Summer Herp Field Trip

I attended the summer Kansas Herpetological Society field trip to Morton County, Kansas this last week-end.  The event also had trips to Black Mesa State Park, Oklahoma and parts of New Mexico.  I learned a great deal about amphibians and reptiles, and also witnessed how tenacious herpetologists can be.  They are very dedicated to their trade, fearlessly wading through murky pond water and deep mud to set turtle traps, and driving remote country roads into the wee hours of the morning, not returning to camp until 4 AM.  I was able to add 13 new herp species.  I also added some new insect, mammal and bird species on the trip, bringing my year total to 722.

This is a Green Toad and Red-spotted Toad caught on rural roads in New Mexico.

Here are members of the group attacking a small pond to capture new species.   Over 100 Barred Tiger Salamanders were caught in the pond.

This is one of several Texas Horned Lizards found on the trip.

A Longnose Snake captured in Morton County, Kansas

 

 

 

 

Snakes, Spiders and Bats, oh my…

It appears that many of the creatures I seek this year are the sources of common human phobias.  While sometimes scary, these species generally perform an important role in our environment.  So, if they could speak, they would say “don’t hate because I’m scary, but be very glad that I am not bigger than you.”   The July heat and humidity has really brought out the insects.  I am now up to 620 species for the year.

While walking on our morning break from work, we found this Eastern Red Bat on the sidewalk west of the Topeka State Capitol building.  With a little gentle prodding, it flew into a nearby tree.  Photo by Tom Sparling with his smartphone.

This Nurseryweb Spider was found in my yard and was about the size of a quarter.

 

Janeen Walters and I found this small Brown Snake (not a very creative name) hiding under a log in her yard.