|
Locations
Dates
Weather
Species Summary
Great Basin Gopher Snake - 1 LIF/2 AOR/1DOR
Desert Horned Lizard - ~8 Red Spotted Toad - 2 LIF 
|
After a long and very cool spring a heat wave was finally going to bring some balmy nights to the desert, and with only a quarter moon rising past midnight I was looking forward to some heavy cruising action. I reached a favorite in a rocky canyon around 700PM and immediately set out to hike the wash hoping for Speckled Rattlesnake and maybe even a Desert Rosy Boa. I struck out on those but did find a nice 4 foot Gopher Snake out on the crawl which boded well for a busy evening on the road. I didn't finish my hike till well after dark and wasn't in my truck till well after 8:30PM when I headed down the long rough road to the paved highway. It was Thursay night and "Vegas" bound traffic was almost non-existant, but inexplicably, so were the snakes - pretty much anyway. My first was a small DOR Glossy shortly after reaching the pavement.
Over hour passed before I found my next, a Long-nosed Snake at about 4000 feet where it was a little cooler, around 78F.
Then, toward the bottom of my route I came upon a freshly DOR Shovel-nosed Snake which was very difficult to see especially since I had increased my cruising speed to 45MPH. After that I decided to cruise more slowly. Shortly before giving up I found one more Glossy Snake, again at higher elevation. Hoping that might signal a commencement of activity I made another long pass with nothing so called it a night and returned to the canyon where I had started. I woke up at first light, surprised by the refreshingly cool but not cold air, then prepared and drank a cup of coffee before heading back into the wash. I searched hard but found nothing until walking back up the rough canyon road when I saw a Patch-nosed Snake basking. I admired the 2 foot snake then made an attempt to pin it, hoping to pose it for a photo session. I almost got a piece of it before it got in to the bush then made a lunge which almost cost me my left knee. Good enough I thought, short of "cooling" it, there was no way I was going to get a nice portrait and I was anxious to get on the road during the peak morning hour. Hence no pic...maybe someday:)
But, I did run into this good looking yearling Mojave sometime later which gave me some really nice poses.
I continued on to higher elevations on a plateau where I planned to spend the day waiting for evening. Cruising the long dirt roads produced Horned and Leopard Lizards which were all well heated and mostly eluded my half-hearted photo attempts. I did take one opportunity for a decent shot.
I wasn't focused on lizards this trip as I wanted to maximize the chances for cruising a Striped Whipsnake or possibly a Speckled Rattler. On the main road, as I was scanning the expanse with my binoculars, a local resident of the remote area pulled up in his truck and informed me he was out looking for the perpetrator of several burglaries which had occured in the area. He was a tough, crusty old guy who was rightfully suspicious of my activities and proudly display his sidearm, presumably to impress me. I did my best to gain his confidence and assure him of my harmless intentions and after a short conversation got on my way. Shortly thereafter I came upon a large Gopher Snake in the road.
The Gopher Snakes in the particular locality are especially bright and cleanly patterned with a rich, salmon colored tail. I find the the most attractive of California Pituophis. This one wasn't happy to be photographed and repeatedly lunged at me, mouth open, hence the rather awkward pose.
On my way to a small canyon I found a large DOR Speckled Rattlesnake with a bright pinkish hue in an area free of rocky outcrops in which I would expect to find this species. Shortly after I found a great little (read very little) shady spot to park my truck and relax for an afternoon siesta.
Back on the road I made off for a rocky hillside I wanted to checkout in the late afternoon. On the way I scared several Horned Lizards off a narrow dirt road. The lizards were higly cryptic and try as I did I did not see one prior to flushing. Anyway, I worked the rocky slope pretty hard for an hour before heading back to my truck, then along the road I came across this welcome sight. Another beautiful high elevation Gopher Snake basking just yards in front of my parked truck!
The spring flora in this area was peaking and the expansive landscape was flattered by the evening light.
I made the long drive back to the canyon where I had camped the previous night, seeing only one more snake along the way, a DOR Red Coachwhip, and arrived at dusk where I waited until the sunset glow had diminished, then set out with a new strategy, hoping for better luck. This night I planned to cruise out of the area making my way, via remote pavement, though habitat where I would have a good chance to find a Leaf-nosed Snake, eventually to arrive at a location where my number one desert target, Lyre Snake, might be found. Now long after entering the pavement I came across another Gopher Snake, this time freshly hit. I had traveled about 15 miles when the next snake, a small glossy appeared and not long after a succession of two more DOR, then another DOR Speckled Rattler in the middle of creosote flats far from any rocks or hills. I lamented my ill fortune with this species and hoped for an opportunity to see a live one. It was many more miles of barren pavement before I found a Sidewinder on Route 66 just yards from I40, a place where I really did expect a live snake, or any at all for that matter.
The evening was almost a total dud so far but my luck finally changed when at about 11:30PM I saw a small snake only about 3 miles from my final destination at Pisgah Crater. At first I assumed the slender, whitish form would prove to be another glossy snake but on closer inspection the unique snout revealed it to be one of my primary targets, the Spotted Leaf-nosed Snake. It was a small, jumpy critter and tough to photograph but I was finally able to get a useable image of the rather bizarre snake.
The find relieved my fatigue and once reaching the crater I made several passes on the short road which produced one more Glossy Snake and finally another, slightly larger Leaf-nosed! I finally sacked-out at 2:30AM in balmy air, satisfied that I'd given it my best effort and pleased with acheiving at least one of my goals for the trip, but the overall paucity of snakes in what I assumed were ideal conditions amazed me. Perhaps it was just too hot, and in fact I had found more snakes at hight elevations or later in the evening. Whatever, the trip as a whole brings me one step closer to understanding the mysteries of snake activity. |
