Pie Tins as artifical Cover?

[hikeCarmel]

I was trying to figure what kind of Artificial Cover I could easily carry that was affordable to get that might make good cover. I came up with the idea of Pie tins. I would paint them black or other color on top so they wouldn't shine and then use Lawn staples to help them from blowing away and then cover them with any nearby debris such as dirt or rock. Another Idea was to cut up strips of old carpet. My target species are Coast Mountain King Snakes, California Mountain kings, and Rubber Boas. Any thoughts or suggestions?

[Brian Hubbs]

I think pie tins would be too small. When using AC, the bigger the better...
and by the way, this place is a ghost town now. Everyone has moved to the various FB pages. It's sad, but it is what it is...

[Richard F. Hoyer]

HC,
In order to acquire my sample of Charina bottae here in Oregon in basically grassland habitat, I began deploying artificial cover in the late 1960s. I mainly used pieces of roofing tin and thin plywood board cut to sizes that allowed carrying out to selected sites.

And Brian, it has been about 30 years since you contacted me either in 1993 or 1994 after finding where I had placed out some cover objects in the San Bernardino Mts. during my Southern Rubber Boa study.

HC,
Carpet works well on rocks and rock outcrops but not as good on grassland / bare soil as it hugs the ground too closely. I have placed small branches under carpet on bare ground and had some success but generally, carpet has not been as effective as roofing tins and plywood boards.

Richard FH (Corvallis, Oregon)

[hikeCarmel]

Thanks for the info.
My neighbor is replacing a fence and I can have the old redwood boards. I think I could use this for cover cutting them to fit into a back pack around 3 foot pieces.
I am going to hike different spots around the Big Sur Coast that looked favorable and put my A.C. there.

Thanks again for the info. I'll let you know if I find any more rubber Boa's.

[Richard F. Hoyer]

HC,
Your idea of using the fencing as cover objects may work. If they are 6 – 8 inches wide, then maybe placing two or three side by side or overlapping a bit might work.

As for the photos of the boas, my son in Eugene was able to get them on his computer, sent them to me and I sent them to my wife who then had them copied on her copier. But they came out on both sides of two sheets. So we will wait until my son comes back in a month from Brazil and perhaps he can get the photos to print out on individual sheets. If that happens, perhaps you could indicate which photos represent the boa found in 2021 and which boa was found this year.

Richard FH

[Brian Hubbs]

Hi Richard!

[stlouisdude]

The only thing pie tins would be good for is making pies or finding bugs under them. too small and would blow away.

[JakeScott]

Wow, this place is dead. But yeah, like Hubbs said, bigger is better. Dragging heavy tin and boards out into the wilds is half the fun, but twice the work. Carpet works great because it holds moisture but can be the biggest pain.

Jake