A few days ago we discovered a new Timber Rattlesnake near Earthshine. It is a healthy dark phase female with a rather large rattle string. Fortunately she was found in the same are where Utsanati was found a little over a year ago. This area is visited only occasionally by lodge staff members and never by guests. I captured and relocated the snake to a location a short distance away from the capture site. Hopefully the snake will remember being captured and not return to the site. In order to know if the snake returns I have paint marked three lower segments of its rattle with red acrylic paint so that if the snake returns or is ever seen again we will be able to visually ID it from a safe distance. If the snake is seen frequently, its movements, and eventually its home range can be plotted on a map.
Watch the video of the paint marking and release below.
Watch as “King” the Eastern Kingsnake eats a Northern Copperhead that was freshly killed on the road.
Kingsnakes are predators on other snakes and are resistant to the venom of pit vipers such as the Copperhead and rattlesnake. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZXLSwF7znA
Rattlesnake Report for 7/1/2012. In these special blog postings I will update you on the movements and status of the Timber Rattlesnakes Utsanati and Zoe that we are following with radio telemetry. I have come up with a “potential danger level” scale that represents the potential danger the snakes could pose to the human inhabitants of the community due to their proximity to human habitations and activity areas. The danger level also applies to the snakes being in danger if they are near a road or yard where they could be accidentally injured or killed or injured by man and his machines and toxic chemicals such as insecticides and herbicides. If you live in the community where the snakes live please pay close attention to their locations and the “potential danger level” and take appropriate care in your activities to protect you and the snakes from any harm. The scale will be as follows: Danger Level 1= No immediate danger. The snake is in the rough. Danger Level 5=High danger level. The snake is very close to a residence/trail/road–walk, drive or mow carefully and please do not spray toxic chemicals in the area where the snake was last found. If you have questions about the snake’s locations please do not hesitate to contact me.
It has been about one month since I reported on the snakes so I will recap their status since that time.
On June 09, 2012, I had to remove Utsanati–the male rattlesnake–from a woodpile where he was sheltering because the woodpile was going to be demolished. After he was taken into captivity I decided to have him x-rayed to check the status of his transmitters antenna. I did this because the strength of his transmitter’s signal had been dropping over the last few weeks reducing the range in which I could track him so I was afraid that I might loos track of him if the battery was getting low or the antenna was having a problem. The xray showed that the antenna had come loose from its forward attachment point and had and retracted backward causing a loss of signal. This will have to be repaired in a minor surgery before Utsanati can be released back into his habitat. I will be sure to post a video of the surgery here for you to view as soon as it is complete and Utsanati is back in the wild. In the meantime I have Utsanati in captivity where he has eaten two mice and one small rabbit that was killed by a pet cat. Utsanati’s danger level is a 0.
Zoe, the female rattlesnake is still in the vicinity of the waterfall and deep in the forest and she seems to be slowly making her way back up along the ridgeline. She is close to an area that seems to be rarely used as a walking trail so her danger level is a 1.
Hello all conservation minded reptile aficionados. I would like to let all of you know a little bit about two of the reptile research, conservation and public education projects that I am conducting at Earthshine Mountain Lodge near the town of Brevard in Western North Carolina.
The first project is Turtle Tracks is a unique wildlife conservation, research and environmental education program that is studying the Eastern Box Turtle. We have been following several wild Eastern box turtles with mark-recapture and radio telemetry techniques since 2008. Our goals are to learn as much as we can about their natural movements, habits, habitats and interactions with humans and our domestic animals in fragmented habitats and to teach people about the lives of these beautiful creatures that we share our world and existence with. It is our belief that with education comes understanding, respect and then conservation and preservation.
Make the theme of your next vacation reptile conservation and visit us at Earthshine Lodge. At Earthshine you and your family will meet our education turtles, learn about the Eastern box turtle and then take a turn using the radio telemetry equipment to help us locate a wild box turtle as you journey out into the fields and forests with us on your very own turtle tracking expedition. You and your family will have the rare opportunity to experience what it is like to be a wildlife researcher following in the tracks of a wild box turtle in its native habitat! Not only will you help locate one or more of our study animals but you will also help us collect data that will be part of a larger database that one day will ultimately help conserve and protect the humble and beautiful Eastern box turtle.
You can learn more about the Turtle Tracks program on our website and sign up for updates from the Turtle Tracks project by following our blog.
Many turtle tracking expeditions are filmed by Steve and placed on his Youtube.com site where you can watch your field expedition online once you return home and for years to come. Also, check out a video compilation of the 2008 turtle tracking season below to see Turtle Tracks in action!
Our second program is Snake Tracks and, like Turtle Tracks, it is also a wildlife conservation, research and environmental education program that is studying the Timber Rattlesnake.
Currently, we are following the movements of two wild Timber rattlesnakes with radio telemetry techniques in order to learn more about their natural movements in the deep forests near Earthshine Lodge. We have named the male snake Utsa’nätï –the Cherokee word for Rattlesnake and the female snake Zoe–Greek for life. As with the box turtles we plan to follow these snakes for several years in order to learn all that we can about their travels in order to educate visitors to Earthshine and viewers like you on the interesting, beautiful and greatly misunderstood life of the Timber rattlesnake. We will bring you updates on their travels on the Earthshine Nature Programs Blog in the form of photos, videos and maps but unlike Turtle Tracks we do not plan to take folks into the field in search of these snakes or reveal their exact locations…for obvious reasons.
However: if you are a herpetologist, biologist, naturalist or scientist with a genuine interest, adequate safety equipment, and a valid reason to visit the rattlesnakes then there is a possibility that you could accompany Steve into the field on a tracking day.
Take a look at one of the most recent videos of Snake Tracks below.
You may also be interested in watching the video of the radio transmitter implantation on Utsanati below. Note: My videos are longer than many found on Youtube because I am not trying to create pop art–I am attempting to actually educate the viewer on wildlife and nature conservation so I do not leave much material out.
If you are a friend of herps and find these animals as remarkable and beautiful as I do, then consider bringing your family to Earthshine Mountain Lodge for a one of a kind fun filled all inclusive Blue Ridge mountain vacation that includes your favorite animals–reptiles and amphibians!
Other herp related activities we offer:
Nature/Science Education Center
Critter Hunt guided nature hike focusing on cover board/tin site surveys and conservation based field herping.
Creek Hike searching for native salamanders–this hike ends in a natural rock water slide.
And more!
For more about Earthshine Nature Programs please visit our website.
Follow our projects on the Earthshine Nature Blog.
Earthshine Nature Programs is a small, grass roots 501c3 non profit striving to educate people about the beauty and importance of the misunderstood creatures of the world, reptile and wildlife conservation and our place in the circle of life and energy in the universe.
I am really getting excited about the next Mars Rover mission that is going to arrive at the red planet on August 5th.
I am also a bit worried about its complexity…worried that if only one thing goes wrong it will end in a fiery disaster in the remote outback of the red planet.
So may things have to happen at just the right time, in just the right sequence or the next rover–Curiosity–will not survive.
Curiosity is the most complicated and advanced robot planet probe ever sent into space and I honestly hope that it lives for many years to explore the wonders of Mars.
This video highlights the challenges NASA and JPL are facing–please watch and wish them luck…they are really going to need it this time.
I support all exploratory space missions because if we do not explore, we do not grow.
“Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” –Carl Sagan
Earthshine Nature 