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Reptile watchin'

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  • 09-27-2020, 05:15 PM
    WrongPython
    Reptile watchin'
    My amateur birding walks have morphed into combined birding-herping walks as of late, and wouldn't you know it, they're now twice as fun! I've been fairly lucky getting photos so far, so I figured I'd share some for all the field herpers around here. Here are a few recent sightings. Enjoy!

    Northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...a7fcd53083.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...7795c1b3b8.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...6fe9bd03a1.jpg

    Eastern garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...430e8068d6.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0dc123822b.jpg

    Black rat snake (Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0d589618ee.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...7b523d13da.jpg

    Bonus non-herp! Ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...ec270f365f.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 09-28-2020, 12:35 AM
    Craiga 01453
    Very cool!! Thanks for sharing :gj:

    What state are you in?
  • 09-28-2020, 01:32 AM
    Bogertophis
    Very nice finds! :gj: Thanks for sharing.
  • 09-28-2020, 07:13 AM
    richardhind1972
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Cool photos, your guys are so lucky to have thus sort of wildlife

    Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk
  • 09-28-2020, 07:16 AM
    Reinz
    Looks like it was a fun outing. Thanks!
  • 09-28-2020, 11:31 AM
    Bogertophis
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Craiga 01453 View Post
    ...What state are you in?

    Perhaps the state of confusion...:D
  • 09-28-2020, 02:44 PM
    bns
    Love the black rat...

    Thanks for sharing.
  • 09-28-2020, 05:16 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Thanks y'all! I'm glad others enjoy the photos as much as I do.

    I'm based in New Jersey, though I do get around a fair bit. Herping in New Jersey can be a bit different compared to other places in the US due to our strict herping laws that resulted from historic and ongoing poaching. If you're found hooking or handling a wild herp and you're not permitted for and actively doing work/research that requires you to do so, you're liable to wind up in Big Trouble. We love our native herps here and we don't want to see them hurting again. Coincidentally, this means that New Jersey herping actually looks a lot like birding -- just sit back, watch the animal do what it does, maybe snap a few photos, and let them go about their day without you messing with them. It's actually quite refreshing when you think about it that way. Leave only footprints, take only pictures.
  • 10-08-2020, 10:53 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Not herps, but some pretty cool and uncommon finds from the past week!

    Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...bff27e50e5.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...fbdeb5745b.jpg

    Common nighthawk (Chordeiles minor)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...61924b268d.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0422ddf1e5.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 10-10-2020, 12:04 PM
    Reinz
    Love the Nighthawk! I’m surprised it let you get that close before flying off.
  • 10-10-2020, 01:24 PM
    Danger noodles
    Water snakes and I don’t get along very well. Lol they can be pretty defensive
  • 10-10-2020, 01:36 PM
    Sonny1318
    Big thanks for sharing, so cool. God bless.
  • 11-08-2020, 03:16 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    And here I thought herping season was over!

    Came across this mellow fellow on my birding walk today. Normally I see black racers and black rat snakes at this site, so I thought I was looking at a transitional rat snake at first given the pattern. Then I saw the keeled scales in the photos and realized it was a Northern water snake. Seems as though I'm a Nerodia magnet, because this snake was a fair way off from the water!

    Northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...46d65fe8d8.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...4b20bd0c7d.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...39eb7cc117.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...1236dfcb38.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 11-08-2020, 05:22 PM
    bns
    Cool.

    I've found them a good distance from water too...I guess they can do what they want but it still makes me scratch my head. :)

    Whatever plan that one has it looks to have done well this season before the long fast.
  • 04-09-2021, 06:59 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    In honor of a black rat snake making the news, here's a throwback photo of one I came across last season!

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...4efb977010.jpg

    Herp season is starting up in my neck of the woods. Baby turtles are starting to emerge, and I'm planning on checking in on my Nerodia hotspot soon.

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 04-17-2021, 01:27 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Herp season is starting back up! Checked out one of my spots from last season and saw a few familiar faces.

    Norther water snake (Nerodia sipedon)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...392734aa38.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2da8236c2e.jpg

    This fellow was particularly friendly. They let me sit pretty close to them and we just chilled and watched each other for a while. Eventually they crawled off into the foliage to poke around. Lots of curious tongue flicking, calm exploration, and a good yawn!

    Painted turtle (Chrysemys picta)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...6cb0319083.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0f6766ca41.jpg

    Northern red-bellied turtle (Pseudemys rubriventris)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...986ff18677.jpg

    Northern green frog (Lithobates clamitans melanota)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...49eccb13ff.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 04-17-2021, 01:41 PM
    Bogertophis
    Really cool encounters, especially the curious water snake. :D
  • 04-17-2021, 01:42 PM
    richardhind1972
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    That's so cool, wish we had loads of reptile wildlife about

    Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk
  • 04-17-2021, 01:54 PM
    Zincubus
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by richardhind1972 View Post
    That's so cool, wish we had loads of reptile wildlife about

    Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk

    When we visit our lad in Florida we always go lookin’ for interesting stuff .. he’s near lodges / lakes and woods .. - last time I was stung by a flaming’ scorpion and it wrecked for about half an hour .

    Obvious things like snakes, armadillos and lizards plus alligators and turtles but they occasionally hear the bears , coyote and panthers

    Even the birds and fish are colourful and more interesting than our British ones !!




    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  • 04-17-2021, 03:24 PM
    richardhind1972
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Zincubus View Post
    When we visit our lad in Florida we always go lookin’ for interesting stuff .. he’s near lodges / lakes and woods .. - last time I was stung by a flaming’ scorpion and it wrecked for about half an hour .

    Obvious things like snakes, armadillos and lizards plus alligators and turtles but they occasionally hear the bears , coyote and panthers

    Even the birds and fish are colourful and more interesting than our British ones !!




    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

    Sounds awsome [emoji7][emoji7]

    Sent from my ELS-NX9 using Tapatalk
  • 04-17-2021, 04:58 PM
    Spicey
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Zincubus View Post

    Even the birds and fish are colourful and more interesting than our British ones !!

    Aww, your British wildlife has its own charm!
  • 04-18-2021, 03:53 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Another day, another good herp walk! There's a lot of vernal pools in my area after all the spring rain, so the water-oriented herps are quite happy.

    Northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...7e28c2206c.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...2deea6d8d9.jpg

    Thamnophis species

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...f85b8fb39b.jpg

    Not quite sure if this fellow is a common garter snake or Eastern ribbon snake. They slithered away into the above cover before I could get a good look at their face.

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 04-18-2021, 04:01 PM
    Bogertophis
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by WrongPython View Post
    ...Not quite sure if this fellow is a common garter snake or Eastern ribbon snake. They slithered away into the above cover before I could get a good look at their face...

    Yeah, I've tried demanding I.D.'s but they just stick out their tongues & do the same thing to me? :D Love seeing them in the wild anyway though. TKS for sharing.
  • 04-18-2021, 05:02 PM
    Zincubus
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Spicey View Post
    Aww, your British wildlife has its own charm!

    Possibly our cutest critters are your Grey Squirrels :)


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
  • 05-05-2021, 05:49 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Baby turtles are starting to emerge! This one is a regional special.

    Diamondback terrapin (Malachlemys terrapin terrapin)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...b44640345b.jpg

    Northern water snakes, painted turtles, and red-bellied turtles are also out and about in the region. I saw a black racer at one of my usual spots this past weekend as well, but they were too quick for me to get a photo. It's a shame, because said racer was crawling right at the toe of my shoe while I was watching a water snake swim!

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 05-10-2021, 01:42 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    It was rather cold this past weekend, so I didn't see many herps. Plenty of cool birds, though, and a few basking turtles.

    Red-bellied turtles (large) and Painted turtles (small)

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...0a674162a4.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 05-23-2021, 04:36 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    It was looking like another "nothing but turtles" day for me, and then this fellow just wandered through my place!

    Black rat snake/Eastern rat snake

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...f3e3c846e1.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...a6ae2043d8.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...e2c223f1b3.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...7cef3306c2.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
  • 05-23-2021, 04:41 PM
    jmcrook
    Nice find and a great looking specimen! Black Rats will always be one of my favorite North American colubrids. Used to catch those all the time when I was growing up in Missouri.
  • 05-23-2021, 04:55 PM
    Zincubus
    Reptile watchin'
  • 06-01-2021, 10:14 PM
    WrongPython
    Re: Reptile watchin'
    Had a surprisingly nice couple of days of herping! It's mostly the usual suspects, though the turtles were particularly active and seeing this many species was nice.

    Northern water snake. I saw a second one on a nearby beach, but upon closer inspection it looked as though a particularly aggressive and broody American oystercatcher got to them first. (I've seen said bird attack ospreys and vultures that come within 200 yards of their nest.) It's a shame, because they were a particularly beautiful individual.

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...57d872f92a.jpg

    Either a black rat snake or Eastern racer -- they were too far away to tell. This area is prime black rat snake habitat, but I've seen one particularly racer multiple times at this exact spot.

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...15b2d3618f.jpg

    Red-bellied turtles. These turtles are huge! Imagine a painted turtle the size of a snapper and you'll get the idea.

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...a82d7d402f.jpg

    Diamondback terrapin. This year's crop of babies is starting to emerge en masse.

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...49ac2c0b09.jpg

    Bonus round: turtle versus muskrat! Said muskrat was minding their own business, collecting foliage for their nest, when they accidentally stepped on a very grumpy turtle.. My gut tells me it's an Eastern mud turtle, but it's hard to tell from how murky the water was.

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...8de9debeab.jpg

    https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...495197303b.jpg

    Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
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