Tom's Catch-and-Relase Program

[Didymus20X6]

As I said elsewhere, I managed to catch a couple of the garters around one of my neighbor's house. So far, I've managed to catch 4 of them.

Here's some pics:

This one was pretty big. Didn't like me too much either.

http://i41.tinypic.com/335efyp.jpg

http://i41.tinypic.com/ztdwus.jpg



This one here was kinda small - probably about a foot and a half long. He was in there with the big one in the previous pics.



http://i40.tinypic.com/2vwsr43.jpg



Here's the big one after I released him into the wild. The small one is there, too, but he wasn't too visible. Notice that he's not terribly happy at all. Unlike the others, he didn't scurry away, but stood there waiting for me to get close enough for a bite.



http://i41.tinypic.com/26442dc.jpg



This one was pretty long - at least 3 feet - but really skinny. I caught this one of my neighbor's bush as I was speaking to her, and telling her about the others I had caught. There was another one on the same bush, but it got away.



http://i40.tinypic.com/5ea9fp.jpg



Even after I let him go, he was just so curious, he had to come back and take another look at me before I left.



http://i42.tinypic.com/2hz4kk0.jpg


Anyway, my plan is to catch enough of the snakes in our neighborhood to calm down my neighbors, so they won't get the landlady to have someone kill them, and then release them into the wild a good 10 miles or so down the road, where, hopefully, they won't encounter too many humans.

[guidofatherof5]

Very nice looking snakes.

[jitami]

Pretty cool. Seems like a noble endeavor. Good luck!

[Sid]

Very nice looking garters and good luck with the relocation project. Keep us updated on how it goes.

[Zephyr]

Awesome!
It looks like those are a mix of possible hybrid red-sideds with easterns. :O

[prattypus]

are they flames?

[ssssnakeluvr]

nice looking snakes!!! they are easterns, not hybrids, I have an eastern with orange like that...the one is bordering on being a flame.

[Didymus20X6]

I will certainly keep you guys updated, and hopefully post some more pics. (Hopefully, less blurry next time).

[Didymus20X6]

Caught two more today.

http://i39.tinypic.com/286slfm.jpghttp://i44.tinypic.com/2wd7ihl.jpg

Sorry. Didn't get any good release pics. Both of them took off before I could even get the camera out.

Also, here's a question: I don't want to keep these guys in those trash cans too long. I want to minimize the stress of capture as much as possible. But I'm burning way too much gas taking them to the woods one at a time. It's about 85F outside. If I keep them in the shade, out of direct sun, how long do you think the snakes should be okay?

[Sid]

As long as you keep the containerrs in the shade and put in a water dish they will be fine. I would also add something for them to burrow into so they can hide, that will reduce the stress.

[Zephyr]

http://i41.tinypic.com/335efyp.jpg
This one looks like a red sider. O_O

[Didymus20X6]

As long as you keep the containers in the shade and put in a water dish they will be fine. I would also add something for them to burrow into so they can hide, that will reduce the stress.

Thanks, Sid. I have been putting leaves into the cans with them, just for that purpose. Sometimes it helps to keep them calm, other times they're just too anxious to get out.

And sad news. As I was driving down the street just now, I saw a rather large, plump garter, and it was missing its head. :( Oh, well. At least there are six that won't meet the same unnecessary fate.

[guidofatherof5]

And sad news. As I was driving down the street just now, I saw a rather large, plump garter, and it was missing its head. :(

I used to have that problem in my neighborhood.
Now, the neighbors give me or one of my kids a call and let us do a rescue.:)
It hasn't been easychanging their attitudes but it seem to be working. At least a few these radixes are getting a shot at life.

[Didymus20X6]

Didn't get any yesterday. But I did find this one in the back yard, near the back fence (near the same location of the other big one I found the other day). This one is about the same size as that big one.

http://i39.tinypic.com/10idw6r.jpg

He was mad at me for pretty much the whole time I had him. He struck at the Gopher several times. But once I got him out to the place where I release them, he seemed to understand I was planning on letting him go. Instead of his ferocious display from before, he just stretched himself out, reaching for the top of the can as I gently tipped it over. As soon as it was tipped, he crawled straight out and just looked at me. As I turned around to get my camera, he disappeared.

Also, on the way home, I found this guy in the middle of the road. He was actually pretty big - about a 18 - 20 inches across. Apart from a huge snapper, I don't think I've ever seen a turtle this big in the wild (at the St. Louis zoo, of course, but that doesn't count).

http://i44.tinypic.com/jqnluv.jpg

[ephemerata]

pretty snakes. that is good work you are doing. keep it up

[guidofatherof5]

Nice looking turtle. A month ago I had none. Now we have 5.

[prattypus]

I remember having a painted turtle as a kid- that thing was always in a sour a** mood!

[Didymus20X6]

pretty snakes. that is good work you are doing. keep it up
Thanks, Jen. :)

[guidofatherof5]

I remember having a painted turtle as a kid- that thing was always in a sour a** mood!

Wow Jason,

In all my 50 years and many,many painted turtles I've never seen or heard of one with a bad attitude.
I've always found them to be pleasant and easy to work with.
You must have been teasing yours.:D

[Didymus20X6]

Caught this little fella today. He was probably about 2 or 2.5 feet long. What surprised me is that he didn't put up any fight when I caught him. He was quite skittish, and kept hiding under the leaves. I only just did coax him out so I could get a pic.

http://i41.tinypic.com/2s694c0.jpg

[Zephyr]

I like the divisions in his stripe. :)

[Didymus20X6]

Tom's Catch-And-Release Program is up to 13 garters and 2 turtles now.

I caught this guy in some bushes near a neighbor's house. He was a pretty good size, about 3.5 feet long, about like the other big ones I've caught.

http://i44.tinypic.com/2ytyc8y.jpg

"I WANT OUT!! N-O-W!!"

http://i41.tinypic.com/307ns7s.jpg

This next specimen has something of a sad story. I was talking to my landlady and her gardener about catching snakes and releasing them into the wild. The gardener went off for a few minutes, then came back, bragging that he had a snake. I grabbed the trash can and the Gopher to see if I could catch him, and when I got back, the gardener bragged, "I stomped on him and killed him!"

I found the little guy - hardly 20 inches long, coiled up, with his mouth hanging open, just lying on the sidewalk. I picked him up with the Gopher, thinking he was dead, but then he started moving. He wasn't dead after all, but was only playing.

But then I noticed that his mouth was bleeding. I told the landlady that, if it turned out he was badly hurt, I would put him out of his misery. And just to check up on him, I put on some rubber gloves and picked him up - the first time I ever handled a snake by hand. He seemed okay.

He was able to close his mouth, and later able to open it again, so I concluded he was okay. Here he is in a field near the woods, where I released the others. As soon as I got this pic, he took off, heading straight for the road! I was like, "O God, please don't let him get into the road and get hit by a car!" Thankfully, after some coaxing from the Gopher and the bottom of my boot (just to block him, though), he turned back toward the woods and disappeared into a pile of grass trimmings.

http://i44.tinypic.com/289yofc.jpg

[guidofatherof5]

Nice job looking after them. They do have a hard lot in life and could use a few friends. Thanks.

[prattypus]

The behavior of some people is deplorable. That's good looking out for them, though.

[prattypus]

Wow Jason,

In all my 50 years and many,many painted turtles I've never seen or heard of one with a bad attitude.
I've always found them to be pleasant and easy to work with.
You must have been teasing yours.:D
NOt to my knowledge, but it is a distinct possibility. Of course, it could be that on this side of the country they don't have very good manners taught to them!

[Didymus20X6]

Thanks, guys!

Also, total garters rescued is now 16.

Here's one I released today. Pretty calm guy pretty much the whole time.

http://i40.tinypic.com/6iecgm.jpg

Along with this one, I released another little green one. No pics of him, though. He took off too fast.

Then there's this little guy. Caught him by surprise at the back fence, and he wasn't at all pleased. I just had to get a pic of him, though - just look at that beautiful checkered pattern on him.

http://i42.tinypic.com/kdtpi9.jpg

Haven't released him yet. When I do, I'll try to get a clearer pic of him.

[prattypus]

I never seem to catch them with the heads flattened.

[Snake lover 3-25]

very neat nice job!

[Didymus20X6]

One rescue yesterday!

Didn't get a pic, though. But I did get some nifty new binoculars, which I hope will help with spotting them so I don't have to nearly step on them to find them.

Anyway, after I released that one, I decided to see if I could spot some other wild life with the new glasses. I got on the bridge and started looking in the stream. And lo and behold, right below me in the water was a big, plump snake. It must have been about 4 feet long, and had a pretty thick body. At first I thought it was a moccasin, but its head reminded me more of a garter snake's head than that of a crotalid; it also had round pupils, rather than the vertical slots that crotalids have. But it definitely wasn't a garter: the patterns on its back were diamond shaped. My guess is a Nerodia rhombifer. Even so, we have a saying where I'm from: If it looks like a moccasin, don't take any chances.

I watched him for a bit, but then a fish splashed near him, scaring him off. I then spotted another snake in the water, initially thinking it to be the same one. But this one was definitely greener, and had a checkered pattern on his back. I almost would have thought he was one of my garters, but I couldn't see the telltale stripes.

Then, as I was watching that one, I spotted yet a third snake. I have no idea what kind he was, but he was almost completely black on top, with a lighter coloration on the underside. He was at least 4 feet long, probably longer. Head, definitely colubrid shaped with round pupils. Unlike the other two snakes, this one seemed very active, probing around in the water as if it were hunting. At one point, I thought it was going to attack the checkered snake, but that one disappeared under the water as soon as Blackie came within close proximity. I spent the better part of an hour watching Blackie, trying to figure out what he was, until he went under the bridge where I couldn't see him anymore. He seemed to be missing part of his tail, and judging from the redness of it, it must have been a recent injury.

I wish I had had my camera. And from now on, I'm not going out there without it. I would just love to know what kind of snake ol' Blackie was.

Anyway, here's THE PLACE (http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=33.797037,-90.862472&spn=0,359.997844&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=33.796997,-90.862538&panoid=GT1CaSG6RLcI9sA6gSbGRg&cbp=12,57.56,,0,5) where I've been taking my garters.

[Zephyr]

I think Blackie was a black racer. :P

[Sid]

I think Blackie was a black racer. :P
Racers have a slate gray belly. Could be a Black Rat snake.

[Didymus20X6]

I bet it was a racer. The descriptions I've read seem to fit. That would make sense of the speed of his swimming. Probably a Southern Black Racer. If I ever see him again (and I'm sure I'll be in that neck of the woods the next time I need to release some garters), I'll make sure to get a pic.

Whoever thought herping could be so much fun?

[Didymus20X6]

For those of you wondering why I haven't updated this thing lately, the reason is very simple: because I haven't caught any in a while. Partly because I've been away on business a good bit, but mostly because I'm just not seeing as many garters around lately. There's a few around, I'm sure, but they tend to stay out of sight these days.

I figure there's probably three reasons:

1. It's too blasted hot. This is, after all, the Mississippi Delta in mid-summer.

2. The local population has been diminished significantly ( :( ).

3. They know I'm after them and are avoiding me.

I've even resorted to asking the neighbors around if they mind me herping in their yards. Most of them are glad to, so long as I'm removing them. But so far, only one or two spots here and there, and no catches recently. As terrified as I was of them a few months ago, I'm beginning to miss them now.

[Didymus20X6]

=D

I just spotted a garter in the backyard!

=(

He got away. Even went hunting for him in the neighbor's yard, on the other side of the fence. He's long gone, though.

But that means there's still more around here!

[Didymus20X6]

On the plus side, I now have permission from most of my neighbors to herp in their yards. So if any of you guys ever travel through the Mississippi Delta, look me up, you can help me with the project.

[mustang]

One rescue yesterday!

Didn't get a pic, though. But I did get some nifty new binoculars, which I hope will help with spotting them so I don't have to nearly step on them to find them.

Anyway, after I released that one, I decided to see if I could spot some other wild life with the new glasses. I got on the bridge and started looking in the stream. And lo and behold, right below me in the water was a big, plump snake. It must have been about 4 feet long, and had a pretty thick body. At first I thought it was a moccasin, but its head reminded me more of a garter snake's head than that of a crotalid; it also had round pupils, rather than the vertical slots that crotalids have. But it definitely wasn't a garter: the patterns on its back were diamond shaped. My guess is a Nerodia rhombifer. Even so, we have a saying where I'm from: If it looks like a moccasin, don't take any chances.

I watched him for a bit, but then a fish splashed near him, scaring him off. I then spotted another snake in the water, initially thinking it to be the same one. But this one was definitely greener, and had a checkered pattern on his back. I almost would have thought he was one of my garters, but I couldn't see the telltale stripes.

Then, as I was watching that one, I spotted yet a third snake. I have no idea what kind he was, but he was almost completely black on top, with a lighter coloration on the underside. He was at least 4 feet long, probably longer. Head, definitely colubrid shaped with round pupils. Unlike the other two snakes, this one seemed very active, probing around in the water as if it were hunting. At one point, I thought it was going to attack the checkered snake, but that one disappeared under the water as soon as Blackie came within close proximity. I spent the better part of an hour watching Blackie, trying to figure out what he was, until he went under the bridge where I couldn't see him anymore. He seemed to be missing part of his tail, and judging from the redness of it, it must have been a recent injury.

I wish I had had my camera. And from now on, I'm not going out there without it. I would just love to know what kind of snake ol' Blackie was.

Anyway, here's THE PLACE (http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=33.797037,-90.862472&spn=0,359.997844&t=h&z=19&layer=c&cbll=33.796997,-90.862538&panoid=GT1CaSG6RLcI9sA6gSbGRg&cbp=12,57.56,,0,5) where I've been taking my garters.
EVERYONE LISTEN UP!!!! what u saw was a diamond back water snake they get big and black racers DO NOT HAVE DIAMOMNDS

[Didymus20X6]

Then, as I was watching that one, I spotted yet a third snake. I have no idea what kind he was, but he was almost completely black on top, with a lighter coloration on the underside.
This is the one we think was a Racer. The other two most likely were nerodia of one typle or another.

[Didymus20X6]

Today, as I was walking to work, I noticed a whole bunch of nightcrawlers all up and down the sidewalks. So, on a whim, I decided to collect a few and put them in a bucket in the back yard. This is the result:

http://i32.tinypic.com/2pq71ub.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/1zl7onk.jpg

http://i25.tinypic.com/oq9c79.jpg

About a half hour after I put the nightcrawlers in the bucket, I saw his little head sticking up out of the grass. But before I could get my trash can, he disappeared. After watching for him for a while, I went inside to interweb for a bit. As soon as I came back out, there he was, his little noggin poking around the nightcrawler bucket, just as I anticipated.

I'm planning on releasing him in a different place than where I released the other garters. I don't want to overpopulate the release site. I'd almost want to keep him, but my landlady has a strict no-pets policy, and I seriously doubt she'll make an exception for a snake (especially not after the trouble that one neighbor lady gave her about them - I am so glad she moved out, and not just because a cute young lady moved into her apartment).

[MichaelSmith]

Hi,
I love how much you care about these snakes, and hate to inject any sort of negative note, but I want to comment about problems sometimes seen when reptiles are relocated.

Reptile species tend to establish home ranges - that is, areas that they get to know and may stay within. To one extent or another, reptile species may show "site fidelity," meaning that they stay in that same area and may try to find it if relocated. Some species have had trouble re-establishing home ranges if moved, and may wander around. This can result in (a) running into hazards - roads, predators, and the like; and (b) using up energy that should be allocated to hunting, finding shelter, etc. Some of the species studied by radio-tracking and recapture show higher mortality than non-relocated snakes. One example: a study of eastern hognose snakes in Arkansas by Mike Plummer found some level of mortality in the resident snakes, but ALL of the relocated snakes were lost during the study.

Of course, if the neighbors are committed to killing all the snakes, then the calculation is like this: is the chance of survival higher if you're relocated, or if you stay in the same place and take a chance on being found by the neighbors. For all I know, the snakes may still have a better chance if relocated. It's something to think about, though.

[Didymus20X6]

It's a calculated risk, but one, I feel, worth taking. Around here, most of the neighbors will kill them if they turn up in the wrong place. I have seen headless snakes on the curb before.

When I first started catching them, there was a lady living next door who kept threatening to have our landlady kill them all. I tried to explain to her how pointless that was, but she wouldn't listen. It was mainly to keep her from going berserk that I started catching them. She finally moved out, thanks be to God, and the young lady who lives there now actually used to be close friends with a herpatologist, so she's pretty cool.

Also, I'm hoping that, by seeing someone who cares about these creatures, the neighbors might finally come to realize that they need not be hated or feared.

[Didymus20X6]

Also, I did read a report about relocated red-siders that seemed to indicate that they did okay being relocated to a different den. Of course, the relocation was handled by professionals, and they were specifically placed in an already populated den, but nearly all of them were recaptured the following year, and about 30% the year after that. Red-siders are pretty closely related to these (commons/easterns, I think), so I'm betting they do okay.

Also, I've actually almost decided to keep this one. I've got a clear plastic bin I've prepared to set up as a home for him. But I'm hoping maybe I can find a teacher at Delta State or one of the local schools who would be willing to take him for educational purposes. As I said before, my landlady doesn't permit pets, and if she found out I was keeping a snake, she wouldn't be terribly pleased.

[wolfpacksved]

Kudos to you for re-locating snakes that will otherwise die at the hands of some dimwit anyhow. Garters are pretty hardy snakes, they can survive in metropolitan areas for goodness snake. I had remove a dozen black rat snakes from a shed that were doomed otherwise. To no avail, i did my best to convince the owners that the snakes were good for the property, harmless, etc. Anywho, I relocated them far away from people in the county of capture. The very next spring, i got a call from the same people who owned the shed to remove snakes again, and there were even more. Clearly the snakes congregated in this shed to breed, but they had to go or the owner would have killed them. I'm not suggesting to relocate every animal. I have been told by people working with timber rattlers and box turtles that some data suggests that they are sensitive to relocation. I know, so much more to learn. It's an interesting topic that has been discussed quite a bit in the forums lately.

[Didymus20X6]

Okay, guys. Remember how I said I was going to try to keep that last one? Well, I'm considering letting him go now. Mostly because of my own ineptitude and inexperience, I've just had one problem after another today, and I'm beginning to think my as-yet-unnamed snake would be better off if I just took him on down to the river to be with his buddies. I had trouble getting the substrate right (I was using a combination of leaf mulch and leaves from the bushes they used to love to bask on), my lame attempt at a hide didn't quite work out, and on top of that, I spilled water all over the enclosure when trying to put in his water dish. So I ended up having to put him back in the trash can, clean out his enclosure, and try to locate some dry substrate. I have a very strong feeling all this undue stress on him just isn't worth it in the long run.

On the plus side, I can make adjustments to the enclosure and maybe be ready the next time I catch one. Who knows when that might be, though.

[Didymus20X6]

So I finally got the enclosure cleaned out and dried. I basically baked the wet substrate to remove all the excess moisture, but now there's an awful lot less of it. But at least the snake has a clean, dry place to spend the night. On the plus side, I think he really appreciated getting out of that wet trash can and into a nice comfy hide.

[Mommy2many]

Tom, I'm sure your home is perfect for your snake. Just think, in the wild, they can't control the elements and have a nice, dry, safe place to live with food delivery.:D

[Didymus20X6]

That is true. And frankly, after getting the enclosure cleaned out, I felt a lot better. Today, he's out in the back yard, soaking up some heat. I put him in the sun a few minutes to get him warm, then in the shade to balance out his temps (it's a good 90F outside, so he should be plenty warm).

But I think I'm going to hang on to him a few days, maybe see if someone in the area would like to keep him, like maybe a science teacher or something. My landlady doesn't allow pets. On the plus side, when I do catch more snakes, I have a nice comfy hotel for them to stay in while they're waiting for release.

[Didymus20X6]

I was just out in the back yard, over near my neighbor's house, when I looked down and spotted a nice, pretty blue garter sitting right at the edge of the house's shadow. He didn't seem to react to my presence, so I went and grabbed my stuff to catch him.

But when I picked him up, I discovered why he wasn't reacting to me. There was a series of severe cuts on his underside, and he didn't survive them. The cuts appeared very uniform - same shape, same depth, same distance from each other - so I'm suspecting lawn mower.

Needless to say, I was really sad. I have only seen two blue garters in this area, and both of them were dead. And I'm not even sure the blue color was natural - could it be discoloration as the result of the death? Anyway, I was so excited, and now I just feel terrible. :(

[guidofatherof5]

I've seen that blue color in a number of the dead radixes I have found in the area.:(

[Mommy2many]

Tom,

I'm sorry to hear that the one you found was dead.:(

[wolfpacksved]

Many a' blue roadkills in my time. Green snakes turn blue as well. Suppose i would turn blue too if I was ran over by a car and left to bake in the sun.

[Didymus20X6]

I caught this rat snake about 10 miles from my mom's house (South GA).

He was about 4 - 5 ft. long. He was very defensive, but didn't strike.

I let him go in the grassy ditch beside the road.

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