Northern Ohio Herping Highlights 2010

Amphibians Out in Cleveland Area Tonight - March 13th.

Earlier in the week it began to get warmer and the snow around the amphibian breeding pools began to melt.

Eventually the daytime temperatures hit the upper sixties and today, although cooler, it began to rain. There were many amphibian fans out to see the annual migration.

Spring Peepers could be heard calling off in the distance, though a few, like this one, were crossing the road. Most Spring Peepers have an "X" mark on their back - this one was a variation on that theme.

The clucking of Wood Frogs could also be heard if you listened closely. The few that were crossing the street had exceptional coloration.

The Jefferson Salamander is the less common of the two salamanders in the area, it was a welcome find. This individual had quite a bit of blue flecking.

The temperatures were in the low 40s, but with steady rain coming down, it was an irresistible lure to Spotted Salamanders.

What a great way to kick off the 2010 herping season!

About 15-20 years ago I went camping in North-Central Ohio at a very popular campsite that borders Lake Erie. One particularly memorable part of the trip was a piece of wood about 12 x 18 inches that was a few feet from out tent. The wood was on the edge of cut grass for the tents and a wooded area behind it. Behind the wooded area was a maintenance area. After being camped out for a few days, just for kicks I decided to flip the board, not expecting much. Imagine my surprise when I found my first Eastern Fox Snake. Later we explored the maintenance area and found another Fox Snake, along with Garter and DeKay's Snakes. On May 5th of this year I thought I'd revisit the spot and see what was up.

I found several Eastern Garter Snakes, though all were in shed and under cover - except this large female. Here's a shot of her "as found" patrolling a pond.

Most of the habitat I explored looked like this, with the Lake Erie shoreline 20 feet to the left, just beyond the row of trees.

There were a ridiculous number of Northern Water Snakes out, some with very reduced (spotted) patterns. Others were almost black or strongly banded. While walking the shoreline I saw three Water Snakes up in a tree (two males trying to mate with a female).

I remember growing up in Cleveland and catching DeKay's Snakes (Northern Brown Snakes) as a kid - they were the only snakes in my neighborhood. I never get tired of seeing them in the wild. Most were rather small, but this was a decent-sized female.

Sometimes when you go herping, you find exactly what you are looking for - and that's pretty cool. Finding this baby Eastern Fox Snake fulfilled my quest.

Another photo of the same snake.

But the good times didn't end there. Remember the maintenance area I mentioned? Well there weren't any snakes this time around, but I did find this Smallmouth Salamander - my first ever.

On September 13th, it seemed like a pretty good day to check out a dozen or so strategically placed boards in the Greater Cleveland area.

Pieces of plywood or corrugated metal set out in semi-sunny areas at the edge of the woods and a field will often attract snakes.

The first board had two milks under it, a yearling and an adult female. Smaller Eastern Milks often have "chestnut" blotches on a grey background, which change colors as the snake ages.

The larger milk was this freshly shed female. She was quite feisty and did a lot of tail vibrating and striking. Click here to see another photo of this snake

He's a photo of the younger one after I got it out from under the board. It had kind of a whacky head/neck pattern.

The most commonly seen snakes were Eastern Garters. We saw 10-12 of them. This one has bluish eyes because it is in a shed cycle.

See What Brown Can Do For You: Only one DeKay's Snake (Northern Brown Snake) was seen.

The short outing came to a close with this way-cool male Eastern Milk Snake.