Its oh so quiet Shh Shh

[ConcinusMan]

I've considered doing this, but all of our native amphibians are protected, I'm not sure as to the legality of collecting spawn and feeding the tadpoles to snakes. I know I used to collect spawn and raise frogs when I was a kid but we'd release the frogs when they got too big.

Definitely no issue with that if I collect eggs from drying pools on private property. treefrogs are plentiful here and the eggs wouldn't make it where I collect them anyway. And if I collect bullfrog eggs there's definitely no issue. They're non-native, invasive and harmful to natives, and 100% legal to collect/harvest. Dept. of wildlife would be thrilled if I collected every last bullfrog egg/adult I could find and the treefrogs are certainly not of any concern. They're the most plentiful and adaptable amphibian we have. I'm collecting doomed eggs anyway. The water always dries up too early and they all get eaten up by birds and snakes anyway.

[jwolfe152]

And I do every year although the bounty is usually brief. I just get eggs in spring, raise them in containers on fish flake food, (very easy and cheap) and by late july I have hundreds of tiny pacific treefrog or american bullfrog frogletts, no parasites. Once they are terrestrial adults they could be frozen but my litters usually just eat them all up.

i never thought of doing it that way but very good idea

[guidofatherof5]

The population is stable and at capacity. Lack of snakes is not the problem. It's lack of habitat. What habitat is left is fragmented and under constant threat of pollution, development, invasive species, etc. The snake is not going extinct. That's not why it's listed. There are many thousands of snakes and the population is stable and self-sustaining. The only way it's going to increase is if habitats are created/restored making room for more snakes. The snake is not actually in immediate danger of extinction but their habitat is. There's not much of it left and much of it is already unprotected private property. If the owners decide to develop it, there's not much they can do to stop it.

I'm not sure where you are getting this info.(post your sources) but the latest 5 year study done clearly shows the numbers are in a decline even with stable habitats.
"Endangered" does mean the possibility of extinction.
Here is a link to the most up-to-date and complete study done on T. s. tetrataenia (San Francisco garter snake) Check out the last couple pages for some awesome population range maps.
I will also provide a link to the Fish and Wildlife page where "Endangered" is defined. I will cut and paste the definition.
http://ecos.fws.gov/docs/five_year_review/doc774.pdf
Endangered Species | Laws & Policies | Endangered Species Act

Endangered Species Act | Overview

When Congress passed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1973, it recognized that our rich natural heritage is of “esthetic, ecological, educational, recreational, and scientific value to our Nation and its people.” It further expressed concern that many of our nation’s native plants and animals were in danger of becoming extinct.
The purpose of the ESA is to protect and recover imperiled species and the ecosystems upon which they depend. It is administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Commerce Department’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The FWS has primary responsibility for terrestrial and freshwater organisms, while the responsibilities of NMFS are mainly marine wildlife such as whales and anadromons fish such as salmon.
Under the ESA, species may be listed as either endangered or threatened. “Endangered” means a species is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range. “Threatened” means a species is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future. All species of plants and animals, except pest insects, are eligible for listing as endangered or threatened. For the purposes of the ESA, Congress defined species to include subspecies, varieties, and, for vertebrates, distinct population segments.

[guidofatherof5]

I need some help. I now have a fax machine sharing my T.radix Ranch phone number. I would like to test this thing out but don't have a fax number to send to. If any member has a fax machine I would like to send a test page to see if I have things configured correctly. If you don't mind helping out send me a PM with the number.
If you'd like to send me a fax that would be great also.
Thanks for your help.

[guidofatherof5]

I need some help. I now have a fax machine sharing my T.radix Ranch phone number. I would like to test this thing out but don't have a fax number to send to. If any member has a fax machine I would like to send a test page to see if I have things configured correctly. If you don't mind helping out send me a PM with the number.
If you'd like to send me a fax that would be great also.
Thanks for your help.

Done. Thanks for your help.

[jwolfe152]

hey is anyone good at identifying salamanders?

[Stefan-A]

Let's find out.

[jwolfe152]

nevermind i think i found it but could someone give me advice on taking pics of salamanders without them twisting and flopping and falling and then picking them back up lol

but anyways i think they are Jefferson Salamanders (Ambystoma jeffersonianum) i would just like to know i have caught many salamanders around cricks (creeks) and stream when camping but i just found a way to get to a small stream ive been wanting to get to and found TONS of HUGE salamanders. i mean these are the biggest i have ever seen but could not grab any before they took off i only got the 4 jeffersons (like i said i think thats what they are)

[jwolfe152]

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[jwolfe152]

hey has anyone here seen the 4 part series "The Men Who Built America" on The History Channel? its about Vanderbilt, J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, (sp?) Andrew Carnegie and a few others?

i was just wondering because its VERY interesting well i think it is and when i went to kennywood we took the "back" way where you pass a BIG U.S. Steel plant and i thought about the show and how old that plant probably is...just something i thought was interesting