Black Racer

This is the black racer. You ever wonder what kind of snake it was when you where hikin through the woods and something just shoots off the trail into the underbrush. Well if it was shiny and black most likely it was one of these guys. A remarkebly fast species with a bad temper. Although its not venomous the black racer will often bite vigorously when captured. This fully grown adult was seen here in a bush on the side of a dried up ditch. When I tried to capture him he took off through the woods. It was a long chase. I was within inches of grabbing him a couple of times, but I had no luck. First, he shot up a small oak covered in thorns. Then he hit the ground running through poison ivy and briar. I stayed with him for a while until I lost him in a large thorn bush. Sorry yall I tried my best but theres gonna be no exact measurements for this guy. I would have to guess he was right at 2, 2 1/2ft. If you encounter one of these snakes or aren't quite sure if its a racer or not, some noticeable features are the dark irisis, also when fully grown they'll be a shiny black coloration, when juvenile they will have a slight pattern, another characteristic is at first they will usually retreat into a tree, and most likely if caught it will bite. Well good luck and check soon for the newest capture!

"Today's Catch" Yellow-bellied water snake

This little guy was feisty. At about 1 3/4ft he wasn't getting caught easy. I was out in the field today on my own so sorry about the poor videoing my camera's actually sitting on the back of my bike seat. Anyways hope you enjoy!

Catch of the day baby ribbon snake!

For more videos of me check out youtube.com just type in snake capture and you'll find me under the swampmaster.

Rough Green Snake

This specimen is a rough green snake. Often found in gardens, climbing through bushes, or lying motionless in leaf cover. A medium size snake reaching lengths of around 3 1/2 ft. This particular snake was right at 2ft. Caught by my little brother basking on the side of the road right near a line of bushes. If you are on the search for a rough green snake keep your eyes peeled its a tough one to find blending in perfectly with its green scales to all types of shrubs. Once you've spotted and identified this beuty be quick to grab because its a swift little snake crawling under leafy debre and evading fast. As for tempermant I personally haven't had one bite me yet, but all snakes have a different attitude. If treated gently you should be in the clear plus its teeth are so tiny it probably wouldn't even break the skin.

Alligator Snapping Turtle

The alligator snapping turtle one of the biggest freshwater turtles in the world reaching weights over 300lb's. This giant was right around 60lb's. With its thick shell, beaked nose, worm like lure (located inside its mouth), and powerful leg muscles the snapping turtle is one animal not to be taken lightly. It hunts by sitting motionless on the bottom of creeks, lakes, swamps, rivers , and bayous with its mouth wide open dangling its worm like tongue waiting for a fish to swim by. Once the fish is in range it snaps its beak like snot down with great force and devours its prey. This turtle was accidently caught by my little brother while he was fishing in a lake by our house. He was using live perch as bait when he felt a huge hit. At first, when he reeled in, he thought he was caught on a log, but to his surprise this turtle came out the water, and him and his buddy grabed it! The best way to catch this animal is by grabing it by the tail. STAY CLEAR OF THE MOUTH, with jaws capable of snapping a thick branch in half you don't want to mess around with this terrapin. Also don't forget the alligator snapping turtle has an extraordinary capability of striking out far ranges with its long neck. I personaly suggest, unless your experienced, not to mess around with the alligator snapping turtle. If you do encounter one it truely is an amazing site, a creature so prehistoric in nature and so well evolved for survival.

Fishing

Off Shore fishing trip

Blue water it just can't get prettier than this.

Kyle and his King Mackerel.
Me with my King Mackerel.

This was a great trip. We went out of La Fouchon where there was a King Mackerel fishing tournament going on. We started are trip just in the marsh where my buddy kyle caught a nice Red Fish. Then we ended up fishing blue water about 36 miles out. We caught our limit of Red Snapper, which is two per person, in about one hour. After that we began trolling the rip, which is where the currents come together and make a line in the gulf. Most fishermen will tell you this is the best fishing you can get into. While trolling we caught two nice King Mackerel and almost had a huge bull dolphin. Weather threatened to cut the trip short but we managed to catch all we needed before the rain came. Thanks Captain Wade for the great trip!

Eastern Ribbon snake

Ribbon snake food
Trail we like to take to find all types of snakes including the eastern ribbon snake

These are a couple of the many ribbons snakes me and my little brother have caught. If your just getting into snakes these are a fun catch. Rarely do you have to worry about them bitting you and even if they do it won't break the skin. If you want to find these snakes you can look in any riparian wetland or in any area bordering water. There found in these areas because there diet consist of fish and amphibian larval. Most of the time I'll find ribbons snakes early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Once you spot them its important to get a hold of them quick because there quick to slither into underbrush and holes once disturbed.

Water Snakes vs. Water Mocasins

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For this post I decided not to give dates and times because if you live in southern Louisiana its pretty apparent that you'll see a water snake everyday if you know where to look. Water Snakes are a very diverse species, you can find several different patterns and sizes among them. My top two favorite kinds of water snakes are the banded and diamond backed species. If your not sure where to look for one, try any sunny area near or in a creek, canal, ditch, or river. Another promising start is anywhere near slow moving water. Mistaking the water snake for the water mocasin, aka cottonmouth, is one of the most common and apparent errors made when identifying Louisiana snakes . I've provided several pictures of water snakes and one of a water moccasin along with a quiz to test whether or not you can distinguish between the two. Here are some pointers. First check the pupoles, water snakes have circular pupoles while water mocasins have eliptical or cat like eyes. Next check for pits, water snakes are non-venomous, so you won't find any on them, but the water mocasin is a member of the pit-viper family, which has pits for sensing prey. Finally, the last, but not suggested method of determing whether the snake is a water snake or water mocasin is checking its scales. If you flip a venomous snake in Louisiana over you will find that its scales are single, undivided all the way past its anal plate while a non-venomous snake is not. Besides all the anatomical differences, you'll find that a Cottonmouth or Water Mocasin will not run away from you as quickly as a water snake. But I wouldn't count on this either, the water snake on the rock in the picture above actually came on land next to me while I was fishing took my bait and went back in the water. That was pretty much an exception to what I've found elsewhere. All other water snakes I've encountered quicky drop into the water before I have any shot at catching them. One last note here, which is why water mocasins are called cottonmouths, is because when agitated they open there mouth real wide and show off the inside of there mouth which is as white as cotton.

Ring-necked Snake

Species: Diadophis punctatus

Date: April

Time: 10:30 a.m

Temp: 80 F

Sky: clear

I saw this snake around the same location as the copperhead. Me and my little brother caught him basking on a muddy trail under some powerlines. At first we weren't sure what species it was, but a quick check in our field guide revealed it was a ring-neck. Around 1 1/2 ft, he was almost fully grown. This snake was extremely calm when captured and never once tried to bite. What I found so unique about this snake was that his scales reflected the rainbow when in the sun and his belly had a beutiful yellow colored pattern.

Mud Snake Capture

Species: Farancia abacura

Date: 5/23/08

Time: 2:05 p.m

Temp: 83 F

UV Index: 5 moderate

Humidity: 76%

Sky: mostly cloudy

I found this snake in Mandeville, Louisiana. This was the first mud snake I've ever seen and it was an exciting capture. It had rained hard on and off all day, and I was searching on the side of a canal. I just caught a glimpse of his tail and me and my buddy Ryan couldn't find him after that. Out of no where he swam into the canal and I jumped in after him. Just at 3 1/2 ft he was a beautiful snake. The black of his back glisened and he had a bright red pattern on his belly. Three things struck me about this snake one was that mud snakes have a little point to the end of there tail and they like to try and dig into you with it, but don't worry it can't brake the skin, second they put off a very nasty smell when handled at first, and third they really don't like to bite, they'll mimic like their going to but never actually do it. Hope you like the picture these are of me, my brother and his friend.

Copperhead

Date: May 21, 2008

Species: Agkistrodon contortix linnaeus

Time: 7:20 p.m

Temp: 80 F

UV Index: 0 low

Humidity: 73%

Sky: Fair

This was a very close encounter for my little brother and I. We were hiking through a marshy area in St. Tammany along a string of powerlines. On our way out, this 3ft copperhead was sprawled out on the trail, waiting for his next meal. We stepped within a few feet of him before noticing he was there. Although venomous, this particular snake is not the most deadly in Louisiana. This particular snake was not a very-aggresive specimen, it didn't even move when I tapped his tail to get him off of the trail. Personally, I find the copperhead to have one of the most beautiful patterns of snake species in Louisiana.

Texas Rat Snake

Species: Elaphe obsoleta lindheimeri

Date: May 18, 2008

Time: 10:45 a.m

Temp: 81 F

Humidity: 40%

UV Index: 8 very high

Sky: Partly Cloudy

This specimen was captured off of the St. Tammany trace. It was located on the side of a canal in a berry/thorn patch. It took some work getting out, and was pretty agitated once on solid ground. We noticed it under chirping blue jays, which seemed to be making a distress call. The snake was 5ft in length and had characteristic dark blotches on a yellowish brown background.

Hello and Welcome to Reptiles of Louisiana

I will be posting photos and comments on various reptiles and their activity throughout Southeast Louisiana.