The season that is... at least for flipping rosys here in No-have. Skipped Easter Dinner for a chance to herp the Granites in Apple Valley yesterday, for an hr or so. Dry as a bone, worst time of day to go (2-4) but frankly... I was really hoping to see bout anything... specks, chucks, collards, spinys, ect. Just to get out and see a few herps... been working 7 days a week, and haven't herped at all since going out with PNW for track and sign data.
2 hrs... 2 SB's and 2 chucks. I was ready to chuck it for the day, (and possibly the season) when I spotted this guy.

That was a zoom shot from like 30 yrs away... started slowly working my way closer, for better shots when he bailed down off his rock... I figured he had seen me and was heading for cover, but instead, he started foraging a bit, on the few green shoots availible...

Then, back up to his perch, where he just sat and watched me edging closer and closer... I sat on a rock next to him and took pics from like 2 ft away...


Took one last shot as I was walking away...

The other chuck I saw was already in a crack...

I know it ain't much... but I gotta say... getting to sit so close to a cool lizard and take pics, was very cool, and made me think I'm NOT Quite ready to chuck this herping season. On the bright side... if ever there was a season where I didn't get to herp much... I'm glad it's this year, and not a great year. More rain coming this week... so.. we'll see... jim
BTW... for those who like intergrade pits, a lady brought me this little gopher from a mile or so up into the berdoos (intact but had been hit, and later died)... perfect example of a SD/GB intergrade...

Great shots of that Chuck, Jim. Makes me miss SoCal. They were one of the things at Joshua Tree that woke the dormant herper in me up. Very nice looking DOR Gopher, too, although posing it on tiretread just seems wrong somehow...

JimM

Nice pics of that chuck, Jim. Reminds of the time last year in JT when we got really close to a chuck and Nicholas was taking pictures from a couple of feet away for what seemed like an houe

Btw, we had a similar experience yesterday: We went out for an hour or so in a canyon in Southern Orange County near relatives before meal time. Herped from 1-2:2:15 in 88 degrees and came away with 1 fence, 2 utas and one worthwhile find, our first and what will probably be our only Garden Slender Salamander for the year, flipped by Nicholas under a log beneath a large shady oak tree. Sorry no pics yet, we are headed up to Northern Cal in 30 minutes to enjoy 5 days of rainfall. El Garia and Owen will be our hosts and field guides

Robert