June-August 2011 Newsletter Volume 48 (2) Cerillos hills field report Clockwise from left: Common Checkered Whiptail (Aspidoscelis tesselata) Western Coachwhip (Coluber flagellum testaceus) Plateau Striped Whiptail (Aspidoscelis velox) Eastern Collared Lizard (Crotaphytus collaris) Chihuahuan Spotted Whiptail (Aspidoscelis exsanguis) eating a cicada This year for the NMHS spring field trip, we surveyed Cerillos Hills State Park. Here is an excerpt from the trip report by Ted Brown: Because there are no camping facilities at Cerrillos Hills State Park, NMHS members journeyed to the park on 3 separate days for this survey. Most of the 11 members who came to the park participated on Saturday the 28 th of May, hiking the trails in the northern (Cortez Mine, Escalante, Mirador trails) and southern (Village View, Elkins, Jane Calvin Sanchez trails) areas of the park where most of the mining activity took place 130 years ago. On Sunday the 29 th of May, four NMHS members (Brown, Bulgrin, Degenhardt, Johnson) joined Sarah Wood on a morning hike of 3-4 miles through Devil s Canyon on the western edge of the park. Later that afternoon, Bulgrin and Brown searched along the Galisteo River south of Cerrillos. Bill Gorum visited the park on the morning of Monday the 30 th of May and later reported his findings electronically. Participating on the survey were NMHS members Dave & Jean Burt; Scott, Rebecca & Logan Bulgrin; Dr. William G. Degenhardt; Bill Gorum; Carl Johnson; Tara & David Wheeler and Ted L. Brown. As an added benefit of having NMHS conduct a survey here, Ted Brown and Bill Degenhardt gave a presentation on the local amphibians and reptiles to a group of 10 residents of the Cerrillos and Madrid area on the evening of 28 May. Although only 2 lizards (a collared lizard and a small round-tailed horned lizard) were available for the demonstration, the guest speakers managed to fill an hour s time with descriptions of the local species and their habits and shared tales of rattlesnakes, pythons and strange voices that led to rare snakes. 1
Labor day Weekend Fieldtrip - 2-5 september 2011 Mills canyon This fall s field trip will be to Mill s Canyon in northeastern New Mexico. We will be joining up with the North American Field Herping Association (NAFHA) Rocky Mountain Chapter. http://nafha.org/ This is a great organization that is very mindful of conservation and is a very active field herping group. Their Memorial Day trip produced many great finds in the four corners area including two California Kingsnakes in Colorado! Their main goal is to input their finds in an online database. http://www.naherp.com/ This is a large database that contains thousands of records. They are also a non-collecting group. We will be there as a separate entity, so we can collect if we want to, just be discreet about it. This area has been surveyed by NMHS before; the last time was in 2002. This is a great area with a lot of species possibilities. Accommodations will be camping. Here is a blurb I found on the internet about the campground: Completely rebuilt campground on the spectacular Canadian River Canyon. Excellent for watching cliff-dwelling birds and Barbary sheep with access to fishing at river. Mills Canyon at 5100' has 12 sites and Rim at 5750' has 7 sites. The Rim Campground is a completely new site, built just south of Forest Road 600 above the top of the canyon rim. This campground is suitable for visitors with horse trailers. Three small horse corrals have been added as part of the development. The Rim Campground offers 6 campsites and one rest-room facility. Each campsite has a parking spur, table, tent pad, fire ring and grill. Trash receptacles are not provided. The wooden bridge on Forest Road 600 has been replaced along with the addition of two traffic pull-outs along the road into the canyon for visitors who want to stop and enjoy the view. This road is still maintained to a level 2 standard for high clearance vehicles. A four-wheel drive vehicle is recommended during inclement weather. Vehicles pulling trailers cannot negotiate the sharp turns along the portion of the road descending into the canyon, and are not allowed. http://www.plia.org/explore/site.php?id=174 This area is currently observing Stage Two Fire Restrictions. These include: NO OPEN FIRES!!! Which means that "building, maintaining, attending or using a fire, campfire, charcoal, broiler, coal, or wood stove fire is prohibited" anywhere in the restricted jurisdiction- even in developed recreation sites. Public lands users are allowed to use pressurized liquid or gas stoves, lanterns, or space-heating devices - check your gear before heading out to be sure it operates safely. Smoking is only allowed inside an enclosed vehicle. NO motor vehicles can be taken off road, except when parking in an area devoid of vegetation within 10 feet of the roadway. Parking overnight in developed campgrounds and trailheads is usually allowed. Internal or external combustion engines must have properly installed, maintained, and working spark arrestors. Explosives (including fireworks) are prohibited. Operating chainsaws, other equipment powered by an internal combustion engines, and welding is usually restricted as well. Directions: From Las Vegas, New Mexico, go north on I-25 to Wagon Mound (71 miles), east on New Mexico Highway 120 to Roy (33 miles), then north on New Mexico Highway 39 for 10 miles. Look for the road sign to Mills Canyon or the Mills Canyon Road street sign. Proceed west on this gravel road for 10 miles to the rim of Mills Canyon. 2
Sandia reservation plains surveys continue Top, left to right: Painted Desert Glossy Snake (Arizona elegans philipi), Western Coachwhip (Coluber flagellum testaceus), Plains Blackheaded Snake (Tantilla nigriceps) Bottom, left to right: Longnose Leopard Lizard (Gambelia wislizenii), Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake (Crotalus atrox), Prairie Rattlesnake (Crotalus viridis) The traps continue to produce lots of critters. The adult lizards are getting scarce and the hatchlings are coming on strong. The rattlesnakes have finally been sighted and we got our first diamondback! Tara Wheeler has proved to be proficient with a lizard noose and has captured several leopard and collared lizards including the leopard above. A lot of fun has been had by all. Surveys are conducted on Tuesdays and Saturdays. If you would like to participate, contact Scott Bulgrin at Rebecca@nmherpsociety.org Left to right: Eastern Side-blotched Lizard (Uta stansburiana stejnegeri) and two New Mexico Whiptail (Aspidoscelis neomexicana), Great Plains Skink (Plestiodon obsoletus), Hernandez's Short-horned Lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi hernandesi) 3
Herper spotlight: josh emms Me holding four garter snakes I flipped at Wind River Ranch How did you get into herping? I have always had an interest in herps and nature from a young age. My first memory of herping was when my parents loaded us in the car after church one Sunday and took us west on I-40 where we chased lizards around in the median and then we all joined hands for Hands Across America. What I remember most from that was chasing whiptails. I caught my first snake when I was 12 years old on a scout camping trip in the Jemez. It was a Wandering Garter Snake and I was hooked. I was always catching lizards in our yard and one day I caught a spadefoot at the local public pool. My mom allowed me to keep it and it did quite well for a few years. I didn t get really into herping in my adult life until about three years ago. I had a friend who kept rattlesnakes and was also an avid herper. He told me he would take me out sometime and we never had a chance. He was camping north of My patchnose in her terrarium Santa Fe and a tree fell on him and killed him instantly. I decided to get into to herping to kind of remember him. How long have you been a member of NMHS? I have been a member since February 2009. Do you keep herps? Yes, I do keep some herps at home, mostly snakes. I love terrariums and decorating them. I am always looking for ways to improve my habitats. Do you field herp? Every chance I get! My job allows me to herp somewhat while at work. I do pest control and find many lizards and the occasional snake. What is your favorite herp to work with? That s a tough one. I really like my Patchnose, she is great to watch climb around her habitat, but I also like my kingsnakes and my newly acquired pair of Longnoses that I plan on breeding. What was your most memorable find? My most memorable find would probably be when Nikki and I were in northern Arizona. We had spent all day looking for Rosy Boas and I had also wanted to see a kingsnake because I hadn t seen one in the wild. We saw several lizards that day including zebratails, tiger whiptails, a leopard lizard and even a chuckwalla, but I was really wanting to find a snake. We decided to take old 66 back to Flagstaff and cruise it. We had been going for quite a while and were getting pretty tired when My desert kingsnakes pipping Nikki said, Was that a stick? I don t know. We turned around and saw stretched out in our lane, black, white, black, white wow! I had found a kingsnake! Well, Nikki found it, but very cool all the same! I scooped it up and I was just in complete shock! If you could take a herping trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? Tough call, I think it would have to be either Africa or Australia. If you could keep any herp in the world, what would it be? I would love to work with black-headed pythons. I don t know why, but they have always intrigued me. What other interests do you have in nature? I enjoy birds and mammals and fishing. Who would you like us to spotlight in the next newsletter? Bill Degenhardt since he wasn t able to do it this time. 4 Great Horned Owl and chick found while herping
Meeting & Activity Notes May 28-30 Cerillos Hills State Park survey went well with several members participating and several lizards found and some snakes as well. A presentation was held to show off the findings of the survey. Two lizards were presented: a collared lizard and a roundtail horned lizard. A good time was had by all! September 1 Monthly meeting will be held at 7:00pm at the Rattlesnake Museum. Ted will present some pictures of Mills Canyon from years with plenty of rain and years of drought. Bill Gorum will also present some pictures of his finds from the summer. September 2-5 Fall Field Trip to Mills Canyon near Roy, NM. This will be a joint field trip with the North American Field Herping Assciation (NAFHA) Rocky Mountain Chapter. This will be a great opportunity to find some great critters and meet some herpers from other pats of the country. Here is a post about the trip on fieldherpforum: http://www.fieldherpforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=6952 October 6 Monthly meeting will be held at 7:00pm at the Rattlesnake Museum. Dave Burt will share some photos from IHS. November 3 Monthly meeting will be held at 7:00pm at the Rattlesnake Museum. November 20-21 Festival of the Cranes will be held at Bosque del Apache. As usual, we will be doing a big display and anyone is invited to come on down! Fake Snake Sign Posted in CdM Herps in the News A sign seeking help finding a 14-foot, 125-pound python named Zeus apparently was a fake. The sign was posted Saturday on Orchid Avenue near East Coast Highway. However, Animal Control officers said nobody had reported a missing snake in Corona del Mar, and the wording of the sign led them to believe it was a fake. A few worried residents called Animal Control after seeing the sign. The sign said anyone who found the snake inside a house should call Animal Control. Attempts to contact the person using the number on the flyer were unsuccessful. Photo courtesy of Corona del Mar Today reader Jamie. http://www.coronadelmartoday.com/21326/home/fake-snake-sign-posted-in-cdm/ 15-ft long cobra caught in Karwar Karwar, July 3, DHNS: A 15-foot long king cobra was spotted at the Vailavada village in Karwar taluk on Sunday. The snake was spotted by Sainath Naik, a resident of the village, when he was fetching water from a overhead tank constructed on top of a hillock in the village. He immediately rushed back to the village and informed others, who in turn called officers of the forest department. Forest department staff rushed to the spot with Marshall Menezes, a snake catcher. Seeing the crowd, the snake hid itself in a bush and refused to come out, forcing the team to cut the bushes. After a two-and-a-half hour long struggle, Menezes finally managed to catch the snake with the help of the forest department staff. Menezes recalled that he had last caught a 15-foot long king cobra in 1992-93 and added that he had not spotted such a big snake in the region since then. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/173480/15-ft-long-cobra-caught.html 5
The king of snakes Submitted by Jahla Seppanen Monday, July 11th, 2011, 2:02pm The Albuquerque BioPark has a new resident in the Zoo s reptile house. A 12-foot long king cobra is now on exhibit and is the first of its species to be at the BioPark. "We were very exited to receive this snake," said Doug Hotle, curator of herpetology. "The king cobra really fascinates people and encourages them to further explore the world of reptiles." The king cobra came from Iowa and is reported to be surprisingly calm for its kind. King cobras are notorious for being the longest venomous snake in the world. They are very intelligent creatures, believed to have advanced problem-solving abilities. Adult cobras have also been known for their ability to kill animals as big as adult elephants. But don t let that worry you, because this king cobra only eats mice. http://southvalley.kob.com/news/news/kingsnakes/86232 Toads develop new tactics to avoid capture LOUISE BURKE, The West AustralianJuly 11, 2011, 10:35 am Cane toads invading the far north of WA are learning disturbing new behaviours to avoid capture by humans. Kimberley Toadbusters field co-ordinator Ben Scott-Virtue said the toads had started hopping away from the group's volunteers. "The most amazing thing is when we go out with our high-powered torches at night to collect them, the toads are running," Mr Scott-Virtue said. "The moment we stop the car and open the door, they are off." This behaviour did not happen "behind the line" in the Northern Territory and appeared to be a new tactic from the toads. "Any of those areas which have been colonised for quite a while, the toads happily sit there as you come up with a torch and pick them up," Mr Scott-Virtue said. "It's certainly a learned response and it's a response from human predation on the toad." Teams of about 16 people go out every night of the year to collect cane toads, which have advanced to Molly Springs, about 30km west of Kununurra. The toads have also been found within about 20km of World Heritage-listed Purnululu National Park, which is famous for the Bungle Bungle Range. Eighty-two-year-old Bob Wainwright still volunteers with Toadbusters. "These little bastards are taking a might more effort to bag than they used to," he said. http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/-/wa/9820167/toads-develop-new-tactics-to-avoid-capture/ This newsletter is published for the edification and enjoyment of the members of the New Mexico Herpetological Society. Any opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not express or represent official NMHS policy. Questions, suggestions, and articles for publication may be submitted to the editor, If you would like a color digital copy of this newsletter, please email me! Joshua Emms 5931 Canis Ave NW Albuquerque, NM 87114 joshemms@hotmail.com 6