Reptile & Amphibian Forums

A pic of my adult male. Phil

and his mate for next year. Founder stock from near Statesville. Phil

Phil,
Cool looking pair!!! I have always liked getula that have that look!!! I would give just about anything to come across one of those in the field. Good luck with the breeding next year.

Pat

Thanks Pat, me too! I hope to see some of those Carolina kings in the field next Spring. Something I have always wanted to do. Phil

Very nice, Phil! That male is super clean!!! Should give you some very nice babies! Here's a 37" male from Richmond county (middle of the NC. sandhills), that I found back in May, with a slightly higher band count and wide bands:

What I meant to say is "High band count" for SE. NC standards of course. Once you head west the band countis much higher of course, but tends to be low closer to the coast (My observation from catching lots of kings over the last 20 years.

Zee

Whoohoo! That's a nice wide band, Zee! Man, I guess the sand hills is on the list of must see great vacation spots! Very cool! How many goldens did you hatch out?
Todd Hughes

Thanks Todd! At least one thing that went right for me this year! Still have ZERO estern king eggs!!!

Zee

What a great looking king! It seems to me that Carolina produces some of the finest looking getula out there. I don't know I can resist much longer. I think I'm going to have to take a herping trip there next spring lol! Would love to see some of those beauties in the field. Phil

Anytime you come, let me know, and I'll show you some of the best places to check. . . They usually start activity around mid to late March, with a peak in late April/early May.

Zee

I'm in for another boomerang trip across the U.S.!!! LOL! Count me in! Do it, Phil!
Todd Hughes

Sounds like fun! Phil

Really nice animals, Phil! Keep me in mind for next year.
Todd Hughes

Thanks Todd. You got it! Phil

Phil

WOW those are beautiful !Man you have to get me some shots outside so I can stick em on my site. Im hoping to have some Montgomery Co., NC Eastern Kings next season (1.2 longterm WC coming tomorrow). Im getting them from my buddy Scott Koonts who lives in Montgomery Co. Maybe we can work a hatchling trade if you are interested. Ill post pics of the animals after I get them tomorrow.

Keith
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Thanks Keith. Look forward to seeing pics of your Montgomery co kings when you get them. If all goes well next year you know you can count on some hatchlings from me. Phil

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That's a beautiful pair Phil! I like the high chain pattern along the sides. Those should produce some attractive offspring for you next year.

Thanks Sean. I look forward to producing some of these guys next year. Enjoyed the coversation last night! Phil

np

Very Nice Phil. I actually live in Catawba County, NC...about 10 miles from the Iredell County line. Eastern Kings are less common out here than they are in eastern NC. I spend 1-2 days each week in the field flipping tin and only see 3-4 each year. Believe it not, Mole Kings are more common than Eastern Kings in Iredell and Catawba County.

I caught a pair of male Iredell County Easterns at a site that is getting ready to be turned into a housing development last year and gave them to Peter Jolles at ECC. Sent him a female from right across the Catawba River last month, so he should have some Catawba Valley Kingsnakes next spring.

Michael

Thanks for the insights Michael. Without knowing for sure I had the impression that getula was a harder find in that part of the state based on field accounts. I would love to see some habitat pics if you have any. I like that "catawba valley" locality name too. Has a nice sound to it. Phil

Thanks Phil. Nice to get a reply from you. I learned a lot about setting up tin sites from reading your posts actually, especially when it comes to getting permission from land owners vs. tresspassing.

Iredell/Catawba County are in the western Piedmont/foothills border. Most of the land is either agricultural, foothills, or developed. I believe that the mole kings and black rat snakes (extremely common out here...found 80 last year!) have benefitted from the agriculture, but the habitat is just not ideal for eastern kings. All of the eastern kings I've found since moving out here in 1998 have been near the Catawba River or the creeks that run into the river. I will look for some habitat pics or take some.

It seems that the eastern kings out here look different from the ones found in the eastern part of the state. The bands seem to be thinner than on the eastern kings that I've seen from the sandhills and coastal plain. Here is a link to two of the snakes that I caught in Iredell County last year:

http://www.eastcoastcolubrids.com/Main/Kings/LGG/NC/Iredell/Iredell_NC.htm

Take care,
Michael

Thanks for the insights Michael. That sounds like a similar situation to some areas here in KY. In the western part of our state there are places where many agricultural fields are edged by smaller clusters of woods and fence rows here and there. In these places the rat snakes and prairie kings seem to thrive but the black kings can be few and far between sometimes.

I love the look the kings have from your area. For my taste at least they are about as nice as they come. Thanks for the link to the pics. It sounds like you have homed in on the best available habitat for sure. Good luck finding more of those beauties! I'm glad you have found some of my field herping posts useful also. For what its worth, I don't know what your schedule is for checking your tin sites but I have always had much better luck finding kings under AC in the late afternoon to early evening hours here in KY. I rarely find one under cover in the AM unless its a gravid female or deep in shed. Phil

Funny you should mention that Phil. Most of the eastern kings I have found were on the crawl from 9am-1pm...usually on the day after a thunder storm. I have found them under cover VERY early in the morning (6-7am) on mornings too cool for them to be out crawling (55-65 degrees) and I have found them under cover in the late evening and after dark.

I grew up near the Haw River in Rockingham County. Eastern Kings were common there. I used to see 5-6 on the crawl each summer...always in the early part of the day and usually the day following some sort of heavy rain...and I knew nothing about setting up tin sites, temps, etc. Just seemed to run into them while I was out fishing or catching turtles.

I'm still trying to figure the eastern king out. I'm able to find black rats, racers, copperheads, and even mole kings with some consistency, but the eastern king is an enigma...at least in the western piedmont and foothills.

LOL! I think thats exactly it. Seems to me that is when their activity period is usually, between mid morning and into the early afternoon. Thats when we are most likely to see them on the crawl or crossing roads too. I agree with the tin being productive early in the morning following chilly nights. We see them like this on occasion especially early in the year when the sun is up but the air temps might still be in the 50's. We found quite a few one weekend this past April early in the morning after a cold front came through the area. Good point about hunting being more productive after a rain. It seems that surface moisture really gets them active. It may be you are having great success, but are looking for a population that may not be as plentiful as in some other areas and that is being reflected by smaller numbers. Phil

very nice, Phil. Do you currently breed Lgg?
dave b

Thanks Dave. Not in the past, though I hope to next year. I have primarily focused on nigra over the years but I have expanded my collection to include some projects with other ssps. Phil

man those are some very very nice easterns phil! if you produce offspring please keep me in mind i would love to aquire a pair or 2 of that line!woooooooolfwhhhhhhissssstllllle very nice ,,,,,,,,,,,thomas

Thanks Thomas. Will do! Phil