Reptile & Amphibian Forums

.....in coastal Los Angeles Co. there's very little chance to find kingsnakes due to the extreme development of the area. Turns out there's still a few places here and there that produce kings. Some of these places are not where you would expect to find kings. One April afternoon in 2006, I experienced that for my self first hand.

See the piece of plywood?

In situ under that board by the burned spot.

What a feeling it was to find a nice adult kingsnake right there. About 50' away, I find this little guy.

That January I found this one roaming around inside a tire. Look close you can see him in there.

Being in L.A. Co. it's just a matter of time before they go in there and bulldoze or plow the entire place. Last I seen they were completely leveling out the dirt (plowing,bulldozing) at a very near by spot. They took the trees out all the rocks and everything else. I haven't been to this spot in over a year, and suspect the same has happened here too. Hopefully not.

That is really awesome. Any chance of finding suitable habitat close by for rellocation? An ark perhaps

Vinny
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“There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that whilst this planet has gone on cycling according to the fixed laws of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.” -C. Darwin, 1859

Natural Selection Reptiles

I really wish there was, but all other areas near by seem to be in more of a threat than this spot. Developpement won't take place under the bridge, but they may clear the whole place out to stop the illegal dirt bike riding in that area (lots of dirt ramps) and take out the trees and bushes because the homeless use those as shelter. Homeless are a big problem for us L.A. herpers. They like to take our boards and build little huts in the bushes as shelter. lol

I really like the look of this guy. Any chance of reproducing this?

Or do you have any other that look like this with locality data?
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

Trees don't grow on money either.

If you know byron D, contact him. He knows where that particular snake is. The kings in that area are pretty similar to one another. Here's a female I got some good pictures of.

The amount of dark pigment in between the light colored scares varies from snake to snake. Juveniles are born without it.

The dark pigment between the head scales also varies but juveniles can be born with it.

Here's another adult male found in the same area.

The king you referred to has about as much dark pigment as you see on a normal king. Any more than that would hypermelanistic which is also found in this area of Long Beach.

Yes those are the types I want. When I was a kid growing up in Brentwood we used to see these kings in empty lots back in the 70's. Of course they are long gone today and OJ Simpsons house probably sits where they used to be.
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

Trees don't grow on money either.

I was just a kid back then. It would have been nice to be able to hunt snakes back then when there was a little habitat left. Brentwood is a very nice area. If there's any land to develop in areas like that, it's usually all developed.

Thank you so much for posting all these pics!! I really find it interesting to see where you caught these from.

The snake in the first two pics is to me, the pinnacle of what my favorite cal king phase is. Breathtaking to say the least!
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Genesis 1:1

Glad you enjoy them just as much as I do. Thanks!

Awesome photos & thanks for sharing, love that weather your having!!

I like that female you have,

Here is a Male that I have had for 10plus years that I think is a Blue eyed blond.

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Jason A.
"Long time Herper, first year Breeder `07."
My 2008 Care Sheet & The BRB Stats. Username: brb@kingsnake.com

Thanks a lot man. that king you have is BEAUTIFULL!!!! It reminds me of one I found last spring that was pretty light but not as light as yours. These photo's have been posted here before.

>>Thanks a lot man. that king you have is BEAUTIFULL!!!! It reminds me of one I found last spring that was pretty light but not as light as yours. These photo's have been posted here before.
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Very cool that you can find Kings like that, here in PA we have lots of black rats and a few copper heads..
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Jason A.
"Long time Herper, first year Breeder `07."
My 2008 Care Sheet & The BRB Stats. Username: brb@kingsnake.com

If I lived out there, I would be going nuts over those Copperheads and Black rats. Those are very cool snakes too.

Awesome post and awesome snakes!!! You are so very right about the dwindling habitat. I see that first spot on my way home all the time and it's being developed - fast!

... I thought that one male looked familiar!! He'll be a proud father later this year.... fingers crossed..

I'm determined to get and keep a bloodline going of the Cals from this area.

Here's his honey to be..

take care bro!

byron.d

Thanks Byron! That's the perfect looking female to match him up with. I still can't get over the fact you found an adult there when it was so dry. I could see it being a juvenile but not an adult! That was amazing bro. Even on perfect days in spring it's tough just finding one king there. Take it easy, we'll talk soon.

Great post, Ross. It's always great to hear from SoCal herpers w/ similar experiences. At first glance under that bridge looked like a spot where I've found Kings in the SFV. Hopefully soon I'll throw up a few pics of urban herping spots and wht's been found there.

reako45

Thanks reako45! I wish more herpers would throw more posts out like this from L.A. We do have to be careful in what locals we mention and what habitat shots we choose to post. There's a lot of lurkers out there that can pick up on clues easily. I don't mind mentioning LB because the beans have been spilled many times about that area already. Good luck this spring.

I really like these colorations and this local. I found this Male back in 2000. He came down to the swimming pool for a drink. I lived in La Habra right off of Whittier Blvd. That summer there was some construction going on up the hill from my, my guess they spooked it out. Here is his pick:

And here is the female I am hoping to breed her with this year.


I live in OC and would love to go out Urban Herping with anyone, just shoot me an email. "RockRatt" Rich M.
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1.0.0 Lampropeltis getulus californiae Adult(Banded, Coastal Phase)
1.0.0 Lampropeltis getulus californiae baby(Banded, Desert Phase)
0.1.0 Lampropeltis getulus californiae Striped San Diego Phase
0.1.0 Lampropeltis getulus californiae Adult Aberrant High White
0.1.0 Lampropeltis getulus californiae Baby Aberrant
1.0.0 Hydrodynastes Gigas False Water Cobra
0.0.2 Thamnophis sirtalis Canadian Common garter Snake
0.0.1 Tupinambis teguixin Columbain Tegu
0.0.1 Varanus exanthematicus Savannah Monitor
0.0.1 Eublepharis macularius Pastel Leopard Gecko
1.1.0 Gopherus agassizii California Desert Tortoises
0.0.4 Sceloporus occidentalis Western Fence Lizards
0.0.1 Eumeces skiltonianus Western Skink
2.1.0 Trachemys scripta elegans Red Eared Sliders
1.1.0 Mustela putorius furo Ferrets
1.0.0 Nymphicus hollandicus White faced Cockatiel
0.1.0 Nymphicus hollandicus Albino Cockatiel
0.2.0 Mini Rex rabbits
0.1.0 American Bulldog

Wow, both snakes are very nice. OC is a great place to set up board lines. There some nice looking Cal kings in that area too.