Monday, March 30, 2020

Social Distancing: Turtles 3-26 thru 3-28-2020

I feel like a totally useless blob these days, puttering around the house (when I'm not napping) while Andrea works from home. I'd feel too guilty going out without her, so when we got a chance to take a quick walk on her lunchtime, I was rarin' to go.

We went over to our local cemetery to walk around the pond, hoping to see some animals. It was far cooler than we'd expected, so turtles seemed unlikely. But a couple of Red-eared Sliders were defying the cool breeze and catching some rays.
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Considering these "invasive" (released, unwanted pets, fuck you very much) have a home range in the Southern US, they are quite cold tolerant. Pure turtle yoga, here.
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These are our First of Year  Red-ears.

We also added Common Grackle to our meager 2020 bird count.
#18 Common Grackle
These guys' electric calls were buzzing all around us.

The next day was a nice one: warm and sunny. Unfortunately, Andrea was stuck at her workstation. Finally, at a bit after 2 PM, she said we could go out. We headed straight over to our Spotted Turtle place, somewhere we don't go near once the 'skeeters come out. Sure enough, there were some turtles up, but they presented a problem... they could only be seen through the bushes. I did my best with these two Spotteds. (The second one, on the right, had only just hoisted up while I was fiddling with the camera.)
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This Painted Turtle was even tougher.
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As we quietly snuck past the spot, the second Spotted and the Painter slid into the water, but the initial Spotted stayed put, unwilling to give up his late afternoon perch.
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Further up the path, we poked through some bushes and saw some Painted Turtles up. These two were NOT practicing social distancing.
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This guy, on the far end of the very same log, was.
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Shadows were getting a bit long and we regretted not getting out earlier for snakes. But we thought we still had a shot at some tenacious knuckleheads and we were right. This well-warmed Garter zipped into the brush.
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While I was struggling to get even that lamentable photo, Andrea noticed this guy right at her feet.
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Our last encounter was this Redback that you would think that I flipped and placed him on to this piece of moss, but no... he saw us coming and crawled up there, hoping to get into a field guide.
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The next day was Saturday, so we didn't have to wait for anything, though we did get a late start. We drove out to out Blandings Turtle place to see in anyone was up. It's also a wonderful Wood Frog spot where we saw some fantastic orgies last year.

While driving through the town near the refuge, we noticed there was still snow around. We were much further north than we'd been so far this year. When we got there and got out of the car, we realized that reptiles might not be happening. It was pretty cool. Still, this brave Painter was the first thing we saw.
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We went down to the vernals but it was silent. No Wood Frogs at all. We realized that we were just too early, not only for Blandings, but for springtime Wood Frog hijinks. We ran into a fellow herper (Hi Patrick!) who was hoping just like we were. Maybe next week.

We walked a bit further on before taking our usual route. Up there we saw a robust Redback, trying to hide under his own foot.
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We could hear running water, so I went down to explore, having never seen a stream here before. I did find the water but do not know it's source. Maybe there had been enough snow in this part of the state to do this?
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Back on the trail, we saw a few more distant Painted Turtles not obeying the social distancing rules.
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Further up, way off in the distance, we saw a Painter that seemed to understand the importance of this pandemic.
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That was about it. We saw some birds and heard some Peepers but we never saw even one frog. This plump little tennis ball of a bird is a Swamp Sparrow, only the second one I've ever photographed.
#19 Swamp Sparrow

See ya.

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Social Distancing: Snakes 3-21-2020

So, it was a Saturday, late morning, when Andrea suggested we go out and walk some local trails. It was sunny and in the mid-high 40s... why the hell not? I hadn't thought about going out that day so anything we saw would be a bonus.

Like the night before, we immediately heard Wood Frogs clucking but were unable to see any. That is until this little guy hopped across the path.
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Roble's den had no Garters up but I flipped a tiny Redback that was dwarfed by some worm castings. Note the flatworm, too.
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The Valley, however, was Garteriffic! We saw this guy basking...
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Then Andrea noticed this guy periscoping at her.
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See?
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We went up to the "new" den site and this Garter came crawling down towards us, obviously on a mission. Business Garter.
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Five feet away, this one was watching the progress.
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Business Garter poked around for quite a while, never paying any mind to us. It was a real treat to watch him. We realised that he was headed toward the other one and we poised for action...
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Nah, he just crawled right over the other, unphased snake.

Heading back to the trail, we noticed a small Water Snake had emerged from the den. I like this because his tail is still yet to get all the way out.
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We made our way over to the Cottonwood Dens. To the right of the fallen tree, Andrea spied a Garter. That's a first!
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I flipped another little Redback.
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From here on out, it got a little hectic. We saw a bunch of Garters. I can't promise these are all different, but I think they are.
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We thought that was it, then noticed this guy stretching out higher up.
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On the way back to the trail, Andrea made an epic Redback flip... eleven salamanders were under it, including our first Leadback of the year. Here are ten of them... one slipped away.
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It's always nice to see how variable this species can be.

The Rock Wall Dens were quiet, as they have been this year, but on the way out Andrea saw this guy.
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We went up to the more human-y part to see if any snakes were basking or any turtles were up. Right away, we saw a Garter. A couple of teen kids saw us and I said "Garter"... and one lunged right at it. I said "no-no-no... try not to handle snakes this time of year! They're probably near their dens!" He understood and released it. Pretty damn good grab, though.
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We walked for a bit up there but there weren't any animals other than off-leash dogs, so we turned back. A distant dark spot on the far shore turned out to be worth a zoom... a Painted Turtle!
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Heading back to the car, we decided to peek at the Valley again. At the top of the hill, three Garter sentries were guarding the entrance.
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I'm sure glad Andrea suggested we go out.

Like the night before, we immediately heard Wood Frogs clucking but were unable to see any. That is until this little guy hopped across the path.
DSCN1336

Roble's den had no Garters up but I flipped a tiny Redback that was dwarfed by some worm castings. Note the flatworm, too.
DSCN1337

The Valley, however, was Garteriffic! We saw this guy basking...
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Then Andrea noticed this guy periscoping at her.
DSCN1342
See?
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A third one was tooling along and slipped down an incline and disappeared.

We went up to the "new" den site and this Garter came crawling down towards us, obviously on a mission. Business Garter.
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Five feet away, this one was watching the progress.
DSCN1347

Business Garter poked around for quite a while, never paying any mind to us. It was a real treat to watch him. We realized that he was headed toward the other one and we poised for action...
DSCN1348
Nah, he just crawled right over the other, unphased snake.

Heading back to the trail, we noticed a small Water Snake had emerged from the den. I like this because his tail is still yet to get all the way out.
DSCN1350

We made our way over to the Cottonwood Dens. To the right of the fallen tree, Andrea spied a Garter. That's a first!
DSCN1351

I flipped another little Redback.
DSCN1354

From here on out, it got a little hectic. We saw a bunch of Garters. I can't promise these are all different, but I think they are.
DSCN1352
DSCN1355
DSCN1356
DSCN1357
DSCN1361

We thought that was it, then noticed this guy stretching out higher up.
DSCN1362

On the way back to the trail, Andrea made an epic Redback flip... eleven salamanders were under it, including our first Leadback of the year. Here are ten of them... one slipped away.
DSCN1364
IMG_9586
DSCN1365
It's always nice to see how variable this species can be.

The Rock Wall Dens were quiet, as they have been this year, but on the way out Andrea saw this guy.
IMG_9588

We went up to the more human-y part to see if any snakes were basking or any turtles were up. Right away, we saw a Garter. A couple of teen kids saw us and I said "Garter"... and one lunged right at it. I said "no-no-no... try not to handle snakes this time of year! They're probably near their dens!" He understood and released it. Pretty damn good grab, though.
DSCN1367

We walked for a bit up there but there weren't any animals other than off-leash dogs, so we turned back. A distant dark spot on the far shore turned out to be worth a zoom... a Painted Turtle!
DSCN1368

Heading back to the car, we decided to peek at the Valley again. At the top of the hill, three Garter sentries were guarding the entrance.
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I'm sure glad Andrea suggested we go out.