Hello Everyone,
I just wanted to report on my herping trip to North Florida.
I set out aprox 0200 on Monday morning, driving in the direction of the rising sun. I arrived in Lake City, FL. at 0930 I met up with my life-long friend Sam Floyd who made the drive up from Cape Coral, Fl. to do some long anticipated herping for which N. Florida is renown. After a hand shake and few brief words we made our way over to Gary Markley's house. Gary has spent more time in the field than I have on God's green Earth! In the past 9 months Gary has become my "Herp Mentor". Gary gave us a warm welcome and predicted that we'd come across multiple scales today. Sam and I have spent many hours in the field but had yet to catch our first Canebrake Rattler, so this was a very exciting prospect!
First, we set out to an area that Gary refers to as "The Block". "The Block" is a series of sugar sand roads known for producing Southern hognose (H. simus) and Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnakes (C. adamanteus). We drove around this area for about 2 hours and with the exception of some "Big" Snake tracks, our efforts were fruitless. Undeterred, we set out for Osceola National forest. We drove some choice roads for a couple hours and with the exception of a few Black Racers (Coluber constrictor) The snakes had not yet begun to move. At about 1600 we came across our first Crotalid. Unfortunately it was not a Canebrake, but the Little Pigmy was definitely a welcomed sight and a good sign of things to come. We continued on for a couple more miles and THERE SHE WAS! a beautiful lil' Canebrake! Sam lost his Canebrake virginity, lol! We were all very excited for him. I was now in the hot seat, and I was a little worried that we may not cross paths with another. Not more than 30 minutes later, I captured my first little Canebrake! She was just as beautiful as the first, but I've got to say that there is something majestic about seeing one of these animals in the wild. I can only explain it as a spiritual experience that gave me a giddy feeling like a child opening presents on Christmas morning. This was really turning out to be a great trip. Sam and I shook hands with Gary and exchanged a few Hi-fives with each other. Gary quickly reminded us that conditions were just starting to become favorable for the movement of snakes and that we needed to take advantage of this small window of time. We caught a few more Pigmy's and then we came across the most impressive Adult male Canebrake. He was getting ready to cross the road, enroute to the hibernating grounds to the North. This 4ft fellow was absolutely beautiful! My soul buzzed with the same energy as the snake's rattle. From what I gather, this locale of Canebrake is notorious for having a real beautiful pink coloration. This specimen was no exception to the rule. We continued cruising the roads till after dark catching a total of 5 Canebrakes and 6 Pigmy's. Not too shabby for a day of hunting. We drove back to the city for some chow and decided to make another try for anything that might be soaking up the last of the suns energy from the pavement. We ended up with another baby Brake and a Corn Snake. By this time I couldn't keep my eyes open and we headed back to the hacienda for some rest.
The next morning we set out at about 0900 to another spot that Southern Hogs had been found in the past. The area we were concentrating on were some old logging roads close to the Georgia border. We came across a Fat male pigmy and a 4.5 ft DOR (Dead On Road) Water Moccasin. I was not used to seeing Moccasins this large. The Cottonmouths in SE Louisiana are generally 2.5ft and less. This was a very impressive snake but I was bummed that it had already met an unfortunate fate. We continued along a sugar sand road and I spotted a beautiful Heterodon platyrhinos! She was one of this years hatchlings. I don't think there is anything cuter than a Hognose that's new to the world. I still don't know how they haul those BIG eyes around, lol. We saw a few more DOR's and a ton of 6 lined race runners. By this time Sam had to head back to Cape Coral so we headed back to the house to see him off. It was great to see him again. I know that he hated to leave but we definitely had a great time.
After we said our good byes, Gary and I headed back out to the forest. On the way into Osceola Gary Spotted a snake that was unidentifiable at 50mph, we turned around and my heart sunk as we found a recently killed Eastern Hognose. She was an adult, midnight black with neon Yellow bars across her dorsal. As some of you know I have a special place in my heart for Hognose and I was really bummed about this one. Continuing on, muttering curses for Goodyear super treads and the operators thereof, I spotted a yearling Eastern hognose Male crossing the road. Luckily he would not meet the fate of his counterpart located not more than a mile apart. I was once again very excited as it had been 17 years since I had caught my first hognose in Lee Co, Fla. while my Father was hunting for Cabbage palms. I hadn't come across one since then and this was the second in one day! It had definitely revived the excitement of finding my first Eastern hognose with Dad. I know he was watching. We continued on into the forest, after having been so rudely interrupted by that little Eastern Hognose.
Once in the forest Gary and I came across another Black racer and I decided to test my luck at catching him. I got out of the car and the chase was on, well, all three seconds of it. It ended with me standing ankle deep in stagnant water, Gary laughing his ass off at me and no snake. About a mile down the road I got a second chance and this time (just as comical) I caught the 3ft racer. He expressed his displeasure by biting me repeatedly. Hopefully next time he won't hesitate to retreat at the sight of a vehicle. I turned him loose and we continued on our way. As we turned a corner, stretched out on the sandy road was a Flawless Gray rat snake! He measured in at about 5ft. This specimen had a beautiful gray/brown background with nice dark pattern, a nice find by any means. As we continued on our way we caught 4 more pigmy's and 5 more Canebrakes. The dirt road area in which we concentrated our efforts we found 6 DOR Canebrakes. When we saw them on the Highway all we could do is hope that they were the unfortunate bystanders of a vehicles that couldn't avoid or did not see them. On the sandy road though, we were very upset when we saw the swerve marks of the tires and the baby Canebrakes left writhing in the wake of a passing vehicle's tread. It was a gruesome reminder that ignorance and fear desperately need to be fed by education and respect. As we left the forest we encountered 2 banded water snakes that were busy hunting the evening's frogs, that were busy hunting the evening's insects.On our way out of the forest, the Sun disappeared to the West and the night fell silent.
We ended the second day with a two day total of:
11 Canebrake Rattlers
10 Pigmy Rattlers
1 Gray Ratsnake
1 Red Ratsnake
1 Black Racer
1 Smooth Green snake
15 DOR's
I've got to thank Gary Markley for the great time that he showed Sam and I. It will be one not soon forgotten. Someday, I hope that I get a chance to mentor the up-and-coming herpers in the fashion that Gary has done for me. I can't wait till next time! I am ever-thankful.
My next Field herping report will come from Del Rio, Tx. I have been invited to do some herping with Earl Turner, another gentleman for whom I have a great amount of respect. He has invited me out for three days of herping "Texas Style". This will be a great experience as I've never hunted any further West than Louisiana. Everything that I come across, no matter how common, will new to me. I will post my findings and experiences as soon as they have expired.
Good luck to all and Happy Herping!
Thanks,
Paul Bollinger
