Thirteen Garters and a Ringneck to my name... (RINGNECK!) 8-3-2014

After the complete soaking we took on Saturday, we were hoping the rain would hold out for us on Sunday! We planned a hike through Boyden Refuge in Taunton and the weather reports said we'd be OK until late afternoon. We slept later than planned and didn't get there until 10:30 AM, but that  still gave us plenty of time.

It was humid as a muthafucka. Every time I put the binoculars to my face, my glasses fogged up. But it wasn't raining! Andrea got off to a good start with a small Garter on the crawl! (I have censored the cloaca for your protection.



I countered with another one who was poking around...



We missed another who was crawling inside a garden wall but this gal was up on top, trying to get as much warmth as she could!


Yes, we are in the land of interesting dorsal stripes!

Further along, we flipped a Redback!


Despite the lack of sunshine, some Painted Turtles were giving it the ol' college try.



We went for a spell with no herps after that, but a Katydid made me feel welcome.


Andrea soon spotted another Garter-flop, this time under a tree.


And then she saw this tiny American Toad.


Then she flipped this Garter. Another example with an interesting dorsal stripe! This one has spots breaking the stripe.


The family that preens together gleams together!


We soon flipped this lovely specimen with a brown dorsal stripe! Garters never cease to amaze me! This one was so mellow, we never had to calm it... he just sat there for pictures like a pro!

"Yes, I know I'm beautiful!"

I flipped a few rocks at the bottom of the waterfall and was rewarded with a Two-Lined Salamander larvae!


Some more Painteds were basking nearby.


Frogs have been very tough here this year. I had to wait out this Green Frog. I knew his breath would run out sooner or later!


An American Toad, standing tall!

Looks like he's got hydraulics.

This guy was flipped.


We encountered a sheet of metal, a herpers best friend, especially on cool, cloudy days! I lifted it and saw a garter! Andrea said "Ringneck"! Yes indeed... one of each!

The Garter was so photogenic and helpful! The Ringneck... was not!



Happy, we headed back towards the car.

The garden, which was very nice in the morning, was in full bloom on the way back through! In full Garter bloom! They were basking pretty much everywhere!



This guy was crawling through these little purple plants, which smell like Sweet Tarts!


These two looked like they were getting amorous!


We ended the day with this little guy, a snake-flop lying atop some leaves in a bush... just as content as can be!



It should be noted that we were unable to photograph a few fleeing garters throughout the trip. Man, now this is my kind of hike!! Snake-flops everywhere! Flipped snakes! Snakes on the move!! Since I won't be able to herp next weekend, this was a fine way to get ready for my drought!