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Herpin in the yard.

T

tom e

New member
So we're getting ready to move to a house that I manage and have always dreamed about renting. It finally became vacant and we'll be moving in next month. We were there yesterday doing some house and yard work and I got a few pics.
Found a bunch of lizards, caught several with the old grass noose trick. Does everyone know about that? Works like a charm. Pictured is the one with the prettiest belly. I know they are western fence swifts, but around here we always call them bluebellies.
Also I've got pics here of the great big gopher snake I found in the wood pile. We have gophers like it's a biblical plague. The dog killed one (gopher not gopher snake) and is now obsessed with them. This gopher snake was blind in one eye, has lots of scars and a stub of a tail. I picked up most of it when it's head went down a hole, but it was holding on real good in the hole and I didn't want to pull hard so no full body pics. I've had corns that were longer, but I've never even seen one as thick.
Enjoy the pics, thanks for looking.

*Follow up Question- I'm going to be rototilling a bunch of the yard soon. Should I worry that I'm going to injure the snake if I do? If so is there a safe time that I can assume he/she won't be off in the holes?
 

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What a great yard, I'd be in heaven! I used to catch lizards with a grass noose as a child, and taught my boys the trick when they were little. Stalking lizards and catching them used to make them so excited!
 
Grass noose? Please explain, I'm VERY interested...I do a lot of herping in my woods and property!
 
Fun times, yard herpin'. That was my favorite thing about living in Florida when I was little, and when I moved to AZ it was like being a little kid all over again!
 
I'll put up more pics as we see more I'm sure. I've been told I'm likely to find pacific rattlers too. Plus toads and some treefrogs (I hear the treefrogs at night, haven't seen one yet.)

Anybody think there's anything to worry about with that snake and the rototiller? I'm thinking if I see him again, I'll grab him for a few days while I get the job done.
 
Grass noose? What? I like new tricks!

Your pup looks to be having a great time "helping" you herp!
 
Caryl said:
Grass noose? What? I like new tricks!

Your pup looks to be having a great time "helping" you herp!
Click to expand...

Take a long piece of grass, tear off the fruit and all the side grassy pieces so that you just have the long thread of it. In the thin end you tie a loose knot, just a simple overhand knot. Now you push the thick end through that knot. Pull that thick end all the way down till you have a slipknot that is about the size of the lizards heads that you're after.
When you walk up to a lizard, they just sort of watch you like they know you are too far away to reach them, but your grass noose can reach. They don't seem bothered a bit by the grass bumping around their heads clumsily, maybe they just think it's grass blowing in the wind, maybe they are too busy watching the human. Anyway I can pretty much catch every single one that I can walk close enough to.
The pup is watching that gopher. He actually managed to catch one later in the day, lol. Good boy.

BrandNew said:
What type of dog is that awesome lizard to
Click to expand...

Dog is a poodle or poodle mix, we got him at the shelter so we can't be sure.. Good pup though!
 
Yay yard herping! I used to catch little green lizards, garter snakes, toads, frogs, and anything else I could catch in the Clearwater/Largo area. I also saw but never touched rattlers, cotton mouths & copperheads & once or twice, a coral snake. Never saw any corns, though, or if I did I mistook them for coral snakes.
 
I'm still here, but we're moving to Santa Paula in March (not too far away). I have a lot of work to do at the property though so I'm there most days for a little bit.
 
BobbyHill said:
Oh okay, cool. Santa Paula isn't too far.
Click to expand...

Nope just down the road! Actually we're between SP and VTA. Come out sometime and we'll shoot some gophers, lol.

Here's some more from this weekend. I actually caught the same gopher snake again, he's shed and his eye looks fine. Also added some pics of a side blotch lizard. I'm trying to find an Aligator lizard now to add to the pic collection, but though I've seen them I've never had a camera handy. I spotted another gopher snake as well, and it had the full point of it's tail so I know it was a second one.

Enjoy!
 

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Nice lizard! Pretty gopher snake, too - but I like all gopher snakes! I'm glad his eye is well.
 
The gopher snake is looking good! Your yard must agree with him. What's his natural prey item?
 
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