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This is a question for anyone that has herped for rubber boas or knows a bit about them.

I am traveling to Washington( I leave Wedn.) and I will be staying there for the entire winter working at Mt. Baker Ski Resort. I've only herped down here in the southeast and briefly in the midwest, so I have no knowledge of west coast herping.

I was wondering if trying to find some at this time of the season is useless and I should just wait until spring, or if there is a chance of finding them this time of year. I;ve been told temps there are only about 50's daytime.

I'm not asking for specific locations etc as I have a range map and I personally wouldn't give out specific spots either. Any tips on time of day, elevations, climatic factors would be great. I'd assume my only chance of finding one is flipping.

Are there any laws in Wa that would require special permits(i.e. fishing license) to photograph one in the wild?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Cole Maas

In Washington you are not allowed,(technically) to even pick one up and move it off the road. I think any herper who has found them in Wa has and will continue to handle them. You cannot collect them at all unless you have a biologist permit and that is not just handed out. Fall can be a good time to find them but through the winter months of nov.-feb you are not lickley to find any. Finding them is all about the temperature and the amount of time an area is at prime temperatures. That is why spring is generally better, there is just a longer time period at which prime temps can be reached. Spring is also breeding season which would contribute somewhat to finding them crusing around looking for a mate and/or food. they won't be looking for food this time of year

from what I have been reading it didn't sound like they were protected. Seemed to me all the sources said they were fairly widespread in the right areas and plentiful. Then again, Wa could be kind of like Ga, I'm by no means the expert.

Cole Maas

any native spicies of animal in Wa. is protected in some way or another. Many by hunting/fishing regulations. Shoot a pine squirel and see where it gets you, even though you can't walk 10 feet through the woods without seeing 15 of them. rubber boa are very common in the state and there protection has nothing to do with how many are around just that they are a native animal to Washington that the fish and wildlife dept. has no reason to lower any population of these,unlike game animals.
I know of one case in which a couple of herpers asked to gain a relocation permit from the state to save a good population from being demolished from a contruction site. They were turned down and told that they couldn't even pick them up and move them the 100 yard or so out of the way.

I got it from a pet store in Bellevue. I'm not sure whether it is a Pacific or a Great Plains or if that would matter. At the time I bought it I had no thought of any possibility it might be illegal, being as they were selling them openly at an established pet store.

While we're on the subject,last week at the reptile expo up here one of the dealers had a tank with quite a few rubber boas for sale. Shortly after the show opened the whole tank was gone so I assume the authorities spotted them and confiscated them.

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