My friend Alan and I headed south to Freer early afternoon Friday. The weather was hot and our hopes were high. We were hoping that there would be some rainfall to encourage the herps to put on a spectacular show, hope as we might it did not rain. There was a steady moderate wind all night. Food items were out in full force. Despite nature’s attempt to dampen our spirits we did alright. Friday night began with a small Atrox North of Freer, and an Emory’s further down. It ended with three more DOR Emory’s, a DOR Glossy, several tarantulas, a fox and a few other birds and mammals. The low was around 68 degrees. That morning, we found 6 Texas tortoises, 2 more DOR Emory’s, lots of lizards (whip-tails and Texas Horned) and that was about it. We stuck it out for one more night even though daytime temps broke 120 in the sun, and at dusk, we found 2 Coachwhips, one of which was over 6 feet long, but both were DOR. We also found a huge (5’ ) Atrox - DOR, 2 garters (1 AOR, 1 DOR), a DOR bobcat, 2 more DOR Atrox, and a huge Emory’s. All in all, it was a great trip, even if the herps were not moving. We packed up and headed north and bid farewell to another of Texas’ great habitats.
One side note, if your ever in Hebbronville on a Saturday, eat at Pepper’s Restaurant, and have the pork chops.
Alan and Josh
