Michigan Herp Trips
Herping Trip Reports from Across the Country
July 20-21, 2008: In Search of a Buckeye Horridus
Ever since I encountered my first Copperhead & Timber Rattlesnake down in Illinois in October of last year, I've wanted to return to their range to look for them once more. After a few weeks of planning, I finally was able to make it down to southern Ohio to take a shot at them. Mike Graziano was kind enough to welcome me to his state and show me around some areas, the terrain was beautiful.
The Foothills of Southern Ohio
After setting up camp, we decided to go cruise some roads to see what was out and about. Problem was, a large thunderstorm had rolled through and left the roads extremely wet, so no snakes were found on the roads. After a few hours, we were beginning to get a little frustrated. But around midnight, we saw this in the middle of the road.
A Red Salamander! We were really excited to see this cool amphibian out and about and it really gave us a morale boost. This is only the second Pseudotriton I've ever seen.
Northern Red Salamander - Pseudotriton ruber ruber
After that, we decided to go check some creek and stream areas for some salamander and whatever else we could find. We ended up staying out til 3 AM. Our first snake was flipped about 2 AM under a rock, only my second ever Queen Snake.
Queen Snake - Regina septemvittata
And a few more finds from the night, surprisingly the Northern Dusky was a lifer for me.
Northern Dusky Salamander - Desmognathus fuscus
Two-lined Salamander - Eurycea cirregera
The next morning we headed out to another great salamander spot to look for Pseudotriton and Gyrinophilus.
Seep - Pseudotriton & Gyrinophilus Habitat
We saw some more Duskies and then found this little beauty, a newly metamorphized Red Salamander.
Northern Red Salamander - Pseudotriton ruber ruber
After striking out on Gyros & Mud sallies, we decided it was warm enough to start looking for some snakes. We headed to a few board & tin sites for a wide variety of species. We didn't find much right away, but this was encouraging to see.
These eggs were found in perfect habitat for both Black Kingsnakes & Milks, so it could have belonged to either species. Finally just before noon, we hit a tin site where Mike figured we would get a Copperhead. There was one piece he called his money tin, and that there was always a snake under it. Sure enough he called the flip, underneath was this beautiful Copperhead. It was one of my targets for the trip and I was excited to find my second ever Copperhead.
Northern Copperhead - Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen
We kept moving from site to site as fast as we could. Our next sight produced some really cool finds as well. I flipped this female five-lined skink under some rotting boards. A few minutes later, Mike flipped the prettiest Eastern Milk Snake either of us had ever seen under a large board.
Five-lined Skink - Eumeces fasciatus
Eastern Milk Snake - Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum
On our way to our last stop of the day, we spotted this sad sight...
DOR Copperhead - Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen
As the day was coming to a close, Mike took me to a spot where he felt gave us the best chance at seeing a Timber. The habitat was gorgeous, and with several miles of hiking to do through it, the task seemed daunting.
Rocky Hillside - Perfect Habitat for Timber Rattlesnakes
After a long hike in, we came to a couple large sections of rocks that Mike had found Copperheads at before. Sure enough, this beauty was flipped under a large rock.
Northern Copperhead - Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen
Not too far from where we got the Copperhead, there was a large rock that looked really good. Mike said he'd flipped several copperheads underneath it. So it was worth a look.
Mike and I were both in shocked by what was lying underneath the rock...
TIMBER!!!!!!!! We couldn't believe our eyes, right there in front of us was our target for the trip. We had been in the area for less than 24 hours and found a Timber, some people have looked for years and never found one. It was an awesome animal, and very photogenic. It sat for a good 20 minutes as we photographed it.
Me Photographing the Timber - Photo by Mike Graziano
Timber Rattlesnake - Crotalus horridus
I can't thank Mike Graziano enough for his hospitality during my visit, without him I would've been lost in such a huge area. A short but amazing trip that I will never forget.
Farewell for now...
Species Observed:
- Northern Green Frog
- American Bullfrog
- Pickerel Frog
- American Toad
- Red-spotted Newt
- Two-lined Salamander
- Northern Dusky Salamander
- Longtail Salamander
- Northern Red Salamander
- Eastern Fence Lizard
- Five-lined Skink
- Northern Black Racer
- Queen Snake
- Eastern Milk Snake
- Northern Copperhead
- Timber Rattlesnake