Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well spring is almost here an i am hoping to get a yearling northern. I am a huge fisherman and see them all the time when i'm out but they are usually full grown or close to it. One, when do they tend to birth and two, are yearlings more prone to be found in dry bank areas or out in the rivers where i see the adults? The specific area i have in mind floods over the banks when the ice melts and the logs jam up in this wooded area. by april its dry and the wood piles are everyhwere. Should i start there or hit the shallow pools and small islands in the river? Also, what does everyone think about feeding them caught fish, like shiners or small sunfish, they run the risk of parasites but lack all the chemicals that golfish get?

The adults tend to, depending on area, give birth either late spring to early summer, or that is what I have seen around here and in some of the other areas I have herped. Of course, being in the south, you still tend to find freshly born Nerodia almost 9 months out of the year as it is warm enough for them breed almost year round. I find yearlings, neonates, and adults all in the same areas. I usually find the young in a little bit calmer water or under debris though. As for fishing, here is a pic of a big girl I caught last weekend.

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Andy Maddox
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The Reptizone

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