Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

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AndyO'Connor
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Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by AndyO'Connor »

Hope you enjoyed the lizards and everything else, but if you are anything like me, this will be your favorite part of the 2 posts, the snakes. No timely order here, non-venomous then venomous...

Striped whipsnake - Always a personal favorite

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Sonoran mountain king aka pyro

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Some of the most gorgeous Great Basin gophers ever, and big ones too. I almost kept this first one, really sweet demeanor, and an interesting fused stripe on the neck.

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Ground snake - An interesting story for this snake. I had a goal for the trip to not have any species on our list that were only found DOR. We had seen a fresh dead ground snake on a few different occasions in almost the same location on a couple different days, so on one of our last days, we both decided it would be productive to walk a wash that came near the road, as I have a nack for finding them on the crawl. Mack decided to continue cruising as the sun was just setting and it was the best activity period we had seen. Within 5 steps of leaving the road, as if someone were playing a prank on me was this beautiful snake glowing in the low light of the desert floor. I could still see Mack driving away and had to wait about 15 minutes for him to return. I walked around with the snake in hand the whole time but didn't see another one.

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Glossy snake

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wonky eyes

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Longnose snake, finally after multiple wriggling DORs over 3 separate trips, we got into them and found several alive and well.

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One of my big targets for the trip, Spotted leafnose snake we found 2 alive, and our tire found a third one on a stretch of road littered with cracks that were filled in with white concrete, making the little snake almost invisible until it was too late.

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night snake

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My previously mentioned goal of no wounded soldiers was haunted by the patchnose snake, which we had attempted to get up early enough to cruise one on a few mornings, only to find fresh dors each time. Our 11th hour snake was flipped under AC on an impromptu stop in the mountains on the way home. At 6000 feet, I thought it was a cool find, and because it was the last snake of the trip, even though it was in shed, it deserves its spotlight

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Lyre snake

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Great Basin rattlesnake

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Sidewinder

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This one had the biggest horns and rattle of the several we found

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Mojave rattlesnake

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Panamint rattlesnake

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And if you missed it the first time, a link to my "movie" of the trip, it is a little slow and dry a couple times due to a lack of commentary and the wind blowing, but I am proud of a few moments.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAQPiTfcXeM

Trip totals:

8 Longnose 3 dor
3 Patchnose 2 dor
11 Coachwhip 4 dor
19 Gt basin gophers, 6 dor
5 Ground snake 4 dor
14 glossy 4 Dor
2 Pyros
12 Nights snakes 2 dor 1 by us
1 lyre snake
3 Spotted leafnose 1 dor by us
2 Whip snakes
2 Lutosus
6 Sidewinders 3 Dor
3 Panamint 1 Dor
1 Speckled no photos in crack
8 Mojave 4 dor
5 Norpacs


Tmtc Collareds
11 Skinks
12 Fence
Tmtc uta
Tmtc Whiptail
4 Desert night lizard
Tmtc long tail brush lizards
Tmtc Desert spiny
Tmtc zebratail
Tmtc Geckos
Tmtc & 1 Clipped horned lizard @ 9:30 1 Lor at 11pm, 68° 1 dor
9 Chucks
Tmtc Desert iguana
10 Leopard lizards

4 live Tortoises 3 Shells

4 Spadefoots
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Ross Padilla
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Ross Padilla »

Thats awesome, and you saved the best for last. What a shot! Great looking GB Gophers too. I watched the entire video too. Sux about the oreganus. I can only imagine what it would be like to come home to it snowing. lol Thanks for sharing. :thumb:
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Fundad
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Fundad »

Bravo :beer: :thumb:

What a great Trip. Props for going to a lesser herped place.

Congrats on the PYRO too.. :thumb:

Impressive trip... :beer:

Fundad
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M Wolverton
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by M Wolverton »

You guys did great! Epic indeed.
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KingCam
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by KingCam »

Holy cow!! Part 2 blew Part 1 out of the water!!!!!
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monklet
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by monklet »

Fan-freakin-tastic!!! :shock: :thumb: Love that aberrant GB! Great shots of the Leaf-nosed too. Bitchen little snakes that deserve more respect. ...what a trip!
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brick911
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by brick911 »

Wow... I'm blown away. You found an amazing variety and nailed the photo's!
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Andrew G
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Andrew G »

Loved all the rattlers, especially the Oreganus! The Great Basin Pit is striking too, and that Ground Snake really stands out. Great post!
:thumb:
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Casey Lazik
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Casey Lazik »

Excellent post, Andy! Looks like you and Mack had a great time. I really enjoyed the video. I appreciate the time you spent putting it together for us! :beer:
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RenoBart
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by RenoBart »

Nice stuff! Isn't Nevada great? How much time did you spend north of hwy 50? Looks like most of your pics are from the southern end.

Bart
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kcmatt
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by kcmatt »

Very nice. I liked the Sauro/Crotaphytus shot even though certainly not the best quality pic of the bunch. Congrats on the patchie, they are one that tend to only exist as DORs for me too. Pretty lyre and always enjoy seeing pyros.
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Fieldherper
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Fieldherper »

Sweet couple of posts from a relatively infrequently herped state. Good work in getting off the beaten path. Great photos.

FH
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Mulebrother
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Mulebrother »

LIKE!
joecop
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by joecop »

Are you kidding me? Those snakes look like they were spit shined. Those are some awesome photos and awesome animals you found. Congrats!! I see that pyro was giving you some lovin. Incredible colors on that animal.

Joe
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AndyO'Connor
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by AndyO'Connor »

RenoBart wrote:Nice stuff! Isn't Nevada great? How much time did you spend north of hwy 50? Looks like most of your pics are from the southern end.

Bart
Only the first day of the trip was up north. We planned on 2 days in the Pyramid Lake area at the end of our trip, but it was like 40s and rain/snow up there that whole time, so we stayed where we were finding snakes and could sleep under the stars, and found some of our best stuff the last day so it was worth it.
kcmatt wrote:Very nice. I liked the Sauro/Crotaphytus shot even though certainly not the best quality pic of the bunch. Congrats on the patchie, they are one that tend to only exist as DORs for me too. Pretty lyre and always enjoy seeing pyros.
Yeah there were a couple times I opted to leave most of my gear at camp and that time I regretted it. I thought about slowly backing away and running back to my camera but figured they wouldn't be on the same rock when I got back, so 4 phone pictures was all I got, but I too thought it was one of the cooler lizard in situs I've ever seen.

Thanks to everyone who has enjoyed my posts thus far. Tell your friends!
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justinm
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by justinm »

Andy,

If I could give out a most improved award it would definitely go to you! Your herping skills are really honed and my, my that last photo is something else. I remember when your pics were so bad I didn't know what they were. You've grown up and finished puberty since then, lol. Great post, you should be proud of yourself.
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Chris Mac Donald
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by Chris Mac Donald »

You bet that trip was epic . It was an amazing time to be in nevada with some good company and ya there was no shortage of herps. In my opinion nevada is one of the best places in the west to find a vast number of species in muliple types of habitat. The panamints were the conquest that we overcame and therefore will always be probably my favorite find on that trip!!!! Thanx andy great post!!!! :D
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AndyO'Connor
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Re: Epic Nevada trip part 2/2 snakes DUW

Post by AndyO'Connor »

justinm wrote:Andy,

If I could give out a most improved award it would definitely go to you! Your herping skills are really honed and my, my that last photo is something else. I remember when your pics were so bad I didn't know what they were. You've grown up and finished puberty since then, lol. Great post, you should be proud of yourself.
Never seen a better back-handed compliment, thanks Justin! I know what you mean though, I just recently cleaned out my hard drive and came across pictures from 2007, they were HORRIBLE. I've always loved looking for snakes, ever since I could walk, but yes I have honed my skills recently, and I have a pretty steep learning cruve capability, always have. We'll talk soon.

Chris Mac Donald wrote:You bet that trip was epic . It was an amazing time to be in nevada with some good company and ya there was no shortage of herps. In my opinion nevada is one of the best places in the west to find a vast number of species in muliple types of habitat. The panamints were the conquest that we overcame and therefore will always be probably my favorite find on that trip!!!! Thanx andy great post!!!! :D
They were my favorite rattlesnake for sure, and in my top 3 or 4 favorite species on the trip, but the first leafnose snake that I spotted on the shoulder, the patchnose you flipped at the last possible moment of the trip, the ground snake I walked, and the pyros for all the flipping we did are all at the top for me.
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