Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Been tryin to go herping as much as possible lately, here are a few recent finds.
Striped racer found crossing the trail around dusk.


Heres a gophersnake found around sunset

One of the 50+ Helleri seen over the last few months

Finally heres a sidewinder found road cruising out in the desert

Matt

Nice finds! I didnt know helleris went as far south as San Diego. They dont live in desert so Im assuming you found it in a different area than that nice sidewinder. Ive been searching for helleris up north, still looking. What time and temperature did you find it at, and was it by car or foot?

Thanks. Youre right about the helleri it was found pretty close to the coast. I see more helleri than any other snake. Most are found under boards and other a/c during the spring and ive also found some road crusing now thats the temps are up. I dont know howeasy they are to find where youre herping but im guessing the temps are probably pretty hot so night driving is probably your best bet. hope this helps

Matt

You say you are finding them on the road now because temps are up? I heard they like it cooler than most snakes and therefore are on the road during the cooler months, which is why I was wondering about the temps there because here its hot.

I meant ive been finding them road crusing around sunset and after dark. You are right about it being hot, thats why they come out at night cuz of the cooler temps. Sorry for the confusion.

Matt

It is possible to find hellari and cerastes in the same local, in fact I have found the two less than 50 feet apart on the same road on the same night! Look for low sandy flats at the base of mountians. Also keep in mind that it is very hot right now and as such you need to look at higher elevations.
I just found a panamint friday, and three hellari Saturday, but all were above 4000 feet.