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Started By
Message
re: TexZona snake trip
Posted on 9/4/25 at 8:59 pm to Carson123987
Posted on 9/4/25 at 8:59 pm to Carson123987
quote:
Wow, those arizona rattlesnakes are so awesome
There are several others in Arizona even cooler than the ones I got. Might take another shot at them in a couple weeks, though I’ll still be out of range of the speckled rattlesnakes, which might be the prettiest of all.
0
Posted on 9/4/25 at 9:04 pm to ecb
quote:
Won't coral snakes kill you? Why are you playing with it baw?
While the Sonoran corals are still pretty toxic, they’re around 4-5x less toxic than Eastern corals (though I’ve played with those too
). I think there are no reported deaths from Sonorans. That might be the most chill venomous snake I’ve ever handled - I never felt threatened. Though it did come up close to my hand once and my buddy swears it had its mouth open.
Posted on 9/4/25 at 9:13 pm to TigrrrDad
quote:
I cheated - I posed it in the tree because it’s the only way I could get it to stay still
Is that a fairy or a moth flying above the ground snake in the tree? LOL
Great picture as I am going through and looking up the snakes I am not familiar with.
Posted on 9/4/25 at 10:01 pm to Speckhunter2012
Yeah I didn’t pose the moth though - he appeared in the frame naturally.
All photos are just cell phone shots, and a lot of the good ones are just lucky. I really love the Great Plains rat snake shot, and all I did was stick the phone down to the ground and hit the button. Saw the shot afterwards and was like, “Damn - that looks really good!” Usually if I lay on the ground and really try to get a good pic, they come out crappy.
Plenty of the better shots are screen grabs from video too - at night when it’s hard to light the snakes without shadows to get still shots, and snakes won’t stop moving, video seems to come out clearer - and you can always find a decent screen shot in a few minutes of video.
All photos are just cell phone shots, and a lot of the good ones are just lucky. I really love the Great Plains rat snake shot, and all I did was stick the phone down to the ground and hit the button. Saw the shot afterwards and was like, “Damn - that looks really good!” Usually if I lay on the ground and really try to get a good pic, they come out crappy.
Plenty of the better shots are screen grabs from video too - at night when it’s hard to light the snakes without shadows to get still shots, and snakes won’t stop moving, video seems to come out clearer - and you can always find a decent screen shot in a few minutes of video.
This post was edited on 9/4/25 at 10:09 pm
Posted on 9/4/25 at 10:42 pm to KemoSabe65
KempSabe65, it does indeed.
I never did get around to answering you in the other thread. My dad & uncle were both into snakes, so my brother and I picked up the interest and started catching snakes at around age 6 or 7. Throughout my early years (through early teens), we used to spend most days in the woods or on the canal catching snakes & turtles.
I backed off after I started driving and discovered girls, got busy with school, work, etc., but throughout my lifetime I’ve always lived in areas close to nature and would occasionally take a stroll through the woods a few times a year. Then 5 years ago I moved onto 18 acres in Folsom, discovered that my creek was full of cottonmouths, and began that obsession that has played out on this board.
Then 4 years ago a youtuber friend of my son flew down from Utah to catch stuff in Louisiana, so I reached out to some local herpers on social media for some spots to take him. It became an annual trip for a few years. In year 3, he and I hit Florida for the first time with modest results. Then last year we hit Florida again and we ran into a social media influencer guy who is one of the most accomplished herpers in the country. He and I became friends and he taught me how to do South Florida, then invited me to do West Texas last July.
In the past 2 years I’ve done the Everglades 8 times, West Texas 7 times, and Arizona once (and couldn’t have done it without his tips). So this whole road trip herping thing really just happened for me over the past 2 years, with most of it only being possible because of a chance encounter with the influencer, who is 26 now and has been running all over the country for like 8-9 years. He’s also the one who got me started on the free-handling last year.
I never did get around to answering you in the other thread. My dad & uncle were both into snakes, so my brother and I picked up the interest and started catching snakes at around age 6 or 7. Throughout my early years (through early teens), we used to spend most days in the woods or on the canal catching snakes & turtles.
I backed off after I started driving and discovered girls, got busy with school, work, etc., but throughout my lifetime I’ve always lived in areas close to nature and would occasionally take a stroll through the woods a few times a year. Then 5 years ago I moved onto 18 acres in Folsom, discovered that my creek was full of cottonmouths, and began that obsession that has played out on this board.
Then 4 years ago a youtuber friend of my son flew down from Utah to catch stuff in Louisiana, so I reached out to some local herpers on social media for some spots to take him. It became an annual trip for a few years. In year 3, he and I hit Florida for the first time with modest results. Then last year we hit Florida again and we ran into a social media influencer guy who is one of the most accomplished herpers in the country. He and I became friends and he taught me how to do South Florida, then invited me to do West Texas last July.
In the past 2 years I’ve done the Everglades 8 times, West Texas 7 times, and Arizona once (and couldn’t have done it without his tips). So this whole road trip herping thing really just happened for me over the past 2 years, with most of it only being possible because of a chance encounter with the influencer, who is 26 now and has been running all over the country for like 8-9 years. He’s also the one who got me started on the free-handling last year.
Posted on 9/5/25 at 3:09 am to TigrrrDad
Great pics. Had no idea there were that many types of rattlesnakes
Posted on 9/5/25 at 6:39 am to TigrrrDad
No Indigos?
Posted on 9/5/25 at 7:53 am to TigrrrDad
Settle the red/yellow and red/black theory between corals and king snakes for me. I was always taught red/yellow was bad and red/black was ok. Someone on another thread of yours said the opposite 
Posted on 9/5/25 at 9:17 am to TigrrrDad
quote:
Yes, retired from dentistry in 2010, a few years after a C5-6-7 cervical fusion.
I am almost certain we went to school together.
Posted on 9/5/25 at 9:49 am to elprez00
quote:
No Indigos?
I was too far west this trip. Earlier in the year I went south for indigos but only got a pair of coyote pups
. I found one freshly hit on the road last year, but that’s it.
Posted on 9/5/25 at 10:18 am to Canon951
As a general rule for corals in the southern US, red touch yellow applies. Red touch yellow kills a fellow.
Eastern coral snake
…as opposed to red touch black, friend of Jack - as seen on this scarlet snake…
…and this scarlet kingsnake.
But the rule can get confusing on other corals - on the Sonoran coral, some might call it white instead of yellow.
And corals may even have aberrant patterns, so you don’t even think to apply the rhyme…
Then if you get into some other countries, the whole rule goes out the window…
As a general rule, if you can’t instantly recognize the species without needing the rhyme, don’t pick it up. And even if you can instantly tell it’s a coral, you probably still shouldn’t pick it up.
Eastern coral snake
…as opposed to red touch black, friend of Jack - as seen on this scarlet snake…
…and this scarlet kingsnake.
But the rule can get confusing on other corals - on the Sonoran coral, some might call it white instead of yellow.
And corals may even have aberrant patterns, so you don’t even think to apply the rhyme…
Then if you get into some other countries, the whole rule goes out the window…
As a general rule, if you can’t instantly recognize the species without needing the rhyme, don’t pick it up. And even if you can instantly tell it’s a coral, you probably still shouldn’t pick it up.
Posted on 9/5/25 at 10:21 am to Major Dutch Schaefer
quote:
I am almost certain we went to school together
What year?
Posted on 9/5/25 at 10:33 am to MarsellusWallace
quote:
You aint right
quote:lol
MarsellusWallace
Posted on 9/5/25 at 12:17 pm to TigrrrDad
1984
Posted on 9/5/25 at 2:28 pm to TigrrrDad
quote:
HC?
Yep
Posted on 9/5/25 at 2:44 pm to TigrrrDad
quote:
And even if you can instantly tell it’s a coral, you probably still shouldn’t pick it up
*Goes on to pick up snake anyways.
Posted on 9/6/25 at 2:14 pm to TigrrrDad
Beautiful pics, but man, I can't help but to think and notice you may be getting a little too complacent and comfortable handling some of those venomous types. I can see a definite difference in now and some of your way earlier postings. Hope you don't get hit, but I'm expecting that anytime.
Posted on 9/6/25 at 3:44 pm to bbvdd
quote:
"I have a great idea!! Let's pick it up!!!"
"Hold my beer!"
Posted on 9/6/25 at 10:04 pm to BFIV
It’s not as bad as it looks in the photos. None of the snakes that were close were striking. If you can get a hand on the tail and another mid-body, they settle down a lot. But when you have them by the tail only, their natural reaction is to climb upward. If you could see the videos, you’d see that their moves weren’t very aggressive. All the good stuff is on my instagram. There are plenty that I don’t even attempt to pick up, and some that I quickly bail out on. That being said, I did get bumped by a Mottled rock rattlesnake on the trip before this one, and also by a baby Western diamondback this trip. They made nose-to-hand contact, but neither was striking. If they wanted to get me, they would have.
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