Reptiles at Risk

Day 3: Day Off!

Posted by Mary-Ellen Peckham on July 17, 2007 at 5:11 PM

Hello Reptile Enthusiasts!

Today is day three of the tour, and is coincidentally our day OFF *Big Smiles* .We have decided to spend the day at Murphy’s Point looking for black rat snakes *Delighted Look* as we are in prime habitat for them; there is lots of forest around for their tree-climbing habits and lots of small mammals and birds for them to eat.

Unfortunately, these snakes are an endangered species; the people in the Kingston area are VERY lucky to have them around! We have even heard some campers talking about seeing them right on their campsites!! If only we were that lucky!

As we were walking along we found (thanks to Sarah Jane's immense knowledge of the park) a wonderful frog pond. Jeff at one point counted 39 frogs!!!! THAT is ALOT of frogs in one place- but it was great to see, especially since some species of frogs are declining in some parts of Ontario. When we first got there; lots of them were laying out in the sun on rocks, because like all amphibians (and reptiles!) frogs are ectotherms. This means they use their environment around them to heat up and cool off. As we got closer they all jumped into the water but we sat very still on some rocks and slowly they reappeared and started to sun themselves again! Sarah Jane was even able to pick one up with a branch for some closer pictures!

We continued on our walk in search of the black rat snake and stumbled upon another pond in which we saw a painted turtle sitting out on a log sunning! We knew it was a painted turtle because of the yellow markings on its neck and the red ones on its legs we saw once we looked at it through our binoculars we knew for sure we were right. This was a cool sighting, but we were expecting to see some on our walk since they are one of the more common turtle in Canada. As we looked at the painted turtle, Jeff noticed another turtle and immediately upon recognizing its yellow chin and very high domed shell talked with EXTREME excitement in his voice (at least by Jeff standards!) to tell us all "Look left! Bandings Turtle!" We immediately all looked right....no, we looked left....eventually...We were all thrilled to see this, as bandings turtles are a threatened species in Ontario.

After lunch we went out on a different trail as we had yet to see a black rat snake, it was a cool trail that showed some great forest succession and had lots of cool rocks and logs to flip as we looked for some of the smaller snakes. Jeff and Sarah Jane found some garters by the sound they make rustling through the leaves. Jeff even caught one for a minute and was able to guess that by its large size, it was a girl! We continued along to a little bridge where we saw a water snake out sunning and then were caught off guard when Sarah Jane almost stepped on another one as she went to look off the other side of the bridge. Around the bridge, which we dubbed "water snake passage", we saw 11 water snakes...and it was not a long bridge. As Jeff commented, it makes you realize how many things you walk by and do not see. It was a great end to a day off.

Smiles and Laughter
Mary-Ellen