Topic: Big Spring Herp Report
I probably should be putting my time to better use, like advancing work on the AR Herp Atlas?, but I've actually been out herping quite a lot this spring. So far, it has been very successful.
The spring rains and record flooding brought out a ton of amphibians, like this Spotted Salamander and Cave Salamander.
Back home, I FINALLY made some progress on my gator tank. Got a big, expensive filter, cleaned up some gravel, set up the basking shelf. Still need to work on the canopy though.
I had skipped my best opportunities to find any of these during rains of December through February, but with all of the later spring rains I decided to give it a try. Took me 2 1/2 hours of road cruising a few miles of road...can you say BORING!...but I did finally get one.
Probably my best personal find so far this year... I was hoping for Spadefoot, but expecting the more common Hurter's. I had scouted the locality, timed the weather and temps, and even sacrificed a long drive and late night (before kicking off a full work week the next Monday morning, yuck)...but hit the jackpot: Plains Spadefoot! After confirming the calls with samples from my iPhone, I literally sprinted through knee-deep water into a flooded field to grab two before a heavy front of rain completely dumped down. Lightning was popping pretty good, too. Back in the truck, I just snapped a couple of quick pics and was lucky enough to catch Kelly Irwin on the phone for advisement. One was held for vouchering, the other released. This makes only the third confirmed locality for the species in AR, and in a new county.
Might have still been a little cool for Hurter's because I struck out on those (or maybe they just aren't in that area?), but even in the cold rain a few snakes were on the move...
Closer to home, the flooding was pretty impressive.
Another species I was too late for their breeding activities, but decided to try for anyway...Northern Crawfish Frog. These are super easy to spook and it took a lot of patience to sneak up on them at their burrow entrances. They were calling, but very sporadically...so it was take 3 steps forward, silence for 5 minutes, a couple of calls, take 2 steps forward, repeat.
Another Cave Salamander... Doesn't he know this isn't a cave???
More threatening clouds... Will the atmosphere ever settle down???
Consequence of flowing water...
As circumstances afforded a couple of unique opportunities, I took advantage to photograph a few things I wouldn't normally hold under a bit more controlled conditions:
Just a couple of habitat, bird, and scenic pics thrown into the mix...
Probably the most commonly encountered AR snake that the fewest people know what it is...
Hey, what's not to like about these little guys? ...well, other than the fact they sound like Jim Carrey's "most annoying sound in the world" from Dumb and Dumber.
I kind of decided this spring that I didn't know enough places to herp close to work, so I scouted and even rediscovered a few spots. When the weather is nice in the late afternoon, it's nice to get a little herping buzz before heading home. I was especially excited about stumbling into a couple of patches of prime rocky glade habitat. If I don't pull a Groundsnake from these at some point in the future, something is wrong with the world.
On Mother's Day, my nieces wanted to go fishing at our pond...so the whole family joined in. A Plain-bellied Watersnake decided to pay us a visit.
I absolutely HATE EM! ...and boy, for so early in the season, I sure did hit a megacity patch!
A few more of this and that...
Thomas and I literally got flooded out of our plans to herp Arkansas Post last weekend, but I had already put in for a day off Friday. I figured if I didn't take it then, it would be very hard to get later on. I was packed and ready to go *somewhere* just after work on Thursday. By noon, I still wasn't completely sure where, so in the absence of any better ideas I decided for the 'ol stand by: another AR Coralsnake hunt...or is it witch-hunt? I wonder how many hundreds of dollars of gas money I've now put toward this failed effort? Oh well. Seems like every time I take the long trip down I end up finding something worthwhile. This time was definitely no exception! The deep drought of the past couple of years appeared to be pretty well broken and the ground was--gasp--actually a bit moist.
Say, aren't snakes supposed to like this stuff?...'cause I hit 3-4 piles pretty hard and found squat.
Anole.
Not only do I not find these very often, I don't recall ever finding one in so obvious of a foraging position/posture.
Remains.
A pretty common late afternoon find, but boy did this one put on a show!
I'd say right here, for s-shaped posturing, he's ramping it up to 11!
Nice young Speck.
Slight habitat enhancements were *necessary* at this site. Don't people know how they are supposed to throw out their board scraps any more? 
I heard several choruses of these and saw a few. I figured I'd better snap a few pictures...or wait another 13 years. 
Now, the story of the trifectas... I'll start off by saying that I was 1 species short of a TRIPLE TRIFECTA. (And yes, I just totally made that up! HA!)
Trifecta #1: Not a lot of herp subspecies found in AR matter too much to me. Buttermilk Racer, Southern Crawfish Frog, and this one definitely do! Not only the first Louisiana Milksnake I've ever found, but THREE at one site!
First:
Second (a wee little baby!):
Third (still a young one):
Trifecta #2: I've turned up the Kingsnake trifecta over the course of a weekend before, but, along with the above Milksnake, this one came from the exact same site!...all found within the space of an acre in the span of about 30 minutes.
Trifecta #3: Count the Scarletsnake we found at the exact same site--yes, the exact same site--last year, with the Louisiana Milk from this year...and I fell one shy of what I would call a tricolor trifecta, the sweetest trifecta of all! Almost, I might say, as sweet as a candy-cane. Maybe my next trip down I'll get it.
Of course, a few other things were seen, too...
On the way back home, I stopped at a flooded swamp in central AR. Finally got my canoe in the water for a bit. Saw several Broad-banded Watersnake:
The beaver (or is it beavers?) were really loving the flooded conditions.
A few turtles were basking, but I could only confirm Common Musk, Mud, and Red-eareds.
Bullfrog on a floating mass of vegetation...
After chasing these things around for 45 minutes and running out of time, I finally gave up...short of snapping a couple of bad pictures. With a second and third opinion, I'm calling them Mississippi Greens.
Cottonmouth were downright thick along the shore as they attempted to dry out. In two brush piles I could have easily counted a dozen or more. Also saw a few in the water. Guess how many chased after me or attempted to crawl into my boat?
Sorry picture of a dirt-common species to end on, but it is what it is.
WHEW! Is that it? HA!
Well, I still need to send data of inventory species to ANHC and a few other things...
My updated species list for the year:
Dwarf American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus charlesmithi)...MAR 4...Benton Co.
Fowler's Toad (Anaxyrus fowleri)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Blanchard's Cricket Frog (Acris blanchardi)...FEB 13...Madison Co.
Cope's Gray Treefrog (Hyla chrysoscelis)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Green Treefrog (Hyla cinerea)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Gray Treefrog (Hyla versicolor)...APR ?...Benton Co.
Spring Peeper (Pseudacris crucifer)...FEB 17...Benton Co.
Cajun Chorus Frog (Pseudacris fouquettei)...MAR 4...Madison Co.
Boreal Chorus Frog (Pseudacris maculata)...MAR 8...Benton Co.
Strecker's Chorus Frog (Pseudacris streckeri)...APR 16...Johnson Co.
Eastern Narrow-mouthed Toad (Gastrophryne carolinensis)...APR 30...Johnson Co.
Crawfish Frog (Lithobates areolatus)...APR 25...Benton Co.
American Bullfrog (Lithobates catesbeianus)...FEB 17...Benton Co.
Green Frog (Lithobates clamitans)...MAR 4...Benton Co.
Southern Leopard Frog (Lithobates sphenocephalus utricularius)...JAN 2...Benton Co.
Plains Spadefoot (Spea bombifrons)...APR 24...Johnson Co.
Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma maculatum)...MAR 4...Benton Co.
Eastern Tiger Salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum)...APR 23...Benton Co.
Dark-sided Salamander (Eurycea longicauda melanopleura)...MAR 29...Benton Co.
Cave Salamander (Eurycea lucifuga)...APR 22...Benton Co.
Many-ribbed Salamander (Eurycea multiplicata)...MAR 26...Polk Co.
Oklahoma Salamander (Eurycea tynerensis)...APR 16...Franklin Co.
Western Slimy Salamander (Plethodon albagula)...FEB 28...Benton Co.
Ozark Zigzag Salamander (Plethodon angusticlavius)...FEB 19...Benton Co.
Fourche Mountain Salamander (Plethodon fourchensis)...MAR 26...Scott Co.
Kiamichi Slimy Salamander (Plethodon kiamichi)...MAR 26...Polk Co.
Rich Mountain Salamander (Plethodon ouachitae)...MAR 26...Polk Co.
Southern Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon serratus)...MAR 26...Scott Co.
Southern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix)...APR 24...Franklin Co.
Western Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus leucostoma)...MAR 25...Conway Co.
Western Pygmy Rattlesnake (Sistrurus miliarius streckeri)...MAY 13...Nevada Co.
North American Racer (Coluber constrictor)...MAY 8...Carroll Co.
Prairie Kingsnake (Lampropeltis calligaster)...MAY 14...Ouachita Co.
Speckled Kingsnake (Lampropeltis holbrooki)...APR 6...Benton Co.
Louisiana Milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum amaura)...MAY 14...Nevada Co.
Eastern Coachwhip (Masticophis flagellum flagellum)...MAR 20...Yell Co.
Northern Rough Greensnake (Opheodrys aestivus aestivus)...APR 9...Madison Co.
Texas Ratsnake (Pantherophis obsoletus)...APR 4...Madison Co.
Flat-headed Snake (Tantilla gracilis)...APR 2...Benton Co.
Western Wormsnake (Carphophis vermis)...MAR 26...Scott Co.
Ring-necked Snake (Diadophis punctatus)...FEB 28...Benton Co.
Mississippi Green Watersnake (Nerodia cyclopion)...MAY 15...Faulkner Co.
Plain-bellied Watersnake (Nerodia erythrogaster)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Broad-banded Watersnake (Nerodia fasciata confluens)...MAY 15...Faulkner Co.
Northern Diamond-backed Watersnake (Nerodia rhombifer rhombifer)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Midland Brownsnake (Storeria dekayi wrightorum)...APR 24...Franklin Co.
Eastern Gartersnake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis)...MAR 18...Benton Co.
Rough Earthsnake (Virginia striatula)...MAY 7...Benton Co.
Western Smooth Earthsnake (Virginia valeriae elegans)...MAR 4...Benton Co.
Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus consobrinus)...MAR 12...Carroll Co.
Northern Green Anole (Anolis carolinensis carolinensis)...MAY 13...Nevada Co.
Southern Coal Skink (Plestiodon anthracinus pluvialis)...APR 16...Franklin Co.
Common Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon fasciatus)...MAR 19...Benton Co.
Broad-headed Skink (Plestiodon laticeps)...MAY 14...Nevada Co.
Little Brown Skink (Scincella lateralis)...FEB 13...Madison Co.
Prairie Racerunner (Aspidoscelis sexlineata viridis)...MAY 13...Nevada Co.
Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Ouachita Map Turtle (Graptemys ouachitensis ouachitensis)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Eastern River Cooter (Pseudemys concinna concinna)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Three-toed Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina triunguis)...APR 19...Benton Co.
Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans)...MAR 25...Conway Co.
Mississippi Mud Turtle (Kinosternon subrubrum hippocrepis)...MAR 25...Conway Co.
Eastern Musk Turtle (Sternotherus odoratus)...MAR 25...Conway Co.
Midland Smooth Softshell (Apalone mutica mutica)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Spiny Softshell (Apalone spinifera)...APR 9...Johnson Co.
Some terrific finds! I really love all the salamanders you manage to find. There's so many animals I haven't seen in Arkansas yet. 
The milk snakes are really pretty, and I love the mad rat.
Matter of fact, I've been meaning to contact you about hitting some spots in our neighborhood. With the cooler, wetter weather, flipping rocks and artificial cover is still very productive.
it was still alive but probably had just fallen from the sky after mating and it had nothing left to give. It died overnight so I put it in a baby food jar of alcohol.. will be watching for others.. I expect this one is male cause it looks much smaller and not as marked as the first one I saw this year.