Newspaper article

[Bay_area]

Awesome to hear about the herp saviors out there! Love to see these articles.

My only question is regarding the success of relocation. Short of using radio telemetry/tagging, there is no way to determine whether or not the relocations are/were a success. In many cases, relocated animals do not survive because of the competition and establishment of niches made by specimens that already live in the area.

Steven

They have better odds than leaving them to be killed by the Fire Dept.

I used to put fingernail polish on the rattles before I released them, not the most scientific way, but it lasted a couple of seasons. Anyhow, I would find snakes I released in the area with the polish still on some of the rattles. Not sure of the survival rate, but it is encouraging to find ones I released years later doing well

[Bay_area]

So, who's up for dinner at Jerry's house? We're having frozen pizza, ice cream and chicken.

Denise is a little upset with me about showing the news reported the freezer...LOL! We went to Costco a couple of days before the interview & didn't have the room in the upstairs freezer, so I put some of the boxes in my freezer. I guess that is why the church invited us to the Potluck & said for us not to bring anything

[Steven@HumboldtHerps]

I used to put fingernail polish on the rattles before I released them, not the most scientific way, but it lasted a couple of seasons. Anyhow, I would find snakes I released in the area with the polish still on some of the rattles. Not sure of the survival rate, but it is encouraging to find ones I released years later doing well

That's a neat trick with the fingernail polish! I can agree with the fact that a relocation is better than the shovel, but the nail polish trick is not an accurate means of determining success in relocation. In this example there is no way of knowing whether or not the relocated specimen actually out-competed members of an existing population. Either way, there is the likely chance that ultimately: the rattlers lose. One way or another, their habitat is compromised.

Steven

[Bay_area]

Either way, there is the likely chance that ultimately: the rattlers lose. One way or another, their habitat is compromised.

Steven

Loss of habitat is the biggest problem. I am doing what I can to make people aware of their importance & value in the balance of nature. The area that I release them is great spot for them, hardly ever does anyone ever come near that spot because of the amount of poison oak there. They are few options to saving the rattlers in the bay area. If you have a better idea, speak up.

In So*Cal high desert the amount of development is crazy! Entire areas that I used to find Speckled rattlesnakes are GONE! To quote Big Yellow Taxi by Joni Mitchell,
"Dont it always seem to go
That you dont know what youve got
Till its gone
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot"

[drache]

In So*Cal high desert the amount of development is crazy! Entire areas that I used to find Speckled rattlesnakes are GONE!

it's true
I was so shocked when I took Jeff to the high desert to see the stars about ten years ago
I took him to this place that had been an intersection fifteen years earlier, and now sported car dealerships - we never did get to a place far enough away to see what I'd been wanting to show him
the desert was sparkling with developments
we would have needed to go somewhere completely else