Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys havent been around for a while...Ive been real busy with the snakes and things at home. I noticed kerby is back haha. Im just wandering if anyone has found any kings yet?? I know its still early just curious whos comeing out of the ground. My dad and his firestation all went out looking the other day (i got them into snakes haha) they lifted up some boards and only found a gopher snake and a rattler.

Happy herping,
Dylan

I found a neonate - first time I find her (think its a her) I released her. Second time (same spot) tonight - I decided to keep her, as her belly pattern is rather odd.

I'll try to get some good pictures of her belly pattern later - but for now, these should suffice:

her belly:

Other than Contia tenuis - this is only live snake I've found this year (I found 2 DOR Thamnophis elegans elegans

Locality: Redding, CA
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3.5 L. getula californiae
1.1 L. getula nigrita
1.0 Boa constrictor constrictor (suriname, fostering/rescue)
2.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata

I am on the eqst coast but from what I have heard it been real dry. You need to wait for the rains and then flip.

It is dry - especially in So Cal and Arizona and Texas.
Some are finding kings in Riverside County and San Diego county, but at a fraction of the number in a normal year.
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3.5 L. getula californiae
1.1 L. getula nigrita
1.0 Boa constrictor constrictor (suriname, fostering/rescue)
2.3 Elgaria multicarinata multicarinata

Actually Texas is doing ok for humidity, but it usually peters out when you need it most. We had 4" last week on the coast, and the radar showed Del Rio got some of it before it got to us, also a pretty good snow year west of San Antonio and Austin.
Todd Hughes

..a friend is working in GA right now and says he's doing well when he can get out to check boards/tin,
Found an edb and a king under the same board about 2' apart and another king on the way in. Dry for sure, but there are a few up and about I guess.
:Mark
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Surrender Dorothy!

www.crimsonking.funtigo.com

Mark,

I was reffering to Fighterpilot post who lives out west. It is going to be a bad year there since they did not have any rain.

I kinda figured but thought you'd like a quick report from your state...How come I never see your field reports?? GA is crawlin'!
:Mark
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Surrender Dorothy!

www.crimsonking.funtigo.com

The reason you don't see any field reports from me in GA is because i am not interested in any of the snakes found here. I am spoiled from living out west where I can find zonatas and rubber boas during the day and road cruise the deserts at night. Different times of the year also produce different snakes. This time of year (Feb-March)is the best for flipping AC ( ie,.artificial cover)for Cal kings and rosys in SD county. Later in the spring (May)is when you can drive in any direction and get all sorts of cool stuff. When the deserts reach 90f during the day is when you can go road cruising for rosys and other desert species,Lyres, Cal kings, geckos ect. The high desert is my favorite for the unusual. I have had a lot of experience Feild collecting and have my my own spots and they produce really well because my spots are untouched. If you ever want to go with me I love to turn herpers on to the west coast. But its been a few years but I may go back this May. I will start by flying into Fresno and herp the Seirras first before driving down to the high desert near Death Valley. Then drive down to palm springs (low desert)and hit that area and Borrego. Then back up the mountains during the day for more zonatas in teh San Jacintos and San Gabes for rosys. Find lost of other cool stuff to.

This is a freind who posts here who i took on my last trip. He lives in GA but this was a first for him on the west coast:

photographing a desert rosy in Santa Rosa mtns:

he took pics of everything. Even the "junk" snakes.

Then during the day flipping a coastal rosy under the mattress in Riverside county:

Me in the San Gabriel mtns at about 4500 elevation with a adult female rosy. He caught an adult male:

Rainer,

Were the cal kings you found out there black and white desert phases or another phase?
Did you come across any pits at all? What about venomous?
Seeing these cool pics really makes me realize I need to go sometime in the near future and do some herping in West Texas.

Thank you for posting these pics!
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Genesis 1:1

"Were the cal kings you found out there black and white desert phases or another phase?
Did you come across any pits at all? What about venomous?"

I have found every type of king out there. I grew up in S. Calif and recently moved to GA 13 years ago. What I don't see much of in the breeding hobby are the high band count desert phase cal kings I found in the high desert. If I ever find anyone that has those for sale I am jumping on them.

But as far as Cal kings the coastal are very easy to find. People I know who have board lines pick up as many as 75 in one day. When I herp for my target species in Calif I always found cal kings in whatever are I am in. I even saw them in the populated areas in L.A., the mountain in high elevations, flat areas with no trees, the beach (yes Zuma beach right off the sand) everywhere. The best places to find them in number is in Orange county and S.D counties. People place the boards over the cracks in the earth. They come up for the heat when it gets warm. While roadcruising the deserts is when you find the black and white varieties.

As far as hots. I don't pay much attention to those. I love to scare freinds who are not familiar with the Mohave greens and sidewinders. The sidewinders are usually found on very windy nights coiled up on the highways. They look like while roks or pebbles. When I tell people those are actually sidewinders they don't beleive me. So i pull over and they check them out. usually coiled and still until you touch them. Then they take off with alaring speed. Its a rush to watch newbies with stuff like that. Usually has them jumping up the air as the sidewainder passes below them. LOL! ABout the prettiest rattlesnake i have seen out west are the Panamint speckles. The are solid yellow in one region i herp. Never seen those on breeders lists either. Some come close but not as yellow as the ones I have seen. Watching someone bag their first Mohave green is a sight to behold as well. Their don't want to get in that bag peacfully. LOL!

Wow, those sound like very good areas to herp in! Thank you for the info!

Take care!
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Genesis 1:1

Man, that is the only thing I miss about California!!! The variety is awesome!!!! San Diego County is wild!!!!! Many of my favorite haunts are now paved over but there are still places that are rich. 35 years ago when I would go out and rape and pillage I would find 50 -100 snake nights out road cruising(I can't believe I was such and idiot!). You really have not lived until you've seen 6 herpers stop and fight over the same Rosy in Whitewater Canyon!!! I've had a couple of 50 snake nights down between Freer and Pearsall, south of San Antonio but there was no where near the variety of those trips in So. California (and I just looked and didn't keep anything!)!!! Those were the days!!!!

Pat

No doubt Rainer, get some sun and flip that $hit!
Todd Hughes

It's a bit rough out in AZ this year. Temps are good, but it is so dang dry out!

Buddy of mine did flip a Cal King out west of Phoenix by Gila Bend, though, so hope is not lost.
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Diego

Diego & Tiffany's Zoo:
SNAKES
2.4.0 Corn Snakes (Different morphs)
1.1.0 Hypo Everglades Rat Snakes
2.1.0 Baird's Rat Snakes
1.2.0 Trans-Pecos Rat Snakes
1.1.0 Trinket Rat Snake
1.0.0 Japanese Rat Snake
1.1.0 Salt and Pepper Bull Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Pacific Gopher Snake
1.0.0 Het Amel San Diego Gopher Snake
0.1.0 San Diego Gopher Snake
3.2.0 Sonoran Gopher Snakes
0.1.0 Amel Sonoran Gopher Snakes
1.1.0 Mexican Black Kingsnake
2.1.0 Gray Banded Kingsnakes (2.1 River Road)
1.0.0 Hypermelanistic California Kingsnake
0.1.0 Albino High White California Kingsnake
0.2.0 California Kingsnakes
1.1.0 Thayeri Kingsnake
0.1.0 Florida Kingsnake
1.1.0 Boa Constrictors
0.1.0 Dumeril's Boa
2.0.0 Rosy Boas (Mexican & Mid Baja)
1.1.0 Kenyan Sand Boas
0.1.0 Indonesian Dwarf Pacific Boa
1.1.0 Ball Pythons
1.0.0 Woma Python
1.1.0 Cape York Spotted Pythons
1.1.0 Macklot's Pythons
1.1.0 Western Hognoses
1.1.0 Red Sided Garter Snakes

LIZARDS
1.0.0 Frilled Dragon
3.1.0 Bearded Dragons (2 Normal, 1 RedXGold, 1 Citrus)
0.1.0 Eastern Collared Lizard
1.0.0 African Fat-Tail Gecko
0.1.0 Merauke Blue Tongue Skink
1.4.0 Leopard Geckos
1.0.1 Yellow Niger Uromastyx
1.1.0 Chuckwalla
0.1.0 Banded Gecko

FROGS
2.2.0 Southern Bell Frogs
1.0.1 Green Tree Frogs
1.0.0 Bubbling Kassina
1.1.1 White's Tree Frogs
0.0.2 Gold Frogs

Nothing, yet, but this is about the time I saw a few Kings last year here in the hills. It's been rather dry so I'm hoping for a bit more rain. I have a few more spots to check out also.

reako45

yea i havent found anything either. Last year we were finding a couple kings and rattlers each time we went out. all i have found now is a dead baby gopher snake. :/ we had a little bit of rain yesterday but barley enough to wet the surface

a few splendida from Padre Island, Texas have shown up, I saw a dor calligaster in Jan. but no holbrooki yet this year.
Todd Hughes