turn tin in temperatures that are near the coldest weather I experience in Houston! After flipping almost every piece of tin and finding them mostly soaked in water, we flipped a single piece that was partially dry and it had pretty much all the snakes we'd expected to see there!
Columbia River Gorge Pano by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis fitchi (Valley Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Oregon Flip by Kyle, on Flickr
Ambystoma macrodactylum (Long-toed Salamander) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis ordninoides (Northwestern Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus (Red-spotted Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus (Red-spotted Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Later that afternoon, Northern California proved to be quite good to us as well, once we dialed in the right kind of area to flip rocks. Having never had much success flipping rocks, it was satisfying to locate quite a few lifers that way in a couple hours. We turned up a few ringnecks, a sharptail, a whipsnake, and a california king, along with the usual alligator lizards and skinks.
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Contia longicaudae (Forest Sharp-tailed Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula californiae (California Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula californiae (California Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
The one snake I wanted to see most the whole trip was a rubber boa. We hadn't seen one all weekend, and were flipping roadside spots on our way to the airport. While this was productive for garters, we didn't turn up a boa. I'm usually unwilling to ask for help in new areas, as I like to work for my finds, but we were out of time and I wanted to see a boa before I left (the likelihood of returning to herp the PNW is slim!). John contacted a friend who had a reliable boa spot that was on our way. We walk out to it, and there's only two pieces of tin, and the first piece has no snakes at all. You can imagine my delight when we flip the second piece to discover a whole pile of boas and some garter snakes. Great way to end the trip!
Charina bottae (Northern Rubber Boa) by Kyle, on Flickr
Charina bottae (Northern Rubber Boa) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis ordinoides (Nortwestern Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Back home, I took a day near the end of April to introduce my friend Andrew to north Louisiana herping. We met up with Armin early that Saturday morning, and were immediately hit with success for our target species for the day: Lampropeltis calligaster, the prairie king. This turned out to be one of our most successful days herping the region, and by the end of the day we had seen 10 prairie kings, 11 speckled kings, 8 coachwhips, two canebrakes, two copperheads, and single rat snake. Absolutely outstanding day for LA Lampropeltis. The most impressive animal of the day was a nearly 5ft long prairie king! (Fourth pic down) We submitted it for the record for the largest sized prairie king, but apparently some folks in Arkansas had found one around the same time that was slightly larger
Gaster Gathering by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber flagellum flagellum (Eastern Coachwhip) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
In mid-May, I took a couple of nights to search for alterna in Val Verde County. Last year, Brennan and I both saw our first ever gray-banded king, and I was excited to try to see more this year. My first night was unsuccessful; I simply wasn't in the right place, having been too shy of some light drizzling happening in areas that I would normally hunt. The second night, I started on my favorite cut west of Langtry, and was met with an adult blairs with his head sticking out of a crack between two rocks near the end of the cut. Upon shining my light on it, the head retreated under the rocks. Lack of experience precluded patience, and I attempted to remove the rock it had just retreated under. Sadly, as many who may have experience in west Texas know, the snake was long gone, and had I simply turned off my light and waited, it would likely have re-emerged, eventually enough for capture. I continued to hunt the same cut for another hour, encountering another herper from VA that had decided to hunt the same cut. Over the hour I passed him multiple times as he searched diligently along the cut. The fourth time around I came up to him and handed him a filled pillowcase and said "you need to walk faster!" A few minutes prior, I came across a second blair phase alterna, this time fully exposed on the face of the cut and easy to grab!
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Phrynosoma modestum (Round-tailed Horned Lizard) by Kyle, on Flickr
The next week, my fiancee and I traveled to Colorado for vacation. While we spent most of our time doing "normal" activities, I took some time at the end of the trip to search for gentilis outside of Denver at a spot that my buddy Tim sent me. It seemed almost too warm for snakes, with temperatures nearing 90°F. Despite the heat, in less than an hour I turned up three milksnakes, photographed, released, and was on my way home! We also spotted a prairie rattlesnake while walking the trails at Garden of the Gods the day before.
Crotalus viridis (Prairie Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Mid-June saw some significant rains out in west Texas, and I wasn't going to miss herping there near around the new moon. I started hunting my first evening near Iraan, as they had significant rain the day before. While I saw no colubrids, there were several Trans-pecos copperheads, and a single blacktail rattlesnake out on the move between sunset and midnight. Wanting to get closer to Sanderson where I would stay for the night, I shined cuts from Iraan to Sanderson, settling on the large cut west of Sanderson for the remainder of the night. It was a good choice, as I was greeted with a very nice peach colored rock rattlesnake to end the night. The following evening, I started on the same cut west of Sanderson. Just before dark, I ran into a herper from Kansas, who after hunting a while together suggested I'd have an easier time locating a greyband east of town, at a cut he'd seen quite a few at. I was skeptical, but I hadn't seen anything for the past hour and a half where I was, and decided I wanted a change of scenery anyhow. I checked north of Sanderson, briefly, spotting a small blacktail on the shoulder of the road on the way up. After arriving to the cut Shawn directed me to east of town, it took only a single pass on the cut to locate a gorgeous small adult grayband! I should have stayed on it longer, but I immediately took the snake to show Shawn and share the good news! I ended the night with a night snake and a diamondback near Comstock on my way home.
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In July, it was once again time for west Texas, but this was our big group trip with myself, Armin and his son Owen, Brennan, John, and Pat. It really could not have gone much better with both the numbers, quality, and diversity of finds. Our first night was slow, but each successive evening produced more exciting finds. Hunting near Sanderson the first evening produced a handful of copperheads, a blacktail rattlesnake, and a Trans-Pecos ratsnake.
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
While we generally like to hunt around the Davis mountains this time of year, our second and third nights were rained out in the Davises, so we hunted south Alpine and river road. We had an okay night the first evening down there, a few common snakes showed up: subocs, sonora, diamondbacks and night snakes. The second evening was spectacular, however. We split the party, with John, Brennan and I hunting south Alpine at sunset, and Armin, Pat and Owen hunting the Christmas mountains. We planned to hunt south Alpine for a couple hours, then meet with the rest of the group to hunt River Road. The evening started with Big Bend Milksnake on a cut south of Alpine just before last-light! We saw nothing else in the area, and met up with the rest of the crew shortly after. They had located a very nice copperhead, a blacktail, and a suboc in the Christmas Mountains. We then took to River road for a couple of hours, seeing very little. We decided to finish the night in the Christmas mountains and take photographs, as movement had died down. On the way, Armin and Pat's car cruised an attractive blonde suboc, a first for us!
Lampropeltis triangulum celaenops (New Mexico Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Bogertophis subocularis (Trans-Pecos Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Bogertophis subocularis (Trans-Pecos Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
The following evening we finally had an opportunity to hunt the Davis Mountains without fear of rain. We split our group over a multitude of areas to give ourselves the best chance possible of finding our target, the alterna. It was the first night in nearly two weeks that the mountains hadn't seen rain and/or cold temperatures. Armin, Brennan, and Owen took the cuts near the observatory, and John, Pat and myself took some cuts down the road. Before sunset, I'd located a blackneck garter snake, and in the last light of twilight, I found a juvenile baird's ratsnake on the face of the cut. About an hour later, still on the same cut, I spied a small, close to 12inch snake about 25-30ft up, coming down the top of the cut. I noticed the thin body and wider jawline, and my heart leapt thinking it might just be our alterna! As fortune would have it, I could see a path to climb up to the snake. Shakily, I navigated the rock cut until I was about 6ft from the top. I could see the snake about 4ft up and to my left, but there was no way to climb directly to it without going up, to the left, then back down. I did so, and when I reached the spot where the snake was, it was totally gone! I couldn't believe it. Considering my last escaped alterna, I decided to climb up and walk down the top of the cut, and continue shining in hopes it would re-emerge. For anyone who knows me, this was an incredible test of patience! It didn't last long, however, as I made two quick passes before going to my car to search for an object that would help me leverage the rocks near where I saw the snake last. Selecting the hand crank that turns the car jack, I stashed it in my belt and made the climb again. Reaching the location I'd last seen the snake, I pried up the rock I thought it was most likely under. It came up smoothly, and there was no snake underneath. Feeling defeated, I searched around for other crevices. At the base of a yucca plant a foot away was a small rock not much bigger than my fist. It was planted firmly in the soil and I needed the crank to pry it up. As soon as I began to lift the rock, the head of a gorgeous juvenile alterna shot out from underneath, and I was able to secure the snake rapidly!
I bagged the snake, and went down the road to find Pat and John. Much to my surprise, John was walking around in the dark. As it turned out, I had grabbed his flashlight, leaving him in darkness for the first couple hours after sunset
We met up with Armin, Brennan, and Owen not long after, and they had found a handful of rock rattlesnakes, a blacktail as well as a couple of baird's ratsnakes. It was a good night for everyone with a flashlight! The following evening saw a similar effort with us distributed in some different spots for a change in scene. Armin and John both found a lepidus that night. In fact, everyone that night found a snake while hunting except me!
Davis Mountains by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Davis Mountains Roadcut by Kyle, on Flickr
Chinati Mountains - Pinto Canyon by Kyle, on Flickr
Pantherophis bairdi (Baird's Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus ornatus (Ornate Blacktailed Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
West Texas Aesthetic by Kyle, on Flickr
Sawtooth Mountain by Kyle, on Flickr
The remainder of the year has been fairly uneventful. I did try to do another weekend out west in August, but it ended poorly with only a couple snakes to show for the effort. In September, I went out with Brennan who was in Houston for work. We turned up a prairie king at a spot near my apartment on an overcast, somewhat rainy day. At the end of October, I spent a day flipping south Texas with Andrew and a friend from San Antonio. It wasn't incredibly productive, but we did find several snakes, including a very attractive Mexican Milk snake from one of the barrier islands.
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
I'm sure I'll go out once more before the end of the year if the weather is right. But for now, Happy Holidays and best wishes to everyone's herping trips in 2019!
I know the forum isn't visited as much nowadays, but I still enjoy putting these End-of-Year posts together as a way to reminisce over my herping experiences during the year. I've including a few field herping stories and summaries of trips throughout the post. Hope you enjoy!
Early in the year while we're still ensnared by the chill of winter, I try to occupy myself by going out and setting cover and scouting out new areas. Here is one of a few dozen sets of tin laid out in a handful of spots this January in south Texas. I've set cover in both of the drone shots as well. See if you can spot it!
South Texas by Kyle, on Flickr
Milky Dunes by Kyle, on Flickr
South Texas Thornscrub by Kyle, on Flickr
Despite the generally cold temperatures we experience in January, warm days can be productive. I managed to find my first January milk snake while herping the Sabine River bottoms near the end of the month.
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In February, the right kind of warm day starts being more productive, especially closer to the coast. I managed to find my earliest-in-the-year yet prairie kingsnake south of Houston, just after Valentine's day. A couple days later, my friend Andrew and I got a coral snake hat trick from the same set of tin!
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Near the end of February I went to visit Armin and Brennan in Louisiana to search for mudsnakes with our friend Tim and his girlfriend. We were unsuccessful in our search for Farancia, however quite a few kingsnakes, cornsnakes, nerodia and other miscellaneous snakes were found.
Atchafalaya Basin by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In March, snakes begin to flip reliably, and I had a handful of finds early in the month near Houston.
One morning I met up with Andrew for about an hour before work to try out a couple of spots near my apartment. We didn't flip anything, but Andrew nearly tripped over this beautiful speckled king that was basking in the grass. A few days later I set several boards at this spot that have since had a good bit of snake activity. Not bad for small parcels in the city!
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
I turned up this ringneck, west of Houston, along with a pair of calligaster in the same afternoon. Ringnecks used to be more common in the area many years ago (so I've been told) but now are a rare treat. I almost let this one run off when I flipped the board, thinking it was just an earth snake. Upon catching a glimpse of the collar I knew I had a small snake worth photographing!
Diadophis punctatus (Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
A few days later, my friend John came down from Washington to herp east and south Texas with me. After picking John up from the airport, we headed down to the coast to look for kings. We flipped a handful of large getula, but sadly neither of us took time for photos other than some selfies. The following day we worked our way up to a some parts of northeast Texas that are reliable for milk snakes. It took some effort, but we managed to turn one up in the early afternoon, along with some copperheads and ratsnakes!
Kingsnakes by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum amaura (Louisiana Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
A couple days later we met up with Armin, Tim, and Todd to start our week in south Texas. We flipped our way down from Houston, ending up at a favorite cruising spot for annulata that evening. Flipping wasn't very productive that day, but in the evening we did road cruise a handful of snakes, including a coral snake and desert king as the highlights. Early the next morning, we went to a favorite flip spot that produced well for us last year. It was no surprise then, that the same sheet of tin that held a milksnake last year, was holding one this year as well!
Milk Selfie by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti schotti (Schott's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Micrurus tener tener (Texas Coral Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
The rest of the trip was spent in similar fashion, tirelessly flipping tin by day and roadcruising at night. Sadly the conditions were so dry this year that very few snakes were using cover, yet night time temperatures weren't high enough to facilitate much snake movement, and with the dry conditions most snakes on the road were diamondbacks. That said, we still managed to see most species through the week. Highlights were several Texas indigo snakes, all walked up while going to turn cover early in the morning. We also managed to flip a desert king, and on the last day flipped a second annulata, under the same sheet of tin we found the first one!
Lampropeltis getula splendida (Desert Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula splendida (Desert Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Arizona elegans arenicola (Texas Glossy Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Arizona elegans arenicola (Texas Glossy Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber flagellum testaceus (Western Coachwhip) by Kyle, on Flickr
Flip-Dozer by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus (Texas Indigo Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Texas Tortoise by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti ruthveni (Ruthven's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Masticophis schotti ruthveni (Ruthven's Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Milk Selfie by Kyle, on Flickr
Pop Milk! 2018 by Kyle, on Flickr
I put together a 10 minute video of clips from this trip. There's some nice flip action on film here!
A couple weeks later, in early April, I flew up to meet John in Washington. We tried our hand along the Columbia river searching for zonata, which went about as well as you'd expect. Despite cool and drizzly weather, we managed to locate quite a few lizards and a couple of snakes, even cruising a garter snake in rain and temps in the 40's! We decided to head further south into Oregon and then northern California, where cool and wet conditions were less likely to follow us as closely. Starting with a spot in the Willamette Valley in the early morning, we rapidly got drenched as we navigated a flooded field to turn tin in temperatures that are near the coldest weather I experience in Houston! After flipping almost every piece of tin and finding them mostly soaked in water, we flipped a single piece that was partially dry and it had pretty much all the snakes we'd expected to see there!
Columbia River Gorge Pano by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis fitchi (Valley Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Oregon Flip by Kyle, on Flickr
Ambystoma macrodactylum (Long-toed Salamander) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis ordninoides (Northwestern Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus (Red-spotted Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus (Red-spotted Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Later that afternoon, Northern California proved to be quite good to us as well, once we dialed in the right kind of area to flip rocks. Having never had much success flipping rocks, it was satisfying to locate quite a few lifers that way in a couple hours. We turned up a few ringnecks, a sharptail, a whipsnake, and a california king, along with the usual alligator lizards and skinks.
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Diadophis punctatus occidentalis (Northwestern Ringneck Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Contia longicaudae (Forest Sharp-tailed Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber taeniatus taeniatus (Desert Striped Whipsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula californiae (California Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula californiae (California Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
The one snake I wanted to see most the whole trip was a rubber boa. We hadn't seen one all weekend, and were flipping roadside spots on our way to the airport. While this was productive for garters, we didn't turn up a boa. I'm usually unwilling to ask for help in new areas, as I like to work for my finds, but we were out of time and I wanted to see a boa before I left (the likelihood of returning to herp the PNW is slim!). John contacted a friend who had a reliable boa spot that was on our way. We walk out to it, and there's only two pieces of tin, and the first piece has no snakes at all. You can imagine my delight when we flip the second piece to discover a whole pile of boas and some garter snakes. Great way to end the trip!
Charina bottae (Northern Rubber Boa) by Kyle, on Flickr
Charina bottae (Northern Rubber Boa) by Kyle, on Flickr
Thamnophis ordinoides (Nortwestern Garter Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Back home, I took a day near the end of April to introduce my friend Andrew to north Louisiana herping. We met up with Armin early that Saturday morning, and were immediately hit with success for our target species for the day: Lampropeltis calligaster, the prairie king. This turned out to be one of our most successful days herping the region, and by the end of the day we had seen 10 prairie kings, 11 speckled kings, 8 coachwhips, two canebrakes, two copperheads, and single rat snake. Absolutely outstanding day for LA Lampropeltis. The most impressive animal of the day was a nearly 5ft long prairie king! (Fourth pic down) We submitted it for the record for the largest sized prairie king, but apparently some folks in Arkansas had found one around the same time that was slightly larger
Gaster Gathering by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Speckled Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Coluber flagellum flagellum (Eastern Coachwhip) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
In mid-May, I took a couple of nights to search for alterna in Val Verde County. Last year, Brennan and I both saw our first ever gray-banded king, and I was excited to try to see more this year. My first night was unsuccessful; I simply wasn't in the right place, having been too shy of some light drizzling happening in areas that I would normally hunt. The second night, I started on my favorite cut west of Langtry, and was met with an adult blairs with his head sticking out of a crack between two rocks near the end of the cut. Upon shining my light on it, the head retreated under the rocks. Lack of experience precluded patience, and I attempted to remove the rock it had just retreated under. Sadly, as many who may have experience in west Texas know, the snake was long gone, and had I simply turned off my light and waited, it would likely have re-emerged, eventually enough for capture. I continued to hunt the same cut for another hour, encountering another herper from VA that had decided to hunt the same cut. Over the hour I passed him multiple times as he searched diligently along the cut. The fourth time around I came up to him and handed him a filled pillowcase and said "you need to walk faster!" A few minutes prior, I came across a second blair phase alterna, this time fully exposed on the face of the cut and easy to grab!
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Phrynosoma modestum (Round-tailed Horned Lizard) by Kyle, on Flickr
The next week, my fiancee and I traveled to Colorado for vacation. While we spent most of our time doing "normal" activities, I took some time at the end of the trip to search for gentilis outside of Denver at a spot that my buddy Tim sent me. It seemed almost too warm for snakes, with temperatures nearing 90°F. Despite the heat, in less than an hour I turned up three milksnakes, photographed, released, and was on my way home! We also spotted a prairie rattlesnake while walking the trails at Garden of the Gods the day before.
Crotalus viridis (Prairie Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis (Central Plains Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Mid-June saw some significant rains out in west Texas, and I wasn't going to miss herping there near around the new moon. I started hunting my first evening near Iraan, as they had significant rain the day before. While I saw no colubrids, there were several Trans-pecos copperheads, and a single blacktail rattlesnake out on the move between sunset and midnight. Wanting to get closer to Sanderson where I would stay for the night, I shined cuts from Iraan to Sanderson, settling on the large cut west of Sanderson for the remainder of the night. It was a good choice, as I was greeted with a very nice peach colored rock rattlesnake to end the night. The following evening, I started on the same cut west of Sanderson. Just before dark, I ran into a herper from Kansas, who after hunting a while together suggested I'd have an easier time locating a greyband east of town, at a cut he'd seen quite a few at. I was skeptical, but I hadn't seen anything for the past hour and a half where I was, and decided I wanted a change of scenery anyhow. I checked north of Sanderson, briefly, spotting a small blacktail on the shoulder of the road on the way up. After arriving to the cut Shawn directed me to east of town, it took only a single pass on the cut to locate a gorgeous small adult grayband! I should have stayed on it longer, but I immediately took the snake to show Shawn and share the good news! I ended the night with a night snake and a diamondback near Comstock on my way home.
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
In July, it was once again time for west Texas, but this was our big group trip with myself, Armin and his son Owen, Brennan, John, and Pat. It really could not have gone much better with both the numbers, quality, and diversity of finds. Our first night was slow, but each successive evening produced more exciting finds. Hunting near Sanderson the first evening produced a handful of copperheads, a blacktail rattlesnake, and a Trans-Pecos ratsnake.
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
While we generally like to hunt around the Davis mountains this time of year, our second and third nights were rained out in the Davises, so we hunted south Alpine and river road. We had an okay night the first evening down there, a few common snakes showed up: subocs, sonora, diamondbacks and night snakes. The second evening was spectacular, however. We split the party, with John, Brennan and I hunting south Alpine at sunset, and Armin, Pat and Owen hunting the Christmas mountains. We planned to hunt south Alpine for a couple hours, then meet with the rest of the group to hunt River Road. The evening started with Big Bend Milksnake on a cut south of Alpine just before last-light! We saw nothing else in the area, and met up with the rest of the crew shortly after. They had located a very nice copperhead, a blacktail, and a suboc in the Christmas Mountains. We then took to River road for a couple of hours, seeing very little. We decided to finish the night in the Christmas mountains and take photographs, as movement had died down. On the way, Armin and Pat's car cruised an attractive blonde suboc, a first for us!
Lampropeltis triangulum celaenops (New Mexico Milksnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Bogertophis subocularis (Trans-Pecos Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Bogertophis subocularis (Trans-Pecos Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster (Trans-Pecos Copperhead) by Kyle, on Flickr
The following evening we finally had an opportunity to hunt the Davis Mountains without fear of rain. We split our group over a multitude of areas to give ourselves the best chance possible of finding our target, the alterna. It was the first night in nearly two weeks that the mountains hadn't seen rain and/or cold temperatures. Armin, Brennan, and Owen took the cuts near the observatory, and John, Pat and myself took some cuts down the road. Before sunset, I'd located a blackneck garter snake, and in the last light of twilight, I found a juvenile baird's ratsnake on the face of the cut. About an hour later, still on the same cut, I spied a small, close to 12inch snake about 25-30ft up, coming down the top of the cut. I noticed the thin body and wider jawline, and my heart leapt thinking it might just be our alterna! As fortune would have it, I could see a path to climb up to the snake. Shakily, I navigated the rock cut until I was about 6ft from the top. I could see the snake about 4ft up and to my left, but there was no way to climb directly to it without going up, to the left, then back down. I did so, and when I reached the spot where the snake was, it was totally gone! I couldn't believe it. Considering my last escaped alterna, I decided to climb up and walk down the top of the cut, and continue shining in hopes it would re-emerge. For anyone who knows me, this was an incredible test of patience! It didn't last long, however, as I made two quick passes before going to my car to search for an object that would help me leverage the rocks near where I saw the snake last. Selecting the hand crank that turns the car jack, I stashed it in my belt and made the climb again. Reaching the location I'd last seen the snake, I pried up the rock I thought it was most likely under. It came up smoothly, and there was no snake underneath. Feeling defeated, I searched around for other crevices. At the base of a yucca plant a foot away was a small rock not much bigger than my fist. It was planted firmly in the soil and I needed the crank to pry it up. As soon as I began to lift the rock, the head of a gorgeous juvenile alterna shot out from underneath, and I was able to secure the snake rapidly!
I bagged the snake, and went down the road to find Pat and John. Much to my surprise, John was walking around in the dark. As it turned out, I had grabbed his flashlight, leaving him in darkness for the first couple hours after sunset
We met up with Armin, Brennan, and Owen not long after, and they had found a handful of rock rattlesnakes, a blacktail as well as a couple of baird's ratsnakes. It was a good night for everyone with a flashlight! The following evening saw a similar effort with us distributed in some different spots for a change in scene. Armin and John both found a lepidus that night. In fact, everyone that night found a snake while hunting except me!
Davis Mountains by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis alterna (Gray-banded Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Davis Mountains Roadcut by Kyle, on Flickr
Chinati Mountains - Pinto Canyon by Kyle, on Flickr
Pantherophis bairdi (Baird's Ratsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus ornatus (Ornate Blacktailed Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Crotalus lepidus lepidus (Mottled Rock Rattlesnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
West Texas Aesthetic by Kyle, on Flickr
Sawtooth Mountain by Kyle, on Flickr
The remainder of the year has been fairly uneventful. I did try to do another weekend out west in August, but it ended poorly with only a couple snakes to show for the effort. In September, I went out with Brennan who was in Houston for work. We turned up a prairie king at a spot near my apartment on an overcast, somewhat rainy day. At the end of October, I spent a day flipping south Texas with Andrew and a friend from San Antonio. It wasn't incredibly productive, but we did find several snakes, including a very attractive Mexican Milk snake from one of the barrier islands.
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster (Prairie Kingsnake) by Kyle, on Flickr
Lampropeltis triangulum annulata (Mexican Milk Snake) by Kyle, on Flickr
I'm sure I'll go out once more before the end of the year if the weather is right. But for now, Happy Holidays and best wishes to everyone's herping trips in 2019!