Hi all!
Glad to see there's been some action on the forum recently, it always makes me sad to see it die down. Facebook is fun and all, but it just isn't the same as here.
2020 was a crazy year for all of us, of course, but it also allowed me to get back into herping in a way I haven't been able to in years. I work as a chef, which doesn't allow for much free time. With restaurants closing down for the pandemic, I got the chance to go out again, and started delving back into it.
After whetting my appetite in 2020, I resolved that 2021 would be a full herping year, start to finish.
I also wanted to start getting back into photography, and started putting my camera rig back together over the course of the year.
I've had mixed results, some shots I'm thrilled with, some I didn't like as much, but they're all here for you to judge for yourself! Mixed in with my real shots are a bunch of cellphone shots in instances where that's all I had, or the cellphone shot adds something a real shot doesn't.
I'll keep commentary to a minimum, and with that, let's get right to it!
January
Living in Northwestern LA county, the herp season started a little later for me than for others in SD or other areas.
I spent most of the month out scouting new spots, checking on boardlines for spring, and seeing lizards.
Great Basin Fence Lizard (Sceloporus occidentalis longipes)
Fencie by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Fencie by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Western Side-blotched Lizard - Uta stansburiana elegans
Uta by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Northern LA County always has some weird stuff to find while scoping out habitat:
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Look how brown and dry everything was! We had such a dry winter in our area.
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
February
Despite my best efforts, and very limited time in the field, I didn't start seeing more herps until February this year. Still mostly lizards, but the first snakes and a salamander or two started showing up around me.
First herp of Feb was this Skilton's Skink - Plestiodon skiltonianus skiltonianus
Skiltons by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Turned up a couple of them this month.
skiltons by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
More dry habitat. Most years this is bright green by mid-Feb.
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Finally flipped our first snake of the year on Feb 15th:
SD gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
SD gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Went back a week or so later, and it was still under the board. Took a couple shots in-situ, and left it to finish waking up in it's own time.
SD gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Towards the end of the month we got out to Riverside county to try and break our slow streak, but despite a 9 hour day of herping, all we came up with was this little guy:
SD gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We hit a bunch of usually very solid rosy spots on the same day, and discovered that -no exaggeration- Every. Single. Rock had been flipped and not put back, hillside after hillside. Some of you may have seen my post about it back in March on Facebook, but it was really incredibly infuriating. We actually saw more habitat destruction from other herpers this year, then we have in all our years herping previously combined. Several people I spoke to about it have also seen the same thing this year. Not sure if the pandemic pushed more new people into herping, without necessarily knowing how to herp ethically/responsibly, but it was a recurring theme throughout the year. Many of my boardlines were destroyed this spring, too.
Feb was a good month for amphibs, too, although it was limited to Batrachoseps, toads and treefrogs:
Black-bellied Slender Salamander - Batrachoseps nigriventris
Blackbelly by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
nigriventis by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
California Toad - Anaxyrus boreas halophilus
ca toad by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
With that, a slow February came to an end.
March
We started to spend more time out in the field this month, with it showing in our finds, luckily.
Our first snake this month was this handsome helleri found under an old door in our local hills:
Southern Pacific Rattlesnake - Crotalus oreganus helleri
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
In early March I met up with Daniel A. in RivCo to start adding some snakes to the tally for the year.
While I was waiting for him to arrive at the spot we were going to start hiking, I was idly flipping some trash in the middle of a bike track, and flipped this little guy!
California Glossy Snake - Arizona elegans occidentalis (SSC)
CA Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
ca glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
ca glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The little guy was digesting a large meal, so we took a couple quick as-flipped shots and left him alone to digest.
Next up was this gorgeous old adult female Rosy-
Rosy Boa - Lichanura orcutti (t. roseofusca)
coastal rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
coastal rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
As flipped -
Coastal Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Lastly was this little kingsnake found on the crawl after a quick sprinkle from above- Really nice yellow on this guy.
California Kingsnake - Lampropeltis californiae
RivCo king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
A week or two later we met up with Greg S and headed back to RivCo, though this time to different parts. We got out there a little late in the day, and it was an exceptionally hot day, but we still managed to see some stuff.
My foot was already in the air, coming down towards this guy when I saw the tail banding and did a frantic maneuver to backpedal. Definitely a stark reminder to double and triple check where your feet are going!
Red Diamond Rattlesnake - Crotalus ruber
in-situ ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Really unhappy with how the shots of all the rubers we saw that day came out, but oh well, that's how it goes sometimes. This guy above was huge, easily pushing 4-4.5'.
Ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
This one was sunning herself when we came across her, which perhaps explains why she was the absolute fiercest, most irritable ruber I've ever seen.
Ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Later, we came across this nice little helleri under a scrap of cardboard. There was a second adult that shot down a burrow right by it, but all we heard of it was copious rattling echoing outwards at us.
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
To round out the snakes from that day, we flipped a nice size, attractive gopher under a board.
San Diego Gophersnake - Pituophis catenifer annectens
SD Gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Getting acquainted by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
RivCo Herping by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We also saw this gorgeous couple-
Granite Spiny Lizard - Sceloporus orcutti
Granite Spiny by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Towards the end of march, I got out with John L. (ricrabt) for some LA county flipping at some of his boardlines.
First king -
LA co king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Really cool color gradient on the kings from this area. Doesn't really come across in the picture, but they're almost yellow along the back, and really white along the sides.
LA co king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Another couple of kings were found -
LA co king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Lucas is a cool kid, getting into herping, and lucky to have one of the best mentors around; John, seen here showing Lucas how to get some data from another king.
Next generation learning from the best by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We also flipped a little coachwhip and a bunch of skinks and the like.
And with that, March came to a close.
April
April started out with a quick trip to the Santa Monica Mountains to meet a couple of out of state herpers from the east coast that were spending early spring in LA, Greg N and Sarah.
We had a slow morning flipping, turning up some slenders and some Elgaria and not much else.
SaMo Gator by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Habitat -
SaMo mts by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After a slow morning, we hit a couple of other spots, finally ending up in an area that usually produced at least something or the other for me.
Sure enough, we (almost literally) stumbled upon these two Helleri, both shot in-situ.
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
And a huge, really dark, almost purple-ish adult.
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Made time to stop and notice this handsome Coast Range Fence Lizard - Sceloporus occidentalis bocourtii on a trip up the central coast.
Coast range fence by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
This melanistic slider was hanging out in a pond in Santa Barbara.
WPT by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Spent a day trying to turn up some herps locally, but our area was still not really giving up the goods.
A little water by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Flipped this Skilton's as my only photographed herp that day, though I did see a couple of racers take off on me.
Skiltons by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We took a day trip up to the southern sierras to try and flip some Z's and other stuff, but the spot had obviously been flipped through within the last couple days already.
Still got to see a ton of Gilbert's and Elgaria though -
Habitat
Habitat by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Western Red-tailed Skink - Plestiodon gilberti rubricaudatus
Gilberts by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The wife with one of the dozens we flipped -
Gilberts by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We found this absolute monster Elgaria, too. Tail was at minimum 2'+.
Tip Top Tail by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Tail stretched past my elbow, had to curl it to get it in frame -
Monster Elgaria by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
And many others with tails less impressive-
A little less tail by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After several hours of flipping, we decided to head down east back to the desert, and try and see if we could cruise anything up, even though it was still probably a week or two too early.
The way down -
Kern co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
More open road by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We got to our cruising spot right after sunset, and almost immediately cruised this wicked cool little Neonate Norpac, at pretty much the southeastern edge of their range.
Northern Pacific Rattlesnake - Crotalus o. oreganus.
Desert NorPac by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
It was a trip seeing a norpac on the desert floor, smack in the middle of Scute and Cerastes territory. We ended up seeing another neonate Norpac that night, too.
Last herp for the night was this sidewinder, hanging out on the shoulder.
Mojave Desert Sidewinder - Crotalus c. cerastes.
Mojave cerastes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
John L. and I got out one day to hit some mountains in RivCo by day, and hit the low desert by night. We were out for probably 13-14 hours, and saw a grand total of... One snake. We herped hard, but there was just nothing to be seen.
It was a sign of things to come for the rest of this dry, hot year.
Aforementioned single snake-
Northern Desert Nightsnake -Hypsiglena chlorophaea deserticola
Nightsnake by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Riverside County at sunset -
RivCo. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We hiked plenty, cruised plenty, flipped plenty.
RivCo desert by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
RivCo desert by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
At the end of April, my wife and I took out annual Eastern Mojave trip. Usually, this is our most productive trip of the year, I have my spots out there that produce numbers like crazy under the right conditions.
Unfortunately, we lucked out and hit the desert the same time a cold front did. The only snakes we saw were flipped, same with lizards. Never been out there and not seen lizards on every rock and post.
Either way, we packed up our rental Forester, and headed out.
When we see this sign, we know we're headed in the right direction -
Zzyzx by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We love the vast space out there, the grandness of scale -
The open road by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We got out to our spot a couple hours before sunset, and set off to explore a new canyon I hoped would be fruitful in the future.
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
You can just feel the specks and boas staring at you -
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Nothing to see while hiking, so we set up camp for the night. Nighttime lows were in the low 50's, so we didn't spend much time nighthiking.
Eastern Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Nothing compares to a Mojave sunset
MNP Sunset by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The next morning we met up with Sean B., a longtime resident of the MNP (How lucky, huh?!) to go hit a spring in another mountain range an hour or two away.
We stopped along the way for some frigid morning flipping, but didn't turn up anything apart from some ice cold Xantusia.
Two of our targets were lizards that are as common as anything in other parts of their range, but have isolated, tiny relict populations out in the Mojave.
Sean flipped our first target about 20 minutes into arriving at the other mountains.
Western Red-tailed Skink - Plestiodon gilberti rubricaudatus
Mojave gilbert's by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave Desert Gilbert's skink by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
It's interesting to see the body stripes continue down onto the tail in these, usually not the case in Gilbert's. Nice looking little skinks.
I spotted the second target a couple of minutes later. The most common lizard back home, but here in the desert they're not quite as common. They also look quite a bit more attractive.
Great Basin Fence Lizard - Sceloporus occidentalis longipes
Kingstons fence by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Kingstons fence by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Sean and I photographing the Gilbert's
Gilbert's paparazzi's by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After the morning there, we headed back southeast, to a spot Sean has had luck flipping before.
Sure enough, the only two Eastern Mojave snakes we were to see this year, were flipped right there.
Firstly we flipped this feisty little coach-
Red Racer - Coluber flagellum piceus
'whip by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
'whip by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Coachwhip by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Next, Sean flipped the palest patchnose I'd ever seen. Despite it being a cool morning, it was almost impossible to get any good shots of it, so you'll have to just believe me that it was this pale the whole body.
"Ghost" patchie by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Patchie by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
This Leopard lizard was hanging out watching us the whole time. It was such a cool morning I was able to get within touching distance of this lizard.
Long-nosed Leopard Lizard - Gambelia wislizenii
Leopard by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We parted ways with Sean after that, and decided that after a quick breakfast stop at one of the many beautiful campgrounds out there, we'd head east to AZ in search of some warmth and some snakes.
Shakshuka and steak
Breakfast with a view by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After a day and night getting skunked in the Havasu/parker area, we got some great advice from John L, and headed southwards and east to some mountains straddling La Paz and Yavapai co.
Absolutely stunning desert, with views for what felt like hundreds of miles.
La Paz/Yavapai co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
La Paz/Yavapai co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
La Paz/Yavapai co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Despite the gorgeous desert, seemingly good conditions, and a healthy dose of optimism, as the day wore on, we didn't see much of anything.
Finally, we decided to leave these mountains and head southwest for the night, to try and turn up some boas. On the way down, though, we made one last stop on a whim, and thank god we did.
I hiked out to a water tank set up by AZF&G, flipped some stuff, and headed back to the car, only to realize I'd hiked right past this guy just chilling along the trail.
Spot the Speck -
Speck in situ by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake - Crotalus pyrrhus
in-situ
Speck AZ by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Speck AZ by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After it noticed us -
La Paz co. Speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
La Paz co. Speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Satisfied to have found our first AZ snake of the year, we headed out of the area with Boas on our mind.
AZ Desert sunset by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Got to the next spot, and decided to get out and night hike for a few minutes before starting to cruise.
Within about three minutes, I look down, and see this pleasant sight.
AZ Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Beautiful adult female Rosy Boa - Lichanura orcutti (t. gracia)
AZ Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
desert rosy AZ by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
La Paz co. Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
AZ rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
That was the one and only snake we were to see that night, but it was a good one at least.
We settled down for the night in our car, ready to head back to CA the next morning.
Night over Quartzsite by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The next day we headed back across the Colorado, and headed down for Imperial county, deciding to take the long way home with the hopes of scouting some new spots for later in the season.
Cruising down the highway, we snatched this absolute stunner of a Sonoran gopher right out from underneath a semi.
Sonoran Gophersnake - Pituophis catenifer affinis
Affinis by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Affinis pattern by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Sonoran gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After checking out the canals and habitat in the Imperial Valley, we headed up to Riverside county again to meet up with Paisley R, and Lance W. for some cruising at that one road. It was still a little cool out, but we managed a boa and a ruber.
coastal rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Rosy shoot by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
What? This is my normal found-a-boa face!
RivCo rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Ruber -
Ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After that, it was back to LA county for some rest and to work for the next few weeks.
We did get out with Chris D and Greg for some night hiking the San Gabes for amphibs, and while we found crazy amounts of salamanders and other cool stuff, we were camera-less and don't have any shots to show for it.
May
May started to really warm up around us, and despite the dryness and fluctuating temperatures, herps were more on the move than the rest of the year thus far.
Early on, the wife and I got out for a day of local herping.
We started by flipping this chubby little pit from the GB x SD intergradation zone.
SD GB Pit by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
On the way home, we drove right by this little girl. So small we barely noticed her frantically trying to cross the road in some oak woodland near home.
WB King by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
First all-white belly I've seen in a WC king before. Pretty cool.
WB king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Whitebelly by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
That weekend we headed up to Inyo co. for some canyon cruising.
On the way up, we had to slam on our breaks in the middle of the 14 freeway, as this beautiful crote was making his way across.
By far the nicest scute I've seen. Pictures don't do the bright lime/yellow green justice.
Northern Mojave Rattlesnake - Crotalus s. scutulatus.
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After some shots on the shoulder, we helped him find a more suitable way to the otherside, namely this underpass here-
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Soon after getting to our canyon, we cruised this huge, healthy girl on the shoulder.
No exaggeration, she was at least 3.5', possibly over 4', and chunky to boot!
Big ol' rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
desert rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
desert rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The following week we headed down for an overnight trip to Imperial Co, targeting some CA Atrox and the like.
Conditions were damn near perfect, and we cruised, hiked, cruised, and hiked some more for a day and a half, and didn't see a single damn thing. Never been skunked that bad before, although I would continue getting skunked the rest of the year, often.
A few days later we decided to hit that one road in RivCo with a couple friends. Usually I stay away from there, it's like shooting fish in a barrel, and I hate herping with crowds, but we were getting desperate.
Turned out to be a damn good night.
We met Daniel, Paisley, Adam, and Emile nearby a little before sunset, and headed out to cruise. They found this Speck just before we arrived, a contender for nicest speck of the year.
Speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Once we started cruising, the snakes turned up pretty fast.
Next was this little neonate speck-
Neo speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Neo speck by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After that, we hit the usual suspects.
Long-nosed Snake - Rhinocheilus lecontei
Rhino by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Rhino by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave shovelnosed snake - Chionactis (never Sonora) occipitalis
Chionactis by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Spotted Leaf-nosed snake - Phyllorhynchus decurtatus
Leafy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Ruber -
Ruber by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Then Emile and Adam found what would have been a lifer for me -
Southwestern Threadsnake - Rena humilis
Thread by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Right after that, we DID actually turn up a lifer -
As usual, he was less happy to have been found than we were.
California Lyre Snake - Trimorphodon lyrophanes
Spicy Trimorph by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
lyre by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
lyre by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Rounded it out with a nice Boa -
RivCo rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The rest of May was spent doing a lot of rattlesnake relocations, all for helleri.
Rescue Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
The rest of these shots were from releases of various rescued helleri.
I really, really like Helleri. I think they're one of the most criminally underrated crotes out there. So variable, and really neat personalities... When they're not being a$$holes, that is.
helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
This little yearling was one of my favorites. Really nice peach and purple undertones.
Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Helleri with a view by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Helleri with a view by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Full moon that month landed on one of the warmest, most humid days, so despite the CRAZY bright moon, we hit a new road right by home I'd been wanting to check out.
Glad we did, as I managed to check another lifer off.
Full moon thread by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
rena by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
At the end of May, John and I headed up to Kern co and the Mojave to try for some kingsnakes and boas.
After a few obligatory sidewinders, we rounded a corner to see this beauty stretched across the road.
Really nice high white desert CA king.
John and a King by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Desert king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After that, nothing. No snakes, no geckos, no rodents, no bugs. the desert was DEAD. We hit the mojave the next two nights too, for a total of three nights, and stayed out till 2-3 am each night. And we didn't see a Single. Damn. Thing.
This continued for the next few weeks. We hit San Bernardino county, Riverside county, LA county, Kern county, even a little Inyo co, the San Gabriel mountains, the Sierra Pelonas, the San Jacintos, the Little San Bernardinos, and there was just nothing moving, except for one other Lyre in riverside county at 3am one of the nights.
June
June started with the mostly fruitless nights described above.
Apart from the odd relocation, June was very slow.
Finally at the end of June I got out with Daniel to the high desert for some Tort action.
Took my wife's little brother who was spending summer break with us out with me, it was really cool to introduce herping to the next generation. He lives up in the Bay area, and since returning there, has been out at every opportunity photographing lizards and whatever else he can find.
Next gen herper by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Hands down one of our favorite lizards.
Southern Desert Horned Lizard - Phrynosoma platyrhinos calidiarum
Phryno by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Daniel knows this area like the back of his hand, and we hiked out to see some tortoises he's known for years, seeing the same individuals year after year.
Tort by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
This was an old male he's named Crazy Eyes -
crazy eyes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
let sleeping torts lie by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
(All photographed with a long-range zoom lens. I know most of us know this, but for anyone reading who doesn't, please don't get too close to wild tortoises. Not only can we very easily transmit disease to them, but they can void their bladder when scared, losing precious water stores, which can absolutely be fatal, especially in a drought year like this.)
We cruised this king a few days later in the same place we found the white belly king in May.
Really nice yellowed out king.
LA co king by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We ended June by checking off another lifer, thanks to John again.
Such ugly, adorable, boring, fascinating little snakes!
Rubber Boa - Charina bottae
Rubber boa by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Rubber boa by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Rubber boa by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
July
Mid July we got out with Chris Degroof, Greg, and a few others to check out some invasive lizards in LA county, followed by some high desert cruising.
We met up in a neighborhood in the desert, where Urosaurus has taken over and is pushing native Sceloporus and Uta out of the area, or at least, so it seems.
We found our target right away, although getting one in hand took a lot longer.
Ornate Tree Lizard (Urosaurus ornatus)
Urosaurus by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We flipped some trash and debris along the edges of the neighborhood, and found another invasive, sharing a board with a native lizard.
Neither were very happy about this turn of events.
Elgaria and Mediterranean House Gecko (Hemidactylus turcicus)
Alligator gecko by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After that we hit some roads in the desert flats, and started turning up Scute after Scute.
Angry Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
After that, we split off from Chris, and hit some roads I had been targeting for a while, to document some stuff that isn't seen in LA County very often.
We were half successful, we found a couple specimens of our targets, but unfortunately, both DOR.
La County Shovel-nose (Chionactis occipitalis)
Only a handful of records for these in LA County so far, but I think that's probably just because not too many people hit the few areas they occur in the county.
LA Co. Chionactis (NOT Sonora) by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
LA county Mojave Glossy (Arizona elegans candida)
LA co. glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We ended the night with some geckos, and some western toads, and a DOR pit or two if memory serves.
We got out a couple more nights with John to see Rubber boas, but those images are already posted above for the other rubber find.
That was pretty much it for us in July, except for one mountainous cruising night that turned up two neat crotes.
Cellphone pics only.
Firstly was what I'm calling a NorPac/SoPac hybrid, right in the intergrade zone on the Kern/Ventura county lines.
Whether it was or not, cool looking crote anyway. Let me know if you agree/disagree!
Nor/SoPac by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Lastly that night was this Helleri up at 8200' in elevation. Really cool dark specimen.
High Elev. Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
August
First week of August, John and I headed to AZ to try to turn up something cool, anything but more helleri! We met up with Hubbs and ran into a few others out there too.
It was incredibly green, thanks to some recent rain, and we had our hopes up.
First night was pretty slow, with just a scute or two to show for our efforts, and some DOR Pits.
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Next night we got out earlier, hitting some trails and ponds nearby before sunset to try for some Garters.
Sure enough, with monsoonal puddles FULL of spadefoot tadpoles, the garters turned up in numbers.
Aforementioned puddles -
Vagrans prey by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
At the edge of that puddle, was this garter, shot in-situ, absolutely bursting to the gills with tadpoles.
Wandering Gartersnake - Thamnophis elegans vagrans
Vagrans by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Vagrans in-situ by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We kept going, and soon one turned into handfuls of garters. They were guzzling tadpoles so fast, live. They were so full of tadpoles that as we picked them up, they would regurg tadpoles that were still completely alive, falling through our fingers back into the puddles and swimming away. Really cool little snakes, I think.
Vagrans by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Vagrans by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Spot the Thamnophis
Vagrans with a View by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
John's Tacoma put in some work for us throughout the year, what an absolute beast of a herping vehicle!
'Zona Taco by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
With the garters out of the way, and darkness falling, we hit the roads again, looking for our target.
Turned into the best night of cruising we had this year just by number of snakes, although they were almost all Scutes.
Scute by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We probably saw a good 10-15 of them that night.
We cruised up a couple Garters and some Sonoran Gophers too, but there was no sign of our target, the elusive AZ Milksnake.
Finally, a couple hours later, we slowed down to let a truck that had been up our ass for miles overtake us. We let it get some distance and started cruising again.
Tragically, a minute or two later, we discovered that the truck had found our target for us. There was definitely some crying over this spilled milk.
New Mexico Milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum celaenops)
Spilled milk by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
That was the only one we got to photograph, though we did spot one disappearing into the tall grass later that night.
After two nights of herping, we headed back to CA, and that was about it for herping in August.
September
September, like August, was too dry and hot to get out much. Finally at the end of the month, with the smoke from the northern fires filling the skies, there was a night we felt could be good for one last cruise for the year.
We headed up to Kern Co to try for some final Mojave snakes for the year, for us.
We got there early, before sunset, to scope it out. Sure enough, conditions were good despite the insanely smoky air. It was so thick with smoke, that we had to wear facemasks outside the car just to avoid the burning in out nostrils and throats.
Soon, we started seeing some snakes. Our modest target for the night was a Great Basin Gophersnake. They're by far my favorite gopher ssp in CA, and I somehow had gone the whole year without seeing a live one.
Our target was hit pretty early-
Great Basin gophersnake - Pituophis catenifer deserticola
GB Gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
GB gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
GB Gopher by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
We rounded out the night with a couple of geckos and some Glossies.
Mojave glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Despite September usually being baby herp season, probably as a result of the dry, slow spring, we didn't see many neonates out at all, if any.
October
The only snake we saw in October was this baby helleri when we went out to lay out some boards for next year.
Neo Helleri by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
And with that, we pretty much come to the end of a mixed-bag year of herping, although I'm planning to try and get out for some amphibian action in the next week or two, after the next rain.
On the one hand, we made a bunch of new friends, connections, and discoveries, on the other hand, it was a much slower year than we'd have liked (but when isnt?! ).
Bunch of lifers checked off, and a bunch more still left to go!
For the next year, we're planning to take some trips farther afield.
We're hoping to get down to Baja, finally make the stereotypical-but-necessary pilgrimage down to SE AZ, and a trip to SE Texas too.
If you have any advice or experience herping those areas, I'd love to pick your brain a little, especially for Baja. I know some of you head down there with some regularity.
We'd love to meet up with as many of you as possible in the field next year, so hit us up!
You can see more on Instagram, @z_e_herping, or hit me up on Facebook.
I'll post some more habitat shots and other shots that didn't make it into the narrative above in a reply below.
If you're still here, thanks for sticking through that all the way to the end!
Have a good, wet winter, and here's to an excellent herp season next year!
As always,
Happy herping!
2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
Moderator: Scott Waters
Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
Posting some other shots that didn't make it into the post above for whatever reason here.
Some desert roads, some habitat, some gratuitous herp shots, and some other stuff.
Inyo co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Promising looking road that skunked us.
Inyo co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Fantastic habitat that also skunked us.
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Desert Glossy - Arizona elegans eburnata found by John, San Bernardino county.
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Another gratuitous Lyre shot
Trimorph by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
A Desert rosy from Kern co.
Desert Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Hungry tort from San Bernardino co.
tort munching by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
tort by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Solitary Phryno
phryno by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Local habitat
Sierra Pelonas by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Campfire grillin' by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Tort at sunset in our favorite part of the desert.
Elly, Tortoise and SUV make three by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Little phyrno at the bottom corner of the picture
Phyrno Paparazzi by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Gambell's Quail by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
San Gabes
San Gabes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
San gabes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Thanks again for reading!
Some desert roads, some habitat, some gratuitous herp shots, and some other stuff.
Inyo co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Promising looking road that skunked us.
Inyo co. by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Fantastic habitat that also skunked us.
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Desert Glossy - Arizona elegans eburnata found by John, San Bernardino county.
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Glossy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Another gratuitous Lyre shot
Trimorph by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
A Desert rosy from Kern co.
Desert Rosy by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Hungry tort from San Bernardino co.
tort munching by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
tort by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Solitary Phryno
phryno by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Local habitat
Sierra Pelonas by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Mojave National Preserve by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Campfire grillin' by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Tort at sunset in our favorite part of the desert.
Elly, Tortoise and SUV make three by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Little phyrno at the bottom corner of the picture
Phyrno Paparazzi by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Gambell's Quail by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
San Gabes
San Gabes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
San gabes by Zeev Nitzan Ginsburg, on Flickr
Thanks again for reading!
- Scott Waters
- Site Admin
- Posts: 692
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Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
This is the definition of an EPIC post. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to seeing future trips.
Scott
Scott
Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
I’m just gonna go ahead and say it… That’s a hybrid slider x Actinemys and The proof is written all over his face I do however believe there’s a good chance that purple people eater could be a melly… Lots of great photos and details! Blackbellys are overrated and I mean, who doesn’t like finding a DOR tricolor
Awesome post dude
That’s a gnarly shot
Awesome post dude
That’s a gnarly shot
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- Posts: 28
- Joined: September 6th, 2019, 6:18 am
Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
Wow, that is indeed a great post and some awesome pictures. Would love to go to the Mojave Desert one day.
Thanks for sharing
Frank
Thanks for sharing
Frank
Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
Zeev
This post is fantastic. Every picture has a story, and they all remind me of my few experiences in southern California in the 1960s-1980s.
The brown drought is awful, and I know what you mean about it should be green. Owen and I herped during the horrible 1977 drought in central California, which was the severest on record - the inner coast range was dirt and sticks.
My field work in southern California was sparse, just some trips to the coast and a dozen or so to the Mojave. For us, southern California was a trip to Kern County.
Regarding your shovelnose and glossy photos from L.A. County, that area was the first true desert that we got into right after high school (with our own vehicles and money). In the western Antelope Valley I saw my first red racer, crossing the 'highway', and saw my first fringe-toed lizards there (without mentioning localities).
One topic that interested me was the contact zones between species or subspecies, between the mountains and the desert. Your photo of a northern pacific rattlesnake out on the desert is an example, as is your possible San Diego/Great Basin Gopher Snake intergrade. The one night snake that you showed looks like the coastal, rather than desert form, and the locality would be interesting to me.
As for other memorable shots, the very big Elgaria with a complete tail was surely a record-breaker. I took a similar photo of one laid out on my wife's arm, but probably no more than 18 inches long.
It is VERY good of you to note the potentially fatal effects of picking up tortoises, which empty their bodies of vital liquids whenever picked up. I wish that information to be universally known to the folks who can't resist molesting agassizi.
I have never seen a blind snake in California!
The helleri are truly superb and underrated. The one in the bathtub is i9dentical to a beast I saw one afternoon in sandhills in Santa Barbara County - a very big, dark adult, that paused in place on its travels, knowing that I didn't have a camera.
Our meals were simple (e.g., tin of mackerel fillets from 7-11). But, in my elderly, Mediterranean gastrologics, that shakshouka would be my death-row, last meal request!
With that, and a sincere thank you,
Jeff, formerly of San Jose
This post is fantastic. Every picture has a story, and they all remind me of my few experiences in southern California in the 1960s-1980s.
The brown drought is awful, and I know what you mean about it should be green. Owen and I herped during the horrible 1977 drought in central California, which was the severest on record - the inner coast range was dirt and sticks.
My field work in southern California was sparse, just some trips to the coast and a dozen or so to the Mojave. For us, southern California was a trip to Kern County.
Regarding your shovelnose and glossy photos from L.A. County, that area was the first true desert that we got into right after high school (with our own vehicles and money). In the western Antelope Valley I saw my first red racer, crossing the 'highway', and saw my first fringe-toed lizards there (without mentioning localities).
One topic that interested me was the contact zones between species or subspecies, between the mountains and the desert. Your photo of a northern pacific rattlesnake out on the desert is an example, as is your possible San Diego/Great Basin Gopher Snake intergrade. The one night snake that you showed looks like the coastal, rather than desert form, and the locality would be interesting to me.
As for other memorable shots, the very big Elgaria with a complete tail was surely a record-breaker. I took a similar photo of one laid out on my wife's arm, but probably no more than 18 inches long.
It is VERY good of you to note the potentially fatal effects of picking up tortoises, which empty their bodies of vital liquids whenever picked up. I wish that information to be universally known to the folks who can't resist molesting agassizi.
I have never seen a blind snake in California!
The helleri are truly superb and underrated. The one in the bathtub is i9dentical to a beast I saw one afternoon in sandhills in Santa Barbara County - a very big, dark adult, that paused in place on its travels, knowing that I didn't have a camera.
Our meals were simple (e.g., tin of mackerel fillets from 7-11). But, in my elderly, Mediterranean gastrologics, that shakshouka would be my death-row, last meal request!
With that, and a sincere thank you,
Jeff, formerly of San Jose
Re: 2021 wrap up (Huge post, lotsa pics)
Nice post Zeev! Always cool to see somebody put something together.
The "yellowed out" kingsnake from June is probably my favorite...
The "yellowed out" kingsnake from June is probably my favorite...