Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I think I understand the basic ideas of night driving and day hiking, but I feel like I have a hard time finding snakes hiking at night. I always like to be on a hike at sunset...especially in the summer, and I see some good stuff right before the sun goes down, but as soon as it gets dark I feel like I'm missing everything. It's frustrating to only see the area of the flashlight.

I was just wondering if anyone had any tips for this technique - or does it just suck and I should get in my car? Do you still flip stuff at night? Is the idea that I just hike around seeing what I can, and since there is more snake activity I will cross paths with a snake eventually?

I understand that there are a lot of variables - I'm just looking for some general advise or rules of thumb.

I think hiking is a lot more fun than driving, but I would love to get a little better at finding snakes while I'm doing it.

Thanks,

Jake

It's frustrating to only see the area of the flashlight.

That's why people who night walk a lot use a lantern or a compact 12V fluorescent like the Stubby II from Saf-T-Lite. Autozone (I think) also sells a decent 12V flourescent. Then you have to carry a 12V battery (deer feeder batteries work) to plug it in. The lights work for about 7 hours on a charge and caste a really bright wide field.

Do you still flip stuff at night?

I have done this in the past, but it is only productive in limited areas and for limited species.

Is the idea that I just hike around seeing what I can, and since there is more snake activity I will cross paths with a snake eventually?

That's the idea. Of course, in your car you cover a LOT more area, so you can see more snakes. But there are certain species that are supposedly easier to find hiking (like Rosyboas). It depends where you are and what you are looking for.

I think hiking is a lot more fun than driving, but I would love to get a little better at finding snakes while I'm doing it.

Depending on where I am, I like to drive a while, then hike, then drive, etc. Keeps you from getting bored.
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Chris Harrison
San Antonio, Texas

It's no different than hiking during the day, except you need an artificial source of light. The downfall is that if you're working steep terrain, you may need that burdened hand for something else.....headlight vice handlight.
Shane
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Shane's Herp Lifelist
http://www.geocities.com/shane77@sbcglobal.net/my_page.html

This post as the potential to get big and fill with ideas from various herpetologists as to what is the best method for finding nocturnal species.

But here is my two cents to be successful, first utilize the same successful techniques you would use while night drive. Example, I would not night drive during cold weather or full moon, so I would not night hike, either. Further more, turning debris is much more productive than it is during the day. Some salamander or snakes that would typically be underground during the day will surface to exploit the warmth that boards and stones have to offer during at night. What im saying is night hiking is better than night driving, perhaps not from quantity of species, but through quality of species.

interesting point of view-i've not heard many(if any) say that night herping on foot(hiking) beats herping from a car at night....of course'quality' is a mtter of opinion-what are some that you find night hiking,that you consider 'better quality' finds?and/or if you prefer not gettininto that,what area have you done so in,to come to this conclusion?thanks in advance

Both are fun and useful, but you get different things with night hiking-herping vs. road herping. I prefer night hike-herping because it provides a greater opportunity to make fascinating observations of herps in their natural conditions, rather than just sitting on or crossing the road.

One thing that can help make a night-herp hiking trip more productive is to have a target species, and go out to the right habitats and in the right conditions for that target. For example, rainy nights can be great for salamanders and frogs. I've had many great nights watching various salamanders climbing trees, ferns, rocks. It is a lot more interesting than seeing them just crossing the road. One night I found a large adult Aneides lugubris in a tree, and several hatchling-size A. lugubris spread out on the tree above the adult. Other nights walking along streams I have seen numerous Desmognathus perched on rocks acting like fence lizards. I wouldn't have seen either of those things from the road.

You also get to find surprising and stunning observations. Last summer I was herping at night with some friends, and we found a ribbon snake eating a green tree frog about 1 meter off the ground in the middle of a bush. I never would have seen that from the road.

I like to use just a headlamp and a flashlight. Just remember to watch your feet and hands when walking around in the dark!

Good luck,

Mike

herp photo gallery

interesting question-but one thing that immediately came to mind is safety,regarding being able to watch where you step.i would think inevitably you'd be hard pressed to watch both your foot placement(think low brush,small rockpiles,sporadic fallen logs-good twighlight/evening shelter and/or ambush spots for crotalids),and whatever you may be pointing your headlamp at ahead/say 5-20 feet in front of you...i guess you'd just have to be careful about not walking on such types of cluttered ground.

Watching where you step is a priority and if you can’t do both, watch your step and shine distant outcrops and other terrain then you are moving to fast and most slow down. Rattlers are often found when night and some can be very small. On several occasions I have come across tiny sidewinders coiled in the sand directly on trails at night.

Most seasoned road hunters will tell you that certain stretches of road are better then others in the frequency of animals encountered. This usually has to do with a particular habitat which boarders the roadway. This is a good place to night hike.
Night hiking can be very good during activity periods when herps are actively pursuing food or mates.
The flashlight can subdue the animals natural camouflage ability by enhancing things like eye shine and skin shine and exposed light vental areas in tree crawling specimens.
With a little practice, these signs can be a beacon of recognition for certain species.
Phil Frank

I think you’re more likely to observe an animal “doing” something if you find one while you’re on foot, than if you find one on the pavement while you’re road cruising (as per Pregilla’s post). But as others have noted, if numbers alone are your goal, particularly of snakes, then it’s hard to beat motorized transport.

Obviously you’ll increase your success rate if you scope out the habitat in the daylight so you can choose likely spots to hike. I’m sure we’ve all road cruised areas at night where we don’t have a clear idea of what’s beyond the headlights.

I’d suggest walking culverts, dry washes, ditches, gulleys – any place a snake might have tumbled into or slithered down into and then follows the path of least resistance.

>>I think I understand the basic ideas of night driving and day hiking, but I feel like I have a hard time finding snakes hiking at night. I always like to be on a hike at sunset...especially in the summer, and I see some good stuff right before the sun goes down, but as soon as it gets dark I feel like I'm missing everything. It's frustrating to only see the area of the flashlight.
>>
>>I was just wondering if anyone had any tips for this technique - or does it just suck and I should get in my car? Do you still flip stuff at night? Is the idea that I just hike around seeing what I can, and since there is more snake activity I will cross paths with a snake eventually?
>>
>>I understand that there are a lot of variables - I'm just looking for some general advise or rules of thumb.
>>
>>I think hiking is a lot more fun than driving, but I would love to get a little better at finding snakes while I'm doing it.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Jake

That is a lot of good information - I will keep trying. I sometimes camp in Joshua Tree and it seems like it might even be fun just to walk the campground roads at night. Carrying only a camera of course!

Good luck out there,

Jake

Night off road biking , you cover more ground then if you are on foot but you still have to be careful not to hit any thing like a snake or a tree.It is fun to do and i have done it like 5 times and found nothing but it's been cold.When i do this i bring a good head light.I find a trail ride out during the day then ride it back so i know where i am and where logs or anything like that is on the trail. I have great hopes of finding lots of cool things. I live in fl so it's to cool for me to have a good chance of finding any right now but i should have practice for when it gets hotter. has any one done this before and did you find any?