The snake in the photos is Big Red, or at least that’s what I call it. It’s a Northern Water Snake and it resides in our Wetlands here at the Museum. Since September 16 when the mercury (or alcohol) took a thirty degree nose dive on the temperature scale and I first noticed this snake [...] Read the rest of this entry »
Reptiles and Amphibians Posts
A musky herp and some avian arrivals
October 12th, 2011The thumbnail sized Common Musk Turtle (Sternotherus odoratus), or Stinkpot, in the photo above was walking up the middle of the path in Explore the Wild. The light markings on the marginal scutes of its carapace and face identify it as a musk turtle. To get a feel for its size, the willow leaf next [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are 5 comments on this journal entry. Join the conversation.
Copperhead: Part III
October 4th, 2011The snake in the photo is about the size of a pencil. It’s probably not much older than a week. Read the rest of this entry »
There are 1 comment on this journal entry. Join the conversation.
A flurry of activity
September 16th, 2011It’s 58 degrees outside, about thirty degrees cooler than yesterday. It was bright and sunny yesterday, complete cloud cover today. But, along with the cold front, clouds and drizzle came some birds and a surprise herp. Nothing overwhelming, but a flurry of activity, just enough to keep the casual birder and herper happy. For the [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Sandpiper Solitaire
September 15th, 2011After the rains of Tropical Storm Lee last week the water level in the Wetlands is back to normal. Prior to the rains the water had been quite low exposing much of the muddy bottom of the pond, great habitat for foraging migrant shorebirds. On September 1, a Solitary Sandpiper dropped in to take advantage of [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are 4 comments on this journal entry. Join the conversation.
Fall
September 14th, 2011There’s little doubt that fall is here. Warblers and other migrant birds are trickling through, the raccoons, groundhogs, and fox are feeding more heavily, and, as mentioned in a previous post, snakes are moving about more. Here’s just a few more signs of the season before us. And, not necessarily a sign of fall but [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Copperheads: Part II
September 8th, 2011Not more than twenty minutes after seeing the first copperhead in Explore the Wild (8/26/11), another call came in from Rachael (Entomology Specialist) that a snake was on the path near the head of the Dinosaur Trail. Rushing off to that location, we discovered a larger Copperhead more accustomed to the presence of humans, it was [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are no comments on this journal entry. Start the conversation.
Copperheads: Part I
September 7th, 2011Prompted by a call over the radio about a Copperhead on the path on the far side of the Explore the Wild/Catch the Wind Loop, and after some deliberation as to whether or not I wanted to go all the way out to the site chasing something that could be long gone by the time [...] Read the rest of this entry »
There are 6 comments on this journal entry. Join the conversation.
There are 3 comments on this journal entry. Join the conversation.