Well with the warm weather today I was able to sneak in a quick herp trip from 3 to 4:30.

My first find was a dead Eastern Yellowbelly Racer that was mostly vertical on a bluff. I thought it was alive at first. Not sure what its cause of death was.

Things improved after that. My second find was a live Eastern Yellowbelly Racer (my 4th snake species for 2006) and then an Intergrade Eastern-Red-Sided Garter Snake.

I also saw a Great Horned Owl on a lone tree in the open in broad daylight and two mature bald eagles.

The only thing I found by flipping rocks was a shrew. Note to self: A good rock to check again in a month.

Not too bad a February outing.