2018 EOY Recap
Posted: December 28th, 2018, 8:46 am
This year, I enjoyed many wonderful sights and experiences. The weather was less cooperative than what seemed normal, nevertheless many great snakes made appearances. My main targets, as usual, were Lampropeltis (specifically, gray-banded kingsnakes and milk snakes), and vipers (Crotalus and Vipera).
I began seriously herping around late February and began finding a few fossorial snakes and lizards. I was not as successful flipping herps this year as I was in 2017 (mostly because of the drier spring conditions), but I did manage to find a few neat skinks and snakes in several parts of west Texas.
Lined Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Many-lined Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Short-lined Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Collared Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-Necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Little Brown Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Massasauga by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
New Mexico Milksnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
At the end of April/beginning of May, my focus switched from massasaugas and milk snakes to gray-banded kingsnakes. The first two weekends of hunting cuts were largely unproductive, but at the beginning of May, I began seeing more movement. During the first weekend of May, I chose to hunt one of my favorite rock cuts in the eastern part of west Texas. A large thunderstorm approached early in the night, making me anticipate orange and gray. After several passes of the rock cut, I saw the familiar sight of an alterna crawling along the rock face. It was a beautiful animal, to say the least. I saw a few other common snakes that weekend.
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
In situ
Gray-banded Kingsnake (In situ) by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Night Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Immediately following the weekend with an alterna, I departed for Croatia to visit my wife. The early part of the trip was dedicated to personal matters, but I did get some herping in when possible. While in Croatia, my main targets are always Vipera, and I was fortunate to find a large and beautiful male nose-horned viper basking during the morning. A few other nice animals were seen during my stay in Europe.
European Frog by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Sand Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Grass Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
European Green Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Grass Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Dice Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Nose-horned Viper by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Nose-horned Viper by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Once I returned from Europe back to the US, my normal west Texas herping excursions resumed. During June, I was not able to find any live Lampropeltis (except for an alterna within a rock crevice that would never surface), but I did find plenty of other beautiful animals. A few friends joined in during these weekend adventures, which were (for the most part) successful outings.
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Long-Nosed Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Striped Whipsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Box Turtle by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Massasauga by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
July proved to be a mixed bag as far as weather conditions and herping success. The first part of July was plentiful with storms and not coincidentally, snake activity. I was able to find two gray-banded kingsnakes (both on rainy days) and observe a Trans-Pecos copperhead high up on a tree. The latter part of July was very hot and rather dry, which led to a massive decline in snake movement. I was accompanied by a good friend, unfortunately during the latter part of July. Nevertheless, outings (high in snake numbers or not) were enjoyable (much more than simply staying at home).
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Wood's Jewel Scarab by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Glorious Green Scarab by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Baird's Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Copperhead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Copperhead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prarie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Night Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
August was a fantastic herping month, heavy with storms and a wonderful array of herp species. During August, rather than herp every single weekend as I normally do, I condensed all my herping activity into a 10-day trip. I still herped near home after the 10-day trip, but longer-distance road trips were left exclusively for the week-long road trip. The trip began on a rainy/cool evening in the Davis Mountains. It was raining hard throughout the mountain range it seemed. Luckily, I was able to locate a relatively dry-road cut. In that area, the rain was falling, but reduced to a steady drizzle, unlike everywhere else in the Davis Mountains. It didn't take long to start finding snakes as rock rattlers and black-tailed rattlesnakes made appearances early into my night. Around 10:30pm, I spotted a dark serpentine figure about 20-25 feet up the rock cut. Luckily, that stretch of cut was not very vertical so it was easy to climb. The snake turned out to be my first gray-banded kingsnake of the long road trip. An exceptional way to begin. During the next few days, I was able to find a few more snakes, including two more gray-banded kingsnakes, the third alterna of which was on my final night; an epic way to end the road trip.
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-Tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
September and October were decent months for herping, but I was not able to get out for many consecutive days because of work. My wife joined in on a few trips, one of which was loaded with snake activity. My hunts during these two months, were mixed with west Texas and New Mexico outings.
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Hubbard's Small Silkmoth by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Black-Necked Garter Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Sacramento Mountains Salamander by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Greater Short-Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Greater Short-horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
In summary, 2018 was a great year of herping and am happy to have met a few new people and herped with known friends. Despite my sincerest efforts of finding a cool and rare Lampropeltis (milk snake or alterna) while herping with friends and family, I was unsuccessful. All of the rare Lampros were found while I was alone (actually with my dogs). Eventually, I'm sure it will happen. Finding rare and target species is a fantastic experience to share with others (and a good way to pass the herping bug to those unfamiliar with our peculiar hobby).
Below, a few additional photos of places I was fortunate to see, and of my dogs, who are my constant companions on every herping trip. I hope you enjoyed the post!
Upward and onward.
Serenity by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Kalnik by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Pecos River by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
West Texas Storm by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Brady and Anubis by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Madera Starry Night by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
At the Creek by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
FM 2886 by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Summer Monsoon by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Limpia Canyon by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
The Road Ahead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
El Paso Sunset by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Wild West by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
The Last Surge by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Fall in the Mountains by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
White Sands National Monument by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Dogs at White Sands by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gallery Forest by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
I began seriously herping around late February and began finding a few fossorial snakes and lizards. I was not as successful flipping herps this year as I was in 2017 (mostly because of the drier spring conditions), but I did manage to find a few neat skinks and snakes in several parts of west Texas.
Lined Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Many-lined Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Short-lined Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Collared Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-Necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Little Brown Skink by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Massasauga by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
New Mexico Milksnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
At the end of April/beginning of May, my focus switched from massasaugas and milk snakes to gray-banded kingsnakes. The first two weekends of hunting cuts were largely unproductive, but at the beginning of May, I began seeing more movement. During the first weekend of May, I chose to hunt one of my favorite rock cuts in the eastern part of west Texas. A large thunderstorm approached early in the night, making me anticipate orange and gray. After several passes of the rock cut, I saw the familiar sight of an alterna crawling along the rock face. It was a beautiful animal, to say the least. I saw a few other common snakes that weekend.
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
In situ
Gray-banded Kingsnake (In situ) by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Night Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Immediately following the weekend with an alterna, I departed for Croatia to visit my wife. The early part of the trip was dedicated to personal matters, but I did get some herping in when possible. While in Croatia, my main targets are always Vipera, and I was fortunate to find a large and beautiful male nose-horned viper basking during the morning. A few other nice animals were seen during my stay in Europe.
European Frog by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Sand Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Grass Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
European Green Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Grass Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Dice Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Nose-horned Viper by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Nose-horned Viper by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Once I returned from Europe back to the US, my normal west Texas herping excursions resumed. During June, I was not able to find any live Lampropeltis (except for an alterna within a rock crevice that would never surface), but I did find plenty of other beautiful animals. A few friends joined in during these weekend adventures, which were (for the most part) successful outings.
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Long-Nosed Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Striped Whipsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Box Turtle by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Massasauga by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ring-necked Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
July proved to be a mixed bag as far as weather conditions and herping success. The first part of July was plentiful with storms and not coincidentally, snake activity. I was able to find two gray-banded kingsnakes (both on rainy days) and observe a Trans-Pecos copperhead high up on a tree. The latter part of July was very hot and rather dry, which led to a massive decline in snake movement. I was accompanied by a good friend, unfortunately during the latter part of July. Nevertheless, outings (high in snake numbers or not) were enjoyable (much more than simply staying at home).
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Wood's Jewel Scarab by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Glorious Green Scarab by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Baird's Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Copperhead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Copperhead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prarie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Night Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
August was a fantastic herping month, heavy with storms and a wonderful array of herp species. During August, rather than herp every single weekend as I normally do, I condensed all my herping activity into a 10-day trip. I still herped near home after the 10-day trip, but longer-distance road trips were left exclusively for the week-long road trip. The trip began on a rainy/cool evening in the Davis Mountains. It was raining hard throughout the mountain range it seemed. Luckily, I was able to locate a relatively dry-road cut. In that area, the rain was falling, but reduced to a steady drizzle, unlike everywhere else in the Davis Mountains. It didn't take long to start finding snakes as rock rattlers and black-tailed rattlesnakes made appearances early into my night. Around 10:30pm, I spotted a dark serpentine figure about 20-25 feet up the rock cut. Luckily, that stretch of cut was not very vertical so it was easy to climb. The snake turned out to be my first gray-banded kingsnake of the long road trip. An exceptional way to begin. During the next few days, I was able to find a few more snakes, including two more gray-banded kingsnakes, the third alterna of which was on my final night; an epic way to end the road trip.
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Ornate Black-Tailed Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Trans-Pecos Rat Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mottled Rock Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gray-Banded Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
September and October were decent months for herping, but I was not able to get out for many consecutive days because of work. My wife joined in on a few trips, one of which was loaded with snake activity. My hunts during these two months, were mixed with west Texas and New Mexico outings.
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Hubbard's Small Silkmoth by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Black-Necked Garter Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose Snake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Coachwhip by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Texas Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Prairie Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Desert Kingsnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Sacramento Mountains Salamander by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Greater Short-Horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Greater Short-horned Lizard by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Western Hognose by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Mojave Rattlesnake by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
In summary, 2018 was a great year of herping and am happy to have met a few new people and herped with known friends. Despite my sincerest efforts of finding a cool and rare Lampropeltis (milk snake or alterna) while herping with friends and family, I was unsuccessful. All of the rare Lampros were found while I was alone (actually with my dogs). Eventually, I'm sure it will happen. Finding rare and target species is a fantastic experience to share with others (and a good way to pass the herping bug to those unfamiliar with our peculiar hobby).
Below, a few additional photos of places I was fortunate to see, and of my dogs, who are my constant companions on every herping trip. I hope you enjoyed the post!
Upward and onward.
Serenity by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Kalnik by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Pecos River by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
West Texas Storm by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Brady and Anubis by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Madera Starry Night by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
At the Creek by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
FM 2886 by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Summer Monsoon by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Limpia Canyon by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
The Road Ahead by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
El Paso Sunset by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Wild West by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
The Last Surge by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Fall in the Mountains by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
White Sands National Monument by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Dogs at White Sands by Frank Portillo, on Flickr
Gallery Forest by Frank Portillo, on Flickr