Field Herping

[keithalw]

Me and a buddy of mine is wanting to go field herping. I was wandering what are some of the things we will need.

I know we will need the obvious snake hook, pinning tool, water, and maybe some food.

So any tips would be helpful

thanks

[LooseAFur]

Make sure you take your common sense with you....

Make sure you get a booklet of native snakes with images for identification purposes

Oh and a camera

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[tokaysrnice]

If your not familiar with your native snakes a good field guide is a must. In your area you have 6 native venomous snakes and a lot of look a likes.

A good hiking stick, a camera, a lunch, and a good pair of shoes should do the trick.

Nate

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[Mike Schultz]

Depending on what you are looking for, a guide is always helpful

I never used to find much until my boss, a seasoned snake hunter, educated me in the history and behaviors of wild reptiles and amphibians.

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[morti]

Originally Posted by Breed and Feed

Depending on what you are looking for, a guide is always helpful

I never used to find much until my boss, a seasoned snake hunter, educated me in the history and behaviors of wild reptiles and amphibians.

Quoted for Truth. I have gone into the field "Blind" many times, and I can occasionally find a snake or two doing it that way, but a local who knows where they're at is the best thing you can take with you!

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[Mike Schultz]

Originally Posted by morti

Quoted for Truth. I have gone into the field "Blind" many times, and I can occasionally find a snake or two doing it that way, but a local who knows where they're at is the best thing you can take with you!

Yup! For example, while I was down in Florida I decided to try to find a coral snake... I looked under every pile of palm fronds I could find but not a one!

When i got back I learned that they DO hide under these frond piles... But they bury themselves a couple inches under the loose dirt underneath them! If I had just known and dug a little deeper, I would have probably found what I was looking for!

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[snakehooked]

Which is why as a kid around here you're always told not to play in the palmettos. There are some surprises in there.

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[John_White]

Bring a cell phone. Let someone know what area you plan to be in and what time you expect to return home. A pinning tool can be ineffective in the field at best and dangerous to both humans and snakes in inexperienced hands. If you are new to field herping try to find someone experienced in your area. If you have a local herpetological society, that's usually a great place to start.

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[Mike Schultz]

Also true... its very hard to pin a snake in the field without injuring it. Rubber coated snake tongs can be useful

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[telefrag]

I get alot of flack for it.. but I bring a heavy pair of work gloves.

not for snakes...

but for splinters, thorns, broken glass, barb wire, other good stuff you often have to move in the pursuit of hard to extract animals.

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[Mike Schultz]

Originally Posted by telefrag

I get alot of flack for it.. but I bring a heavy pair of work gloves.

not for snakes...

but for splinters, thorns, broken glass, barb wire, other good stuff you often have to move in the pursuit of hard to extract animals.

I find a pair of those thin "Mechanix" brand work gloves do the trick for lifting logs, boards, etc. without getting bitten by black widows and other nasty little critters

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[tokaysrnice]

Common sense always comes in handy.

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[keithalw]

I thank all of you for your advice. My buddy is not seasoned at it but he has did it all last year. I did find a herp society that just recently started around here and got a few people trying to work on going.

I am just excited about finding something I never seen before or something I have had cb in the wild.

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	Captive Born Captive Born