Off to Texas

[Mommy2many]

Have a great time. Can't wait to see the pics!

[RedSidedSPR]

Have a good trip, and find lots of garters!

[ssssnakeluvr]

you will find plenty of other herps!! I actually found a Texas blind snake while I was out there!! cool little snake!!

[drache]

have a great trip, Shannon

[Stefan-A]

Good luck!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

thanks everyone! there are some places RIGHT in the neighborhood here that I will be biking over to that look like they would easily harbor garter snakes. It's definietly too hot in the mid day... the coolest temps we are supposed to have all week is 99 degrees!!! But I think at sundown and early in the AM as the sun comes up, the snakes would have to come out and forage. We are also going to take a whole day to visit a state park that's about an hour away... I sure hope I find SOMETHING slithery while I am here! let me tell you 100 degrees in texas feels 5 times hotter than 100 degrees in PA. Texas is HOT and there is a drought here.... it has only rained here in Katy once this whole season. there was one rainshower 2 weeks ago, but other than that, there has been NO significant rainfall since JANUARY!!!

[RedSidedSPR]

Almost as hot as my place

[mustang]

thanks everyone! there are some places RIGHT in the neighborhood here that I will be biking over to that look like they would easily harbor garter snakes. It's definietly too hot in the mid day... the coolest temps we are supposed to have all week is 99 degrees!!! But I think at sundown and early in the AM as the sun comes up, the snakes would have to come out and forage. We are also going to take a whole day to visit a state park that's about an hour away... I sure hope I find SOMETHING slithery while I am here! let me tell you 100 degrees in texas feels 5 times hotter than 100 degrees in PA. Texas is HOT and there is a drought here.... it has only rained here in Katy once this whole season. there was one rainshower 2 weeks ago, but other than that, there has been NO significant rainfall since JANUARY!!!

come visit me!!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I have't had time to do any real herping yet BUT I did check out a rockpile that's sitting in between two rather gross looking pools of water along the back of the neighborhood. I spotted a giant female diamondbacked water snake (nerodia rhombifer) and she dove into the water. She was easily over a meter in length. I have seen her twice and she evades me both times. I did however catch a male that was a few feet away from her. I got him by the tail as he slid into a crevice and spent 10 minutes holding on until he got tired and gave up trying to go down the hole. I was led to this spot after chatting up a man who claimed the area was "full of moccasins" but that I had better be careful, because moccasins are "pack snakes" and one of the "most deadly in the world" I laughed, treaded very carefully and figured I would find water snakes... And sure enough... I did! The next time I saw him I said "you know those snakes are harmless water snakes... Right?" and he was quite certain that the place is crawling with rattlesnakes, moccasins and copperheads. I sure wish I could find some!!! But this area is a barren wasteland... Too dry and I feel that we will not find any sort of real snake population until we hit the parks we plan to. I even went out tonight and took a looooong walk hoping that the night would bring out the nocturnal herps. Lots of toads, lots of skinks,no snakes yet!!!

Also, being 4 months pregnant doesn't seem to help. I am finding back pain is getting worse and worse, the more I walk the more my back hurts... And I bruise just from riding a bicycle... So that's now out of the question. I am worried about being able to work through my pregnancy because all I do at work is walk around, and it's killing my back to the point where I am sometimes faltering and almost falling down! Needless to say, my field herping abilities have been somewhat limited by this...

[katach]

Well good luck and happy hunting!!