Michigan Herps

 After coming across the Timber Rattlesnake the night before, my last day in Illinois became focused on finding the last of the pitviper species, the Northern Copperhead. I woke up at hit the road with a few members of the chapter around 10 AM. The Indiana crew had headed down to Mingo Swamp in Missouri to look for some Broad-banded Water Snakes, so the rest of us that remained went and herped the road. It was a lot busier than it had been the two days before, but it still didn't take long to find a few snakes on the move.

Western Cottonmouth

This snake was pointed out to me by an older man and his grandson just sitting a few feet off the edge of the road. It sat in this exact position and never tried to run at all. I was absolutely worn out from the day before, so I decided to head out and check a few good spots on the way back to the car that I knew would probably have Cottonmouths. Sure enough, a few of the crevices and bluff areas I checked held some nice looking Cottonmouths.

An almost all black Cottonmouth in a Crevice

Typical Cottonmouth Pose

I went back to camp, and slept the rest of the day in order to rest up for the night. The previous two nights, members of the Midwest chapter had road cruised up Copperheads on the road that runs throughout the bluffs between 8-11 PM, so I decided to have a go at it and hopefully find a Copperhead. Things were slow at first, and I roadcruised a few nice looking amphibians to start.

Southern Leopard Frog

American Bullfrog

I continued to drive through the bluffs of the Shawnee National Forest, just hoping to come around a turn and see a snake in the road.

And then I came around a sharp switchback, and saw this...

I slammed on my brakes, and rushed out of the car to stop this beauty in it's tracks. This snake was a lifer for me, just like the Timber we saw the night before. It was an absolutely gorgeous snake.

Northern Copperhead

Northern Copperhead

I could not believe that I was able to see the Western Cottonmouth, Timber Rattlesnake, and Northern Copperhead in one trip. I had completed the trifecta and it was an awesome conclusion to the Midwest trip. Overall, I gained 4 lifers and met a lot of new people who I hope to herp with again...

Species Observed:

• Western Cottonmouth
• Northern Copperhead
• Southern Leopard Frog
• American Bullfrog

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