Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey fellow herpers! Cheer up for the season is underway! I don't mean to be a bummer to you guys up north, just wanting to get the party started! I hope this report will fuel your enthusiasm and not bring you down. 02-22-05 starts out extremely foggy but burns off around 9:00a.m. After work, I head to one of my spots in Calhoun county, Texas by the Guadelupe river on US35 between Tivoli and Port Lavaca, Texas. On the way I saw 2m2c Red eared sliders basking and stopped to see a dor Glass lizard. Didn't phto it as it was crawling with fire ants. Started herping at the spot at about @:00p.m. and flipped the prize of the day, a huge Texas rat snake that had taken up residence in a discarded? cash register that I had missed on several previous scouts. He was none too pleased at being diturbed and showed me what happens when you wake a sleeping giant AND mess with Texas! 78 degrees and partly cloudy were the conditions. Next I observed 2m2c Carolina anoles. Their wre a few skinks about but they weren't 5 lined skinks. The name escapes me but they are the very common copper colored ones abroad in the leaf litter. Next, under a rotten log I found 4 rough green snakes balled up. they were adults and sub adults. They really moved out fast and I almost didn't get the pics. Then I found 2 rough earth snakes under debris. The county cleanup crew had been out removing some old couches and stuff but they did push some shingles and wood debris into the brush, thus creating more habitat. A sheep frog was found under such newly created habitat. 2 leopard frogs and the cry of one being eaten were observed. 1 green tree frog was also found in a bottle sans cap with a little water in it. It's amazing to me what our herptofauna can adapt to. Last, and the bummer of the day was a fresh dor prairie king adult found on the way out. All in all, 3 amphibian, 1 turtle, 2 lizard, and 4 snake species were recorded. Man, I just wish I had been there for the prairie king. Photos of the trip are at the gallery under Todd's herps. It's an awful lot of work to post. Happy herping and good luck!

Rat attack! Don't mess with Texas!LOL!
Todd Hughes

Rough greens
Todd Hughes

Sheep frog found at spot

Juvenile Cottonmouth found on previous scout. Luckily it was fairly cold that day, as all these pics are taken with a Samsung picture phone. Takes surprisingly good photos for what it is.

A previous resident of Calhoun county, Texas. This is a feral hog skull. I also encountered a skunk when I was looking in a trashed culvert and man, did I beat a path out of there! LOL! That would have capped the day!

Sorry this is so graphic and tragic but I feel a need to report such findings as I am looking for range extentions for the snakes I encounter. This is an adult Prairie king snake found on my way out of the spot. The hemipenes were not expressed so not sure of sex, as it was a mess and getting dark. Interesting that my splendida/holbrooki shares habitat with this guy. Not a 1/2 mile apart. No luck finding a girlfriend for him so may be I'll try at night.

I'm pretty sure you have either an Eastern or Great Plains Narrowmouth Toad there, not a Sheep Frog. A Sheep Frog "should" have a very distinctive stripe running the lenght of its back. Also, at best, that area would be at the extreme periphery of Sheep Frog range.
Too bad about the Prarie King. I hate it when that happens!
Nice Post. Shane
Shane's Herp Lifelist

My bad. I've never seen a narrow mouth toad as large as this. All the one's I've seen were at best the size of a large fingernail.
Todd

Lindheimer, mouth wide open, picture out of focus, subject cut out... I get the feeling that the picture at hand was not what was on the photographers mind.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

How true! You know what's coming, your just hoping for the shot. He did warn me and like a sucker I took the bait.
Todd

Sounds like you had a good time. I am planning to cruise some back roads around Laredo next month. If I am really lucky I hope to find a mex hognose and/or mex milk. That is my goal anyway. A longnose or desert king would be nice too. Then in May it's off to Eagle Pass and then Del Rio areas. Guess I should buy new tires first...

Be sure to get me an annulata, too!LOL! First of June I will take the plunge into alterna land.
Todd

Whoops! Broad banded water snake from same trip.

You guys make me sick with all your cool herps runn'n a wild down there Even in July we don't have that many herp species around here in Edmonton. Garter snake anyone? lol, actually I love garters, but when they're the only reptile around... geesh! And I still have 'till May before the frogs start to call. It's a good thing I have inlaws stateside. I drive my wife crazy, she plans to see all her relatives, and I'm making all these side trips to go herp'n

I grew up in the suburbs of Detroit, MI, and the only snake was the Butler's garter. I still look at a lot of garters every year, but mostly Easterns now. Fortunately, Michigan also has fox snakes, milks, massasaugas, and a host of other cool snakes. South Texas is awesome, however, with all it's different ecosystems and climate. It has the Rio Grande Valley, the Gulf Coast, desert, mountains, woodland, prairie. Thus it has a ton of variety. Can't wait to spend some more time down there and see some species for myself.

TC

Me, too, although their variety is limited to checkereds around me. Ya'll come on down and wallow in the herps! Good herping.
Todd Hughes