>>Both Gordon(been in the field with him) and Andy(had several talks with him) are very good guys, you may want to ask them If mohaves have been seen in months later then Sept.

>>



I'm not going to ask them, since I never doubted that you saw the snakes. That was never my point. I posted on your thread to confirm what was being said about AZ being a great state and I stand by that. There's a hell of a lot a good herpers in the state also, in spite of me being hopeless (thanks a lot.) The person (Will) who said he was thinking of moving to AZ was worried about the vens (inverts and snakes) and I was just offering a different view. I'm afraid we're both hopeless 'cus you're not going to see my view or understand what I'm trying to say.



>> What is so darn silly is. Before you even posted, I posted of a whole bunch of rattlesnakes and a coral. I posted pics. I even have a witness, one of the forumites was there. It was in OCTOBER. So that sort of dismisses the september deal you just posted.

>>



I'll admit I wasn't thinking about your pics when I posted, but I had looked at the whole thread. If I had doubted you I would have posted my comments directly under your picture post.



>> From your posts, it seems your a believer of paper. That is, you try to make snakes fit what you read. While theres nothing wrong with the body of knowledge contained in papers. Its merely mans(a person) interpitation of a very short and limited exposure to a snake or group of snakes.

>>



I am a believer of paper to an extent. It is science and I like science and it can be used to further our causes of gaining knowledge, making things happen, like taxonomy, and conservation, etc. I am an educator and delve in the theorectical a lot. You like the concrete. I can respect that. I don't believe in the literature exclusively. I'm with you on experience. I believe in getting out there and experiencing it.



>> In the paper you mentioned, I would most likely agree with everything they saw and reported. But may I add, there is much more to Mohaves then they could possibly write. So what they report is good, there surely can and will be additions to their body of knowledge.

>>



agreed.



>> Back to you. As I mentioned above, you seem to try to make the animal fit the paper, when in fact, its suppose to be the other way around, the paper is "supposed" to fit the snake. If the snake does anything other then what the paper or book says, then the book or paper is in error, not the snake. The snakes are always right, as they are indeed the subject of the paper or book. In this case, rattlesnakes in my area are active to some degree all year long. That is, they can be seen above the ground or even crossing roads in every month of the year.

>>



I'm not arguing that the snakes can't be seen in all months. As a matter of fact, if I were having this conversation with someone else I might be using your argument that they can be seen in all months. The problem I think is in our interpretation of what's being said. By "activity", I was referring to their "active period", when they are carrying out life functions of eating, mating, etc. Heck, I could argue that even in Michigan, my home state, that I could find snakes in every month of the year. I think in the paper that is what they meant to, that March thru September is their active period as far as main activity and main functions, not that they weren't ever moving in other months. That's all I was referring to in the paper. I haven't even read the whole paper, yet.



>> In the coming months I will post and show some snakes that are active and not hibernating. You then can call Gordon and report it to him.

>>

>> FYI, mohaves are on my property, I see them all the time. FR



Sounds like you live in a cool spot, right out in the desert. Of course, there are probably snakes right in downtown Tucson too. I look forward to seeing the snakes you find.



I have seen snakes in Green Valley too. One of the main reasons I'm even on this forum is because of the kingsnakes there, and the fact I've taken up keeping the form from Green Valley. Last summer I came home one night and saw a diamondback crossing the street under the light in front of our house in the rain. I've seen other herps in the subdivision too, even in the immediate yard sometimes. I don't expect to see many in the winter, however, especially in the higher elevations. But I will be there in December and plan on doing some field work in the Santa Ritas. I'll let ya know if I find anything.



It's been a long week and I was really tired last night. Time to relax. Keep the faith and don't give up on your fellow herpers.



TC

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