Drymobius margaretiferus..

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Texas Gus
Posts: 49
Joined: April 2nd, 2011, 1:58 pm

Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

.. near Brownsville, Texas USA
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.. that pretty much covers the subject. ;)
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Have a super year!
Ecto Hunter
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Ecto Hunter »

HOLY SCHNIKIES!
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Natalie McNear
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Natalie McNear »

Awesome.
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BChambers
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by BChambers »

Very, very nice.
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chris drake
Posts: 193
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Location: Sugar Land Tx

Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by chris drake »

Great find! That is a beautiful snake. Congrats

Chris
joeysgreen
Posts: 523
Joined: June 11th, 2010, 9:09 pm
Location: Edmonton, Alberta

Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by joeysgreen »

A jaw dropping snake for sure; I had no idea they were native to the US.

Ian
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geckoguy747
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Location: san bernardino mtns

Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by geckoguy747 »

wow!!! gorgeous!
Texas Gus
Posts: 49
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

There are five individual snakes in that post..
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Here's another!
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Wowza!
ThomWild
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by ThomWild »

Coolest snake in the U.S.!!!!! Thanks for sharing.

-Thomas
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justinm
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by justinm »

Great stuff, I had heard you couldn't get on the preserve these are found in anymore? That it had been walled off as part of the border fence or something?
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SoutheastColorado
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Location: Southeast Colorado

Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by SoutheastColorado »

Awesome snakes man!
erik loza
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by erik loza »

Great pics, thanks for sharing.

My wife keeps bugging me to take her herping the Lower Valley. She will flip out when she sees a live Drymobius. They are like a flash of neon blue in the shadows. Photos don't do them justice.

I am hit-or-miss with these guys. Been to the "usual place" several times. Had days where I've seen three, then seen zero the next day. If folks can deal with the heat and the mosquitos, it is hard not to have a good time down there. Such a concentration of life in a relatively small series of parks.

I was watching a Bunting from the walkway, once, looked at the shore, and there was about a 8' Indigo crawling along the bank. Another time, in one of the thatch blinds, looked up and there was a Corn Snake curled up in the rafters.

Thanks again for sharing. Brings back memories.
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Ross Padilla
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Ross Padilla »

Very nice find. Definitely the coolest looking Racer in the U.S. :thumb:
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The Real Snake Man
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Location: Pasadena, CA or Mission, TX

Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by The Real Snake Man »

Beautiful. I need to get down to the Sabal Palms Sanctuary soon. REAL soon. Cameron County is the place to be in the valley for herpers.
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Scott Waters
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Scott Waters »

Always enjoy your drymobius posts, Gus! Outstanding! Must be quite a thrill to see that color and speckling to "pop"! Thanks for sharing.

scott
Texas Gus
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

Scott Waters wrote:Always enjoy your drymobius posts, Gus! Outstanding! Must be quite a thrill to see that color and speckling to "pop"! Thanks for sharing. scott
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Thanks boss!
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Bill Love
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Bill Love »

VERY NICE shots, Gus! The finale big one is a beauty, but the lead shot is probably my favorite of all.
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chrish
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by chrish »

Thanks for posting these, Gus. These are snakes that are definiitely underappreciated (and overprotected) in the US.

The sad thing is that photos really don't do them justice. They are much more beautiful in real life in my experience.
Texas Gus
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

chrish wrote:Thanks for posting these, Gus. These are snakes that are definiitely underappreciated (and overprotected) in the US.

The sad thing is that photos really don't do them justice. They are much more beautiful in real life in my experience.
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Well.. go to Google earth and look at satellite images of the area.. very much of the Rio Grande Delta here was an alkaline desert from over-cultivation and irrigation.. as recently as the late sixties! The habitats where these critters rely on was down to a few dozen acres! Even now the area these snakes occupy in Texas may be reasonably estimated at under 1000 acres!
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So while I may agree that state protection has done absolutely nothing for these snakes.. I cannot agree that any kind of collecting should be allowed.. Their habitat is a virtual postage-stamp on the map! ... and if there's is another person with more experience and time with these in nature in Texas.. I'd like to meet him (or her).
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As for my photos not showing how pretty they are.. EVERYTHING is prettier in nature! .. but I'm doing my best! :D
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Thanks for your detailed reply.
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TravisK
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by TravisK »

WOW! :shock:

That has got to be the most beautiful snake I know of in the US and possibly the world. I was not aware of this species prior to seeing your thread. Thank you for the treat.
Bladeblaster
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Bladeblaster »

absolutely stunning :thumb:
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Knightkrawler5
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Knightkrawler5 »

Very cool snake!...never seen anyone with two of them in one photo!
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Eric East
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Eric East »

Gotta love the drymobius. Heck you just have to love drys in general! :D
Texas Gus
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

TravisK wrote:WOW! :shock:

That has got to be the most beautiful snake I know of in the US and possibly the world. I was not aware of this species prior to seeing your thread. Thank you for the treat.
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Thank you sir..
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Have a super day.. :)
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Gluesenkamp
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Gluesenkamp »

Even now the area these snakes occupy in Texas may be reasonably estimated at under 1000 acres!
So while I may agree that state protection has done absolutely nothing for these snakes.. I cannot agree that any kind of collecting should be allowed.. Their habitat is a virtual postage-stamp on the map!


Well, that's at least one thing that protection by the State has done for this species. The thousand acres that Gus mentioned are not waay out in the boonies either. They are in/near densely-populated areas where overcollection could be a serious issue.

AGG
Texas Gus
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Texas Gus »

I don't argue with really smart people and especially if they are my friends! ;)
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But to clarify my point.. the state of Texas has allocated nothing to my knowledge to preserve these animals or the habitats where they may be found. They are a protected threatened species because of their assumed peripheral range in the state..
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... and I certainly agree these should not be the target of collecting. If for no other reason than they show no signs they would thrive and be secure in captivity.. This is an issue where the hobby itself should self-regulate.. Rare animals that show no affinity for captivity should not need the protection of law.. Reasonable field workers should simply enjoy them where they are.
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Drymobius reside on lands saved and reclaimed through private efforts.. and anti-collecting rules are enforced on the ground by private agents. The last time I looked at the Species of Concern list (or whatever it's called) for Texas these and practically every reptile, protected and otherwise, were at the very bottom in terms of the need for allocations and interventions. So if Texas has helped these animals in any particular way.. the efforts are transparent to me.
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There's lots of action at TPWD cutting back the rights and access of herpers.. yet I have seen no study that fails to identify habitat loss as the main culprit in loss of herptile populations and population densities. Nor have I seen any evidence or study that identifies hobby herpers as a cause for long-term population loss.
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Now in this month's issue of TPWD magazine there's a tribute article to falconers or those who capture wild raptors and use them in hunting exercises.. Several glossy pages are dedicated to lauding these persons as outdoorsmen and naturalists of note! Great.. but in what way is it justified these people have such access to relatively limited populations of birds of prey.. while hobby herpers are restricted and denounced?
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I'll tell you this as a fact .. barely one of a dozen Harris hawk nests (a species singled out as desirable in the article) in Cameron county in view of any major roadway will not be raided of fledglings by Falconers and those who supply them.. .. someone driving that same road stopping to pick up a common snake is a criminal? Nuts..
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Good day to all... and here's looking at you!
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Nigel Smith
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Re: Drymobius margaretiferus..

Post by Nigel Smith »

:shock: I love to see photos of these snakes. They look almost.... magical. Thanks for sharing.
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