Gilchrist County, FL

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Noah M
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Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Noah M »

I like to find counties on HERP that have few records and scope them out on google earth to try and figure out if there are few records from a lack of habitat or from a lack of people going to the counties. So recently while I am waiting for fall to roll around I have been exploring Gilchrist. I have been out during the day mostly so I can see the habitat more clearly, and in two trips of exploring I've turned up a few things.

Several frogs were heard. I stopped for one on the road, and it was this guy. I didn't hear barkers calling, but clearly they are in the area!

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I found a couple of areas that were filled with bullfrogs. This is nice for me as most of the big frogs I found around Florida are pig frogs. Here is just one of several seen. Do bullfrogs (compared to pig frogs) prefer sandy wetlands? Seems like I find these guys more in upland habitat and pig frogs down in swamps.

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Okay, so technically this one is not from Gilchrist, which bums me out. I was within sight of the county line when I saw this tort walking towards me. I even followed the tracks back down the road to see if I could verify it had been in Gilchrist, but it entered the road this side of the county line. I also noticed the split in the plaston. Carl May in an earlier post had said the scute anomalies were theorized to be from high temps during incubation.
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And lastly, there was this guy. It was the late afternoon, several hours before sunset and I wasn't expecting to find many snakes out in the July Florida sun, but here was this guy, chillin' in the road.

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I have a few more places (and times) to scout. Any new pictures I'll add to this thread.

Does anybody by any chance know if watermelon fields are good habitat for anything? In my travels I found several of them. I'm assuming there is well-drained soil in the area, but the lack of trees and other ground cover makes me think watermelon fields may only be of value to something like an Oak Toad.
simus343
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by simus343 »

If the watermelon fields provide cover for small snakes like hognose snakes and pygmies to curl and hide under then I would assume those or snakes of similar size. Where I work we have fields of just grass, with only a few scattered individual trees here and there, and yet these fields are full of snakes feeding on toads and mice.

I have found that searching for the food of a target animal better than just searching all the habitat. If you can find the food, the animal that eats it is more likely to be there. If you can't find the food, the animal that would eat the absent food will unlikely be there.

This said, if there is oak toads, I would imagine there would be some snakes around too if there is cover to avoid being spotted by birds. If you could find an ecotome area to natural habitat around the watermelon fields I would imagine that this area would be most productive compared to the middle of the fields.

Good luck herping in Gilchrist.
Carl D. May
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Carl D. May »

Gilchrist County is one of those places that I drive through on the way to somewhere else but never actually hunted in or around. But from what I have heard anecdotally, the rat snakes from this area (especially the southern portion of the county) can be highly variable and very interesting. I've seen a couple that looked particularly silvery and 'clean' while sporting yellow throats and a pattern that resembled Gulf Hammock animals.

As for the gopher tortoises with extra or split scutes, the idea that this is a result of high incubation temps is yet just a theory that some hold--although it makes sense to me.
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BillMcGighan
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by BillMcGighan »

Just a friendly warning for Gilchrist County:
If you see a watermelon field containing a row of porta-potties, don't go in it, herping.

FWC has been using this field to raise baby Florida panthers - very environmentally sensitive and dangerous.


The sign is almost too small to see but it identifies the area as "Jon Cougar Mellon Camp"
kwross
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by kwross »

Great post !!! :mrgreen:
Coluber Constrictor
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Coluber Constrictor »

9 times out of 10 (probably more like 10 times out of 10), if there are few or no records of a county on NAHERP, it is because nobody has herped there, not because there are no herps. Keep up the good work and keep filling those county records! :beer: I've been sort of slacking off on this myself this year. :oops: I need to hit up Greene County MS sometime soon.

I don't think watermelon fields themselves would be great herp habitat, but the edges probably would.
Darkhorse
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Darkhorse »

Bill.... you slay me!
Chris
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mtratcliffe
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by mtratcliffe »

BillMcGighan wrote:Just a friendly warning for Gilchrist County:
If you see a watermelon field containing a row of porta-potties, don't go in it, herping.

FWC has been using this field to raise baby Florida panthers - very environmentally sensitive and dangerous.


The sign is almost too small to see but it identifies the area as "Jon Cougar Mellon Camp"
:lol:

How long did it take you to come up with that one?
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Noah M
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Noah M »

Funny you mention that Bill. Being from Indiana I'm well versed in Jon Cougar. I don't ever remember anybody making a connection to Florida. I did see a field of your descriptions, but I did not see cougars. There were green sad looking animals roaming the fields, making circles around the fruits. I asked a local and he told me they were Melon Collies.
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BillMcGighan
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by BillMcGighan »

OK, guys, herpetology is serious business. I was trying to impart some wisdom, and you guys are not taking it seriously. :roll: :roll:




PS
Melon Collie = :thumb:
Specialist3
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Specialist3 »

Going out to my buddies place who live on the other side of Ginnie, amphibians and cottons are plenty. Their house generally looks like its moving from the array of tree frogs and ground due to toads.

I recently found a southern pine DOR in Levy county and was coming out of a watermelon field.
ToddB
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by ToddB »

I live in Gilchrist County. If you want to verify a Gopher Tortoise in the county, you are welcome to visit my back yard any time :D . Seriously, there is a burrow in my yard, as well as both of my neighbors. I was afraid that my dog would scare them away, but they seem to just pretty much immune to him. He just kinda sniffs them a little, they just wait for him to lose interest and then go on their way. Over the years, I've seen a fair number of herps around my place and the immediate area. Off the top of my head, there have been Gray rats, corns, Scarlet Kings, Eastern and Southern Hogs, racers and plenty of Coachwhips. Unfortunately, the only Pine I've seen was a DOR. If you ever need some company on a Gilchrist County trip, let me know.
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Noah M
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by Noah M »

Found this guy right near the Gilchrist County line. It made no attempt to slither away and went straight for the cotton threat display. I don't like getting them this afraid, but usually when I walk up to one on a road they try to make an escape. It seems like they need a bit more provoking before going into threat mode. Evidently this rule does not hold true for all of them.

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Frogs were out again en masse. Lots of young little leopard frogs.
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And plenty of bullfrogs!
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simus343
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Re: Gilchrist County, FL

Post by simus343 »

captainjack0000 wrote: It seems like they need a bit more provoking before going into threat mode. Evidently this rule does not hold true for all of them.
I have noticed that some larger water moccasins are seemingly territorial and will go into a threat display rather than flee while in a swamp or lake. I have seen unusual scenarios as you described before. At work I was walking the inside of a tortoise drift fence and there was a small, maybe 14 inch long, water moccasin on the outside that was stretched out in the open, not close to the fence, and immediately took up showing off its white mouth before trying to flee. It did not leave until after I had continued to walk further down the drift fence.

On that note, perhaps they are more likely, to take up an unprovoked defensive posture while away from water / ground cover where they can hide. Out in the open they may just be hoping to reach the next safe area undetected and are snake-praying that nothing finds them. When something finds them, they may try and break for it, or they may hold their ground to keep other things from trying to bother them.

That is just my take on why it took up defending itself right away.
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