snakes | Vermont Reptile and Amphibian Atlas

Category: snakes

Snakes on the move, a great opportunity

Posted on September 20, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, herping, road search, snakes, updates

Herpers, these first frosty nights of the fall will motivate snakes to head back to their dens. The first warm sunny afternoon after a frost is one of the easiest times to find snakes. The frosty night is the signal…

Tagged with: autumn, fall, migration, road, roadkill, snakes

Ratsnake eggs and embryo

Posted on September 13, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, education, snakes, updates

Folks, Since I was just writing about snakes giving birth and laying eggs last week, I thought I would share with you an exciting find made by Karen Sommerlad and David Cobb of Sunderland. Just last week they were moving…

Tagged with: eastern ratsnake, egg, embryo, range

Common Gartersnake giving birth

Posted on September 11, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in education, snakes, updates

Folks, Kate Kelly forwarded this link to a very cool video of a Common Gartersnake giving birth. You can see a couple other recently born snakes moving around while the star of the show is trying to break free of…

Tagged with: gartersnake, live birth, video

Successful Herp Survey in the Northeast Kingdom

Posted on September 7, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, frogs, herping, salamander, snakes, turtles, updates

Herpers, this past Friday Matt Gorton, Kate Kelly, and I made a hike into Warners Grant near the Canadian border to locate and photograph reptiles and amphibians. Warners Grant has long been the least surveyed area of Vermont as far…

Tagged with: data gaps, herping

Erosion control and herps: please use fiber or blanket, not plastic

Posted on June 26, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, education, snakes

Erosion-control matting that contains welded plastic netting is bad news for snakes, which is why we are very thankful that the Vermont Department of Transportation (VTrans) has severely limited use of this product, as have state land managers. That said, the…

Tagged with: erosion, erosion control, products, safety

Herp Updates

Posted on April 5, 2020 by

Jim Andrews Posted in frogs, herping, salamander, snakes, turtles, updates

Herpers, there have been lots of reports of herp activity this weekend. Wood Frogs have been reported calling in full chorus from many towns and large numbers of their fresh egg-masses are now visible in ponds in the central Vermont…

Tagged with: amphibian eggs, amphibians, frog, herping, migration, salamanders, snakes, spring, turtles

Snakes and Dead Creek Day

Posted on September 19, 2019 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, education, event, snakes, updates

Herpers, this is the time of year to find snakes on the roads when you are out walking, biking, or driving (slowly). Snakes are now mowing from foraging areas to denning areas on warm sunny fall days and that means…

Tagged with: crossings, roadkill, snakes

to Herpers: Amphibian Migration

Posted on April 15, 2019 by

Jim Andrews Posted in amphibians, education, herping, reptiles, road search, snakes, updates

Herpers, here in Salisbury we hosted one of our public education nights on Morgan Road last night. We had 43 people on site and monitored and moved amphibians for two hours from 8 AM to 10 AM. Despite the conditions…

Tagged with: amphibians, community, crossings, Lake Champlain Basin, migration, spring

to Herpers: mixed success

Posted on April 10, 2019 by

Jim Andrews Posted in conservation, frogs, snakes, turtles, updates

Herpers, I just finished reviewing all the herp reports that have been coming in from this weekend through last night. Those that were out looking had mixed success last night. I have heard from groups in Monkton and New Haven…

Tagged with: community, conservation, frog, herping, Lake Champlain Basin, turtles