Kayak camping and Herping

Two Summers ago my girlfriend and I went kayak campign on Eschaw creek in the Francis Marion National Forest. Eschaw creek is a tributary of the Santee River. We took some time to herp on our trip and managed to find some pretty cool stuff.

On the way out there we found a dead snake in the roadd. The snake was long and black with smooth scales. Based on the smooth scales, black coloration, slender body, and head shape we identified this snake as a black racer Coluber constrictor. These snakes are fast moving active foragers and are commonly seen crossing forest roads. It is not a suprise that we found this one dead on the road.

We saw one small alligator (~4 ft) while paddling to our camp site but we could not get close enough for a photo. Arriving at the campsite we took some time to set up camp and then went exploring. We found several large sliders, a southern toad, and an eastern spade foot toad, none of which I photographed. After flipping over several logs we came across my favorite salamander species, the marbled salamadner (Ambystoma opacum). This Salamander was identifiable as a member of ambystomatidae because of its robust size, lack of nasolabial grooves, and conspicuous costal grooves. It was identifiable as a marbled salamander by its unique silvery/grey dorsal pattern. The photos aren't the best because of the camera I was using but the salamander is still easily identifable based on the dorsal pattern. These salamdnres are typical of low swampy areas such as eschaw creek but are also found on drier sites. They are sit and wait predators with small home ranges. This one probably spends a lot of time under the log where I found it.

Finally on the way back to civilization we came across a reddish snake crossing a forest road. Stopping to examine the snake more closely it became clear it was a corn snake based on the dark spear mark on the dorsal surface of the head and the checkered pattern on the ventral surface. This scientifc name is Elaphe guttata and it is a member of the family Colubridae. These snakes are common in all types of woodlands. This particular specimen was found in a pine flatwood. These snakes are primarily nocturnal but I've personally encountered them frequently crossing roads during the day, especially during the summer. Perhpas they are searching for mates more actively during this time of the year.

(Kevin Maginn, SC)