Kansas Herping event 4/23/06

good and bad, Herps numbers 1/3rd of last weekend but almost entirely females and thin due to what appeared to be after egg laying. Very, VERY dry and hot by noon. Place : the Flint Hills proper east of Topeka and south of Manhattan. The observation of herps looks like they may change from week to week till summer heat causes them down in their estivation period. Last week I posted the finds of that event. Last night upon returning we are in the rain with very cool temps coming and even a chance for frost ! ?

Sppeavy : didn't see your post to me till we got back. We DID find one large mass on road alive on the way out there.

Lack of ring necks which by my by-gone years documentation is strange for the time of year. It has ABSOLUTELY been a early year for Kansas herps. But will this up-coming front this week change it ? I think it will for a short window if the temps don't climb back into the high 80ties and lower 90ties soon.

We did find some places that had been herped but the rocks were very carefully put back into place. Thanks for whomever did this ! The controlled or not controlled burn off of old prairie grass was under way of course which made it even dryer and hotter in certain areas by being voided of plant life. The fires were stagnant due to no wind at all out there so therefore we gave up on hunting those areas and the ones that appeared to have been burned very recently.

The big three of native snakes were under a dozen each : milks, specs, great plains rats. We did find numbers of great plains skinks and collared lizards.

Its all good.

I still went out, and boy was it good for me. I did strike out on speckled kings, but I found the monster milks for this spring. I got permission to hike this property of Mcdowell Rd. The 3rd rock I lifted had 2 large central plains milks.....I mean LARGE. The female measured in at 43 inches, and the male was 38. These are the biggest I have ever seen out here. The fourth rock had a plains rat under it and a garter snake. Now, I have'nt found a big plains rat in years, so the next find was exciting for me. I flipped a 56 inch female plains rat. It was big snake day for me. I also pulled a monster Black rat under some tin and 3 large banded water snakes. I noticed the lack of ringnecks under stones, but they were abundant under tin. Yeah, it was hit and miss with the burn hills. I try to avoid them till they greenup a bit. All in all, it was fun, and the bigs milks were awesome! This coldfront comming through is perfect for the critters, once its heats up after this, critters will be out like crazy!

Last weeks finds?

You never posted here about last weeks finds. I went back out west again today and found a speckled finally, and a box turtle, and a DOR horned toad just North of Wabaunsee Lake. I have been having trouble finding good spots out there, due to the burns. Its alot of driving backroads and getting lucky with unburnt hills. Ill be back out next weekend regaurdless. I was going to go south, but I think ill try Iowa alittle. I really want to find some fox snakes, and maybe some hogs.