My goal when I have more time after college is to really look into and study every aspect about Heterodon platirhinos and Heterodon simus, sort of like how FR does Heterodon nascius.

Last week I found a female Heterodon platirhinos on the campus of the college that I attend. She appeared very dehydrated and light weight. I took her home, gave her a luke-warm bath to get rid of chiggers all over her (ALL the non semi-aquatic or aquatic snakes here have them). I gave her a toad and she ate it without a problem. She is getting body mass back and her skin is starting to tighten up again. Something came up though that I was pondering:

Could she have appeared dehydrated and been underweight because she has just deposited eggs? She was in what I have concluded to be the "preferred nesting sight of Heterodon platirhinos" based off of several studies about their reproduction and nesting habits that I have read. They are spring breeders but is it possible one may have deposited in the fall this year? Under normal conditions they may not but we have had over 98 inches of rainfall where I live this year -- could that have possibly resulted in one laying eggs in the fall?

Again it could have just been that she was dehydrated and malnourished, so I'm not saying she did lay eggs, I'm asking if its a possibility that she had deposited eggs in this time of years.

Thanks.

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