Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i drove from northern kentucky to northwest arkansas and back over the past few days. There were a discouraging number of DOR box turtles in ky, tenn, ar and mo...sometimes more than one per mile...and numerous DOR snapping turtles. I didn't stop for most of the DOR snakes i saw but of those i did, three were racers and three were black rats (black though in areas where they should have been intergrades, more gray-rat like). And then there was this poor prairie king girl: I could see four eggs, didn't poke around to get a complete count as there was traffic. This was on rt 160 east of branson mo, near Rueter. I didn't see a live snake on the trip. I saw one live box but it was on the interstate and i elected not to risk a sudden stop to try to save it. I did manage to move a big slider off a road in arkansas. I hope your road trips are more productive.

Man- that just breaks my heart... just horrible.

//Todd

I quit road cruising cause of that. The most heartbreaking was when I moved to texas for college in the summer back in 02. I was out road cruising...only to find a DOR hognose. That snake was on my life list and the first one I saw was DOR.
So now I stick with fields and trails.
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
6.6 African House snakes
3.2 reticulated pythons
.1 corn snake
4.2 Florida Kings
1.2 speckled kings
1.2 ball pythons
0.0.1 Argentine boa

Truly a shame. Box turtles are very uncommon here in Maine so it seems all the more tragic you saw more DOR's of them on that trip than I have seen living examples of them in all my life.

On a slightly better note... I seldom see any reptiles DOR up here and have recently had the chance to "help" a snapper and mud turtle complete their road trips.

Gerry

I love road cruising. Yeah, you see stuff like this, but I also find alot of live critters too.
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2 tham radix
1 Chicago Tham s. semifasciatus
2 elaphe vulpina
1 gray tiger salamander
4 Aphonopelma hentzi
1 G rosea
1 Haplo minax
1 Brachy angustum
1 Brachy sabulosum
1 Brachy vagans
1 Cent. hentzi scorp

I have found many of my best snakes road cruising on Ft. Sill where civilian traffic tragedies are a lot less common...never the less, I did still see my share of DORs...most of which were rattlesnakes and OK has plenty of those to spare. I found the best time to go is about an hour before dark...they come out to warm up on the pavement before looking for a meal. As far as box turtles on the road in MO, I was traveling east on 44 through OK and MO one June and I saw more box turtles than I have ever seen entire life...it was like they were migrating...some stretches would have like 2 or 3 less than a mile apart.

Unfortunately. Too true..

Matthew