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wever 2 of these snakes were captured in late february while basking in front of their hibernacula one snake had excreted its transmitter and was thought dead the other s radio battery had died both of these snakes were found using the same gopher tortoise burrows as snakes with working radios the 6 snakes recaptured in february were brought to auburn where they were implanted with new radios with a longer 2 year battery life they were then re released at their point of capture since their release we have been consistently locating all 6 and to date they are all still alive and seem to be doing well some of these snakes seem to be at or over the 6 ft mark a4 was seen eating another copperhead on mother s day most of the snakes have been using the same areas that they occupied last year they have interestingly been utilizing many of the same burrows and retreats that they used last summer on may 16 2011 31 more snakes were released onto the site of these 21 were implanted with radios and 10 received only a pit tag of these 21 10 were female and 11 were male of the 21 radioed snakes 10 were soft released into the pens and 11 were hard released outside the enclosures along a nearby fire break within the 6 enclosures 4 received 2 snakes 2 with a male and a female one with 2 males and one with 2 females and 2 received 1 snake one with a male and one with a female snakes were distributed by clutch and size across the release methods all of the snakes without radios were males and were hard released outside the enclosures in the area it was 11 days before the first snake escaped from the pens after that snakes trickled out of the pens as observed last year there were no noticeable breaches in the fences and it appears the snakes are finding their way out through underground passages as of now 4 snakes 3 females and 1 male remain in the enclosures while in the pens the snakes utilized upturned tree rootballs burned out stumpholes and gopher tortoise burrows for refugia similarly to snakes outside the pens several times snakes from this year s release located and used the same burrows as snakes from last year s release this occurred with both soft and hard released snakes and some of the locations were a considerable distance from the initial release site these observations were surprising particularly since the pens and most of the forest service compartment around the release site were prescribed burned this winter and spring to improve the habitat in the area snakes have occasionally been encountered crossing roads and so far have made it safely across do not harm signs have been placed around the area and should encourage drivers to avoid running the snakes down last week the forest service observed and photographed an unknown snake crossing a paved road this snake has not yet been identified but is known to be a snake without a radio since all of the snakes with radios were accounted for in areas a considerable distance away from here the unknown snake could be one of the snakes released last year that was last seen in this area or one of 10 males released this year without radios we hope that with further examination the photographs taken of this snake will distinguish between these two possibilities we also hope to encounter this snake again soon and capture it to scan the pit tag so we can be sure of its true identity blue lake methodist camp across the pond creek drainage has been a popular spot for the snakes again this year four of the snakes have been observed on camp property on the same day the camp director was re contacted and again expressed support and enthusiasm for the project welcoming us to track on the property whenever needed according to her encounters with venomous snakes are up on the camp this year and she hopes the indigo presence there will help control dangerous encounters a couple of snakes have also used habitats around the blue lake recreation area this year and a couple of snakes have recently moved further north a number of the snakes have also been using neighboring private land movement has increased over the past couple of weeks and many of the snakes have moved into the nearby creek drainages as observed last year the males are moving further distances and with more frequency than females the furthest distance recorded from the release site this year is 2 62 km by a male from this year s release snakes encountered on the surface are often slithering around flicking their tongues and prodding under logs and in holes in a foraging behavior one snake was observed eating a corn snake yesterday the tree climbing behavior observed in a few snakes last year has not been documented in the field this year many of the snakes have been observed rattling their tails hissing and inflating their bodies in a threat pose when approached habitat use has been diverse with snakes utilizing all habitats available the most surprising observation so far in terms of habitat has been the high incidence of snakes locating many of the same retreat sites that were used by snakes last year the verdict on prescribed burning s affect on habitat use is still out for now but is expected to have more influence in winter habitat use when snakes rely more on gopher tortoise habitats for overwintering feedback from the local community has remained positive the new metal signs distributed around the area and placed at trailheads the local country store and popular recreation areas should increase opportunities to bolster support of the project as of today 26 of the 27 radioed snakes are alive and well only one snake from this year s release has been found dead and this mortality appears to be a natural predation as the snakes find their way around and achieve rapid growth the likelihood of natural predation should decrease additionally the sighting of an unknown snake by the forest service is encouraging since it may indicate an increase in the survival of last year s snakes the overall outlook for repatriated indigos establishing self sufficient populations in the wilds of alabama remains good although it will be years yet before the true success of the project can be measured continuing research should reveal important information to increase the chances for success for conservationists the success of this project would represent more than just a step in the recovery of a federally threatened species it would also indicate that years of management in the longleaf have restored this imperiled ecosystem enough to support the diverse array of species that once inhabited this wilderness as important predators that help keep ecosystem health in balance and as a part of the natural heritage we had thought forever lost in alabama the attempt to return indigo snakes to alabama is an investment in the future and that is good news indeed posted by jimmy stiles at 5 52 pm no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels indigo reintroduction tuesday july 26 2011 usfws adds eastern gopher tortoises as a candidate species eligible for endangered species protection the following is information from a u s fish and wildlife service press release issued 26 july 2011 the press release in its entirety can be found here in a press release issued today the u s fish and wildlife service announced that gopher tortoises east of mobile bay will be added to the list of candidate species eligible for endangered species act esa protection while candidate species receive no statutory protection under the esa inclusion on the candidate list promotes cooperative conservation efforts for these species after careful review we have determined the gopher tortoise east of mobile bay is facing many of the same problems and challenges as the western population which is already listed as threatened said cynthia dohner southeast regional director for the u s fish and wildlife service we hope increased protection and conservation efforts in the next few years by private landowners and state and federal agencies in alabama florida georgia louisiana mississippi and south carolina can reduce those threats in making this determination the service completed a comprehensive review known as a 12 month finding and found sufficient scientific and commercial data to propose listing the species as threatened or endangered throughout its range however the service is precluded from beginning work immediately on a listing proposal because its limited resources must be devoted to other higher priority actions the eastern portion of the gopher tortoise s range includes alabama east of the tombigbee and mobile rivers florida georgia and southern south carolina in these areas the gopher tortoise will become a candidate species for listing under the esa in the western range states west of the tombigbee river in alabama mississippi and louisiana it will continue to be listed as threatened under the esa threats to the gopher tortoise include habitat loss fragmentation and degradation predation inadequacy of regulatory mechanisms and incompatible use of herbicides in forest management for more information on the gopher tortoise one of the south s iconic reptile species see information from the alabama department of conservation and natural resources and the gopher tortoise council posted by wally smith at 11 20 am no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels alabama alaparc florida georgia gopher tortoise council gopherus polyphemus herps reptiles wally smith walter smith wednesday june 8 2011 red mountain park added as a new aan partner habitat at red mountain park photo by dr jennifer layton alaparc and the alabama amphibian network aan would like to extend a warm welcome to samford university and red mountain park as partners in the aan dr jennifer layton samford has been working with red mountain park officials in birmingham to install new coverboard and treefrog shelter arrays at the park for participation in the network this site is a great addition to the seven environmental education partners already serving in the network and will add a unique comparison with the aan s site at ruffner mountain nature center both ruffner mountain and red mountain are located in habitat characteristic of the valley and ridge physiographic province and will provide a great snapshot of this region s amphibian diversity huge props to dr layton and colleagues for spearheading the design and installation of the site and we look forward to this new partnership for more information on the aan a collaborative citizen science network funded through legacy partners in environmental education please visit the alaparc website posted by wally smith at 6 08 pm no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels alabama alabama amphibian network alaparc amphibians birmingham red mountain park samford university saturday april 23 2011 outdoor alabama fact sheet info now online since our organization s inception alaparc has had a continuing partnership with the alabama department of conservation and natural resources s award winning outdoor alabama website as part of this partnership alaparc members have contributed over 15 species profiles for alabama herpetofauna for publication these profiles serve as one of our first lines of defense in combating a lack of herp awareness by communicating reliable comprehensive info about reptiles and amphibians to members of the public in a jargon free accessible format in return the adcnr has graciously allowed us to link to these profiles as part of our own website s inventory of alabama herps not all of these species currently contain published profiles however and we are seeking to complete this species list as soon as possible laura laurencio has recently created an excellent outreach initiative page on our website to aid in this effort including an excel spreadsheet of those alabama species that currently need profiles if you are an expert on one of the species listed at the link above please consider serving as an author expert is a relative term of course so we welcome anyone with a strong familiarity of a particular species and a desire to condense knowledge from the scientific literature into an easy to read jargon free format for public consumption if you re interested in becoming an author please contact wally smith at whsmith1 crimson ua edu for more info posted by wally smith at 3 32 pm no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels adcnr alaparc amphibians outdoor alabama reptiles monday april 18 2011 outreach database now online amphibian outreach program with the alabama hiking trail society as a service to educators and the greater public in alabama alaparc has assembled a network of herp outreach program providers in the state these individuals regularly present educational programs at schools nature centers and other venues around alabama geared towards improving public awareness of alabama s herpetofauna and associated conservation efforts our hope is that condensing outreach providers in one central location will make these individuals and groups more accessible to the community and facilitate communication between providers if you are an educator or outreach coordinator wishing to plan a herp presentation for your school or group please browse the spreadsheet provided at the link above to view a list of program providers and their service area in the state as well as their contact information and other details for scheduling a program as of 18 april the database includes only those alaparc members who volunteered personal info on our sign up sheet at the 2010 meeting if you aren t currently on the list but frequently give herp outreach programs and would like to be included please contact wally smith at whsmith1 crimson ua edu for more information on being added to the network posted by wally smith at 2 21 pm no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest monday march 7 2011 frogging by ear workshop when 25 27 march 2011 where solon dixon forestry education center andalusia alabama come spend a fun weekend in the longleaf with herpetologists jimmy and sierra stiles learning all about frogs in alabama s frog hotspot this region supports one of the highest frog species diversities in the united states participants will learn how to recognize frogs by their call and by using field marks to identify frogs in hand nightly field trips will tour local frogging sites for hands on practice learn how to choose the best sites for listening to frogs no matter where you are we will demonstrate how google earth and other map resources can be used to identify the best spots for exploring the sounds of the night local frogs will be used to illustrate techniques to target species by understanding their life history habitat and survival needs we will present some interesting n...