Search found 182 matches

by Jefferson
August 12th, 2024, 9:32 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Italian Wall Lizard Populations
Replies: 18
Views: 25374

Re: Italian Wall Lizard Populations

I know this one has been dormant except the last post for a while, but on the topic of Topeka/KS/Heartland populations: there is a robust population of Italian Wall Lizards here in SW Missouri, in downtown Joplin, near the Joplin First Church on 4th Street. I went for a morning walk there a few June...
by Jefferson
May 22nd, 2024, 11:52 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: April Costa Rica trip
Replies: 4
Views: 13212

Re: April Costa Rica trip

Nice stuff! That coffee snake is nice, and I am glad you got it after several attempts. Apt name for a Central American species....
by Jefferson
April 27th, 2024, 1:44 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Batrachoseps Or Bust
Replies: 1
Views: 14613

Batrachoseps Or Bust

YouTube companion videos for this post (2): 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnQvmP7X-DA&feature=youtu.be 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydB3xkBEVmE&t=45s When a young man asked legendary newspaper editor Horace Greeley in the 1800s what he should do with his life, Greeley replied, &qu...
by Jefferson
April 27th, 2024, 11:37 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: November 2023-April 2024 Herping
Replies: 0
Views: 14530

November 2023-April 2024 Herping

Hey everyone! Since my trip to Texas last November, the main herping has consisted of a 4-day weekend to California that I will post about separately, but also some cool day-outings around here in the Missouri and NW Arkansas Ozarks. Late last November, I closed up the year in salamander herping wit...
by Jefferson
March 26th, 2024, 9:46 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Transferring naherp records to iNat?
Replies: 2
Views: 14266

Re: Transferring naherp records to iNat?

I agree wholeheartedly. Any idea how to do it?
by Jefferson
February 3rd, 2024, 10:23 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice
Replies: 6
Views: 12925

Re: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice

Not a problem; good luck down there!
Jefferson
by Jefferson
February 1st, 2024, 2:43 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice
Replies: 6
Views: 12925

Re: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice

No worries! Mid-March is really, really early for most stuff in Appalachia in my experience. You get some early-season low-elevation Plethodon out, like P. hoffmani in Virginia/WV and Zigzags anywhere (they can even be found in January), and of course streams will have the more common desmogs in the...
by Jefferson
February 1st, 2024, 12:53 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice
Replies: 6
Views: 12925

Re: Seeking Spring Break Appalachian Salamander Trip Advice

What days is your spring break?
by Jefferson
January 18th, 2024, 7:21 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: SoCal Advice for February and (possibly) May
Replies: 3
Views: 12734

Re: SoCal Advice for February and (possibly) May

Thanks for the input guys! It's very helpful. What I am gathering is that for San Gabriels, I should hope for a rain coincides with my flight out there, and if not within a few days, look for snakes instead at lower elevation or see the Rose Bowl or something rather than waste the effort.
by Jefferson
January 7th, 2024, 5:39 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: May 2023, The All-South Epic Brother Trip, Part 2/2 (Deep South and Appalahia)
Replies: 0
Views: 16017

May 2023, The All-South Epic Brother Trip, Part 2/2 (Deep South and Appalahia)

Please read Part 1 (Texas) for full context: https://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25970 Motoring in from Texas, we crossed into Louisiana just before dusk, across the mighty Sabine River and deep into the seemingly endless pines and flooded fields off I-10 in the heart of Cajun count...
by Jefferson
January 6th, 2024, 5:35 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: May 2023, The All-South Epic Brother Trip, Part 1/2 (Texas)
Replies: 2
Views: 9148

May 2023, The All-South Epic Brother Trip, Part 1/2 (Texas)

Why do the best trips always start disastrously, the same way the best investment cycles start with horrifying corrections? For at least the past four years, that has been an ironclad rule on my major trips: the larger the calamity to start the vacation, the more stupendous the rest of the trip. So,...
by Jefferson
January 4th, 2024, 9:46 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)
Replies: 4
Views: 10778

Re: January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)

Thank you guys much! That Oregon Slender probably was the proudest lifer of the trip, and unexpectedly beautiful for a Batrachoseps as well. Oregon may not have as many salamander species as California, North Carolina, or Tennessee, but most of the ones it does have are gorgeous, from the newts to t...
by Jefferson
January 4th, 2024, 9:43 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Texas, November 2023 Trip Report
Replies: 3
Views: 12885

Re: Texas, November 2023 Trip Report

Thanks much! I do like the old days of FHF, and reading big narratives like this instead of short blurbs with photos today. I do these partly to leave a complete, un-fragmented record of the trips for myself as much as anything, to give myself a narrative to look back at in 15 years and remember the...
by Jefferson
January 1st, 2024, 4:58 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Monsoon Season in Arizona, 2023
Replies: 3
Views: 12771

Re: Monsoon Season in Arizona, 2023

Upon re-reading this, let me make it clear that by "standard Vegas stuff," I don't mean that the Vegas leg of the trip was uneventful or just the normal touristy experience--Hayden and his associates made it a blast, and we ventured into the real Vegas off the popular touristy joints on th...
by Jefferson
January 1st, 2024, 4:52 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Texas, November 2023 Trip Report
Replies: 3
Views: 12885

Texas, November 2023 Trip Report

Sometimes the unexpected trips are the best ones. Until early October this year, I thought that the first week of November would see me in the Florida Panhandle, filming an episode for my environmental economics series with some Sunshine State researchers on Frosted Flatwoods Salamanders, but hurric...
by Jefferson
January 1st, 2024, 10:01 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Monsoon Season in Arizona, 2023
Replies: 3
Views: 12771

Monsoon Season in Arizona, 2023

For those of you who also want to watch the accompanying YT video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdhEeDmiXPg&feature=youtu.be In the classic 1964 apocalypse-comedy-thriller Dr. Strangelove (or “How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb), the Russian nuclear scientist tells Peter Sellers...
by Jefferson
December 28th, 2023, 5:49 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A Christmas Miracle
Replies: 1
Views: 7218

Re: A Christmas Miracle

Good stuff!!
by Jefferson
December 26th, 2023, 2:54 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: SoCal Advice for February and (possibly) May
Replies: 3
Views: 12734

SoCal Advice for February and (possibly) May

Hey everyone! I am still working on getting a few trip narratives written in the next few weeks in addition to the back-logged stuff I got our in November, but am thinking about a forward-looking topic here. First, I will likely be out in SoCal doing some salamander searching in mid-February (Slende...
by Jefferson
December 8th, 2023, 5:21 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: 2023 Year in Review: Caudates
Replies: 5
Views: 10863

Re: 2023 Year in Review: Caudates

Also, did you find that Junaluska in Tennessee or NC? From what I understand, the NC populations are much declined and it is very rare to find those on the Tar Heel side of the Appalachians anymore.
by Jefferson
December 8th, 2023, 5:20 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: 2023 Year in Review: Caudates
Replies: 5
Views: 10863

Re: 2023 Year in Review: Caudates

Thanks for posting! These are some killer photos, particularly the P. shermani, the Green, and the Many-lined. Making me miss North Carolina!!
by Jefferson
November 7th, 2023, 12:25 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)
Replies: 4
Views: 10778

Re: January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)

Apologies for two photo link misfires on that original post (put in the Streambed picture a second time instead of the Western Grotto, and same with the Rainbow Earless duplicate instead of the second Gila). Actual photos: Actual Western Grotto Salamander from Kansas: https://www.naherp.com/vouchers...
by Jefferson
November 6th, 2023, 5:47 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)
Replies: 4
Views: 10778

January-September 2022 Herping (PICTURE HEAVY)

A continuation of my July 2021-January 2022 post with minimal narrative but documentation of highlight finds from the long period (July 2021 until now) that I got way behind on. In early spring, I ventured south into the Piney woods of North Louisiana and Arkansas to try to see a pair of highly-cove...
by Jefferson
November 5th, 2023, 7:34 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: July 2021-January 2022 Herping (Arizona, Deep South, PICTURE HEAVY)
Replies: 1
Views: 4683

Re: July 2021-January 2022 Herping (Arizona, Deep South, PICTURE HEAVY)

For some reason the attachments I tried to place in-line are just all showing up at the end of the post (about 1/3 of the pics), but I trust you guys can match the species with the pictures at the end without issue. 'Tis a herping forum, after all. Cheers,
Jefferson
by Jefferson
November 5th, 2023, 7:33 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: July 2021-January 2022 Herping (Arizona, Deep South, PICTURE HEAVY)
Replies: 1
Views: 4683

July 2021-January 2022 Herping (Arizona, Deep South, PICTURE HEAVY)

Some very old photos that I got behind on posting here. I will not be doing huge trip write-ups like I normally do, but will be posting a brief summary and pics from this period and then from early 2022 to October of that year, where I pick up the narrative in a previous post. In early August of 202...
by Jefferson
November 4th, 2023, 3:01 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Summer Herping 2023 (late May-end of July)-BETWEEN THE EPIC TRIPS
Replies: 0
Views: 14382

Summer Herping 2023 (late May-end of July)-BETWEEN THE EPIC TRIPS

For those of you who prefer to just watch the YT video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6iw3ruMY3M&t=5s After returning from the Wild East (a MASSIVE herping trip in mid-May with my brother covering Texas, the Gulf, and Appalachia that I have yet to post an account for yet) to the prairies of S...
by Jefferson
November 4th, 2023, 2:49 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: October 2022-early May 2023 Herping
Replies: 0
Views: 14213

October 2022-early May 2023 Herping

In October and November 2022, I got a few nice opportunities to do some light herping with family, with the first instance a short outing to a series of caves and springs in urban surroundings just across the border into Northwest Arkansas, where I can usually find at least two of the three of Cave,...
by Jefferson
November 4th, 2023, 12:13 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Transferring naherp records to iNat?
Replies: 2
Views: 14266

Transferring naherp records to iNat?

Hey all, I am working on getting some old trip narratives ready to post with pics here to FHF, since it has been forever (since mid-2021) since I have posted on here, but I have also been thinking about putting my herp records on more than one database--continuing to use naherp but also utilizing iN...
by Jefferson
October 2nd, 2023, 4:56 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Rain, Rain, and More Rain in Northwest California!
Replies: 9
Views: 5910

Re: Rain, Rain, and More Rain in Northwest California!

That is really cool that you once found a gracile in August. Thanks for the tips on seasonality, and again, great post!
by Jefferson
September 18th, 2023, 7:49 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Rain, Rain, and More Rain in Northwest California!
Replies: 9
Views: 5910

Re: Rain, Rain, and More Rain in Northwest California!

Great post! Makes me nostalgic for my two visits to the Calfiornia coast for sallies (February '19 and April '22--still have to post the 2022 one). I am just curious: what time of year did you see all those gracile at Van Damme? I went in April and found a thousand Slenders, some Wandering, Ensatina...
by Jefferson
September 18th, 2023, 7:42 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: January 2023 Herping in the Southeast
Replies: 4
Views: 7396

Re: January 2023 Herping in the Southeast

What a post man, and from a YT herping legend! I love that part of the South where Piedmont and Appalachians hit the Coastal Plain--so much unique habitat and weird species assemblage mixing in that zone--you are making me miss the Southeast with this and your YT content--wish I could spend more tha...
by Jefferson
July 25th, 2021, 4:51 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: July 2020 to July 2021 Herping (Missouri, Louisiana, Michigan)
Replies: 3
Views: 4448

Re: July 2020 to July 2021 Herping (Missouri, Louisiana, Michigan)

Hey Jeff! The time-out is killer.... As for your comments, I'm glad that someone enjoys my narration style, and that the prose evoked some fond old memories (and un-fond, as in the Natchitoches motel)! The entire Rumors album is masterly, but somehow I had never heard "You Make Loving Fun"...
by Jefferson
July 16th, 2021, 5:51 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: July 2020 to July 2021 Herping (Missouri, Louisiana, Michigan)
Replies: 3
Views: 4448

July 2020 to July 2021 Herping (Missouri, Louisiana, Michigan)

Wow, it is amazing how fast time since I last posted on the forum slips away. Since last July, Bethany and I have had some great herping adventures, and I think it’s time to post some pictures and stories before the amount of unposted material becomes absolutely insurmountable. I’ve seen many of you...
by Jefferson
August 24th, 2020, 10:18 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Kansas in late August or mid September?
Replies: 11
Views: 11064

Re: Kansas in late August or mid September?

This one was larger than I expected, probably somewhere in the 20-25" range. He was roughly twice as long as my shoes from snout to rattle, and I have large feet. My first thought when we saw him stretched out across the road was, "That's about 6" too big to be a Pigmy--here comes my ...
by Jefferson
August 24th, 2020, 6:47 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Kansas in late August or mid September?
Replies: 11
Views: 11064

Re: Kansas in late August or mid September?

Jimi, Thank you for the words of encouragement on our "home road" efforts and general advice on the road-cruising schedule. I agree that it's probably not as applicable to Central KS as I originally thought, but sometimes a placebo effect or talisman-type ritual puts the mind at ease when ...
by Jefferson
August 19th, 2020, 2:51 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Kansas in late August or mid September?
Replies: 11
Views: 11064

Re: Kansas in late August or mid September?

We've actually only seen Pigs west of the Mississippi so far. Last August 15, we saw two Pigs and a DOR Copperhead in one night on a road only about a 20-minute drive from our front door but didn't have time to re-visit in Sept. last year. Now, we've been using that road since about July 20 to just ...
by Jefferson
August 18th, 2020, 11:55 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Kansas in late August or mid September?
Replies: 11
Views: 11064

Re: Kansas in late August or mid September?

Thanks for the replies guys! Jimi, I'm glad you enjoy our posts on the forum (and videos? If not, you should check them out), and yes, we're hitting herping hard early in our lives in anticipation of slowing down the pace when we have kids--we'll still herp, but nowhere near the intensity, duration,...
by Jefferson
August 17th, 2020, 7:11 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Kansas in late August or mid September?
Replies: 11
Views: 11064

Kansas in late August or mid September?

Good afternoon everyone, Bethany and I have some locales nailed down for Long-nosed snake, Prairie Rattler, W. Massasauga, Great Plains Toad, Red-spotted Toad, Glass Lizard, and Horned Lizard in West-central Kansas, along with Great Plains skink and Lined snake a little further east in the Flint Hil...
by Jefferson
August 17th, 2020, 6:52 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 2/3-An Awesome April
Replies: 2
Views: 4227

Re: Early 2020 Herping, Part 2/3-An Awesome April

They are, aren't they?! Looking for them is so different from looking for reptiles.
by Jefferson
August 9th, 2020, 1:55 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 3/3-Early Summer
Replies: 3
Views: 3808

Re: Early 2020 Herping, Part 3/3-Early Summer

Thanks! I'm glad you enjoy the writing and the pictures of our herping thus far this year. We're probably going to cruise for Sisturus tonight in the Ozarks, so here's to hoping! Also, thank you for pointing out my typo on that "Smooth" green snake--I have Michigan on the brain, where we'l...
by Jefferson
July 25th, 2020, 7:45 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 3/3-Early Summer
Replies: 3
Views: 3808

Early 2020 Herping, Part 3/3-Early Summer

Companion videos for this post: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2fDW4WjJeo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9OV-d4f5gY&t=265s In mid-May, with coronavirus-related restrictions eased in Missouri and Tennessee, we headed across Old Man River into Tennessee to visit Bethany’s family. As we set out...
by Jefferson
July 24th, 2020, 3:19 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 2/3-An Awesome April
Replies: 2
Views: 4227

Early 2020 Herping, Part 2/3-An Awesome April

Since last fall, we had been planning for an April offensive into the Arkansas and Oklahoma Ouachita ranges in search of the region’s endemic Plethodon and aquatic salamanders, such as Ouachita Dusky and Many-ribbed, but the pandemic called our plans into question. Thankfully, our spots were all far...
by Jefferson
July 24th, 2020, 2:49 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 1/3-Winter and Early Spring in the Ozarks
Replies: 1
Views: 4135

Re: Early 2020 Herping, Part 1/3-Winter and Early Spring in the Ozarks

Looks like the Cave Salamander picture didn't go on the first try. Take 2:
Image
Cave Salamanders, Southwest Missouri, Feb. 2020
by Jefferson
July 24th, 2020, 2:47 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Early 2020 Herping, Part 1/3-Winter and Early Spring in the Ozarks
Replies: 1
Views: 4135

Early 2020 Herping, Part 1/3-Winter and Early Spring in the Ozarks

Hi all! I haven’t posted since last fall, when Bethany and I found a Ringed Salamander and some other caudates outside St. Louis. So much has changed in the meanwhile! It’s now an election year, novel COVID-19 ravages North America and Latin America, and the domestic strife here in the States is pal...
by Jefferson
December 30th, 2019, 6:54 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: It has been a while
Replies: 5
Views: 18867

Re: It has been a while

Those Appalachian salamander pictures are absolutely awesome!!! Glad to see you're getting more of the colorful salamanders that direction--that spring was amazing! Happy New Year!
by Jefferson
October 12th, 2019, 2:44 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Show Me State Salamanders and Snakes
Replies: 0
Views: 16728

Show Me State Salamanders and Snakes

Three video companions to this post can be viewed on my channel ( https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7yOTq5_QlOEMfdL3g1JQ8Q ) or Bethany's channel ( https://www.youtube.com/user/TheHerpingLizard ) As those of you who read our posts know, the early summer was a North Carolina bonanza this year: one tr...
by Jefferson
October 12th, 2019, 1:27 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: How I found a rubber boa (the wrong way)
Replies: 12
Views: 23985

Re: How I found a rubber boa (the wrong way)

That's a great story!! This is a classic case of a snake who forgot to read his field guide, as my wife Bethany says.
by Jefferson
September 1st, 2019, 6:01 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: A North Carolina Summer
Replies: 1
Views: 13772

A North Carolina Summer

Note: the videos that accompany this post are on Bethany's channel (theherpinglizard) on YouTube, along with all our US herping content. I apologize in advance for the length of this post, as things have been eventful lately and I've had little chance to write until now. Bethany's channel: https://w...
by Jefferson
May 8th, 2019, 11:42 am
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Milk Snakes and 'Manders-Virginia Springtime 2019
Replies: 1
Views: 5729

Milk Snakes and 'Manders-Virginia Springtime 2019

This companion videos to this post are available on YouTube on Bethany's channel at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukph3psN7R4. AND on my channel at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSIeHO2tRk8. Well, it’s that time of year in the hills of Western Virginia. The redbuds and dogwoods bloomed and the...
by Jefferson
March 7th, 2019, 1:54 pm
Forum: The Forum
Topic: Northern California Trip Report (2/16-2/24 2019: Picture Heavy)
Replies: 7
Views: 12105

Re: Northern California Trip Report (2/16-2/24 2019: Picture Heavy)

Jeff, Wow, what a typo (should have read, "made OUR way back into the woods,..."--sorry Thany) but I suppose there are worse ones to make. I recall once seeing a church bulletin somewhere in rural Kentucky that said, "Change your wife through prayer." One letter makes all the dif...