Reptile & Amphibian Forums

This would pertain to kings, but I do not have kingsnakes on my property, hmmmmmmmmm I could let, oh nevermind.

I have many snakes that live on my property. What is so very odd is, they mostly group up. That is, several species live in the same place or even the same holes.

Yesterday, I posted that hybrid thing. then later that afternoon, I noticed a movement next to the door of my reptile building. At first I thought it was a coachwhip, as thats what has been in there lately. All I saw was a head being pulled back down a hole under the porch. There are also, many coachwhip sheds, some coming out of that hole and around nearby.

So I went in and got a mouse and dangled it in front of the hole. Nothing, so I left it there and went back to work. I came back and notice a nose slip back into the hole. So I got my tongs and a big mouse and my camera. Well we played tug-a-war and no pics of any value. I tried this for three more mice. By the fourth mouse, the snake did stick his head out and I got a pic

Notice the fat head and the shed next to the fat head. I yelled, you FAT head. Whats up with that? hahahahahahahaha

After that, the dang thing kept sticking his head out, but wanted no more mice.

This mourning, I noticed a set of tracks, the little dots are packrat tracks, they have a consistant trail. Then next to it, there is a snake track that followed next to the trail, then right on top of the rodent trail, all the way to their collective holes, hahahahahahaha.

Anyway, its very much a better learning tool to find this type of stuff, sheds and trails, etc. Then just finding a snake and picking it up. Which mostly teaches you little. Except you now have a snake to feed. hahahahahaha. Enjoy

I like it! Cool stuff out on your property! I gotta get out of the city!!!
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Todd Hughes

Hi Todd, I am working on some kingsnake stuff for you. I have a few edge of range examples I took pics of recently and one out in my room that got hit on the head(by a car) and is healing fine. That one is fairly neat as its very much not normal for where I found it. It has wide dark backs with hollows on the sides. Oh it was found where normal splendida and black kings are found. dang things cannot make up their mind what they are going to look like. Oh well, one day they might. hahahahahahaha, then it will be no fun. Cheers

Thanks for that Frank, I agree when they all look the same it will be no more fun!
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Todd Hughes

"I like it! Cool stuff out on your property! I gotta get out of the city!!!"
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Todd Hughes

Me and you both Todd. I wonder how much a house costs with 2-5 acres is in FR's neihborhood. We can all be one big herping family and scope out all of FR's haunts.heh heh!
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"Yeah ya told me, and ya wrote it down too. But how the hell am I supposed to remember!"

Love this stuff Frank. You must have some place!
Keep 'em coming.
:Mark
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Surrender Dorothy!

crimsonking.piczo.com/

I live on five acres, its in an OLD development that when build was way out in the desert, one house per five arces. But it borders a state and federal park. Sahuaro National Park West.

I live one mile from the park border. I did buy a lot right next to the park, but it was all natural desert and I could not bring myself to tear it up. So I bought a place down the street with a house on it and was all natural desert.

When we first moved here, 20 years ago. We only saw 3 rattlesnakes a year on the property, the previous owners killed all snakes on site. That average stayed for about 8 years, then increased up to 15 and has stayed that way for many more years. But odd as this sounds, there are more now that the drought is at its worse.

The effects of this drought appears to be of benefit for Diamondbacks and gophersnakes. In the old days the most common snakes were longnose and Mohaves. Of course we have lots of other species too. Last year we found a coral in the driveway. Seen them close by, just not on the property. Also gilas have been seen all around but not on the property. We found one 10 feet off the property.

I do enjoy seeing snakes nearly everyday of the year. Whats odd is, I am only now starting to actually understand the buggers. Cheers

.... I was just about to ask you what effects the drought has had. For that matter...what do you feel has the most beneficial outcome?? Drought years,flood years, unusually cold or hot ones??
Of course, I realize that even our lifetimes may not be enough to grasp the overall picture, but in your experiences, what is better/worse? I also imagine that different species adapt better to different conditions or else they'd all be the same,huh?
:Mark
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Surrender Dorothy!

crimsonking.piczo.com/

Holy moly. That would take forever to explain. hahahahahahahaha

But we can start with some simple knowns, On our montane rattlesnake study, females produced just as regularly, only fewer offspring, in number. With one amazing addition, small young females were found gravid. As young as 9 months of age(guessing from shed count) These young females had a button, a rattle and the base. Which means two sheds. And it you understand, the first shed is right after birth. I am guessing but somewhere around a foot in total lenght.

What we see with local lizards, entire seasonal hatches fail to survive. Like this spring, there was zero to very low numbers of survival amoung are common lizards. As we had no winter rain. But, we are now have hatches and survival of zebra tails and whiptails. Which I never saw at this time of year before. But we did have good winter rains.

Also, gopher snakes had a very unsuccessful early hatch, and a very very very successful late hatch.

Which gives support for reasons to multiclutch.

We here have two wet seasons(sonoran desert) winter rains and then summer monsoons. Which allows at least two oppertunities for neonates to survive and disperse. To understand that, do you or anyone here think that your hatchlings can crawl around a bone dry desert and survive? So you get the picture.

I will leave that now, as there is much much more. One last thought, its a huge advantage to understand our reptiles, by seeing how they respond to a drought. Cheers

Great pics and stories Frank!

I'll never get bored with stuff like that!LOL

best regards, ~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"