SOUTH CAROLINA
March 2015
3 of 5
SOUTH CAROLINA
March 2015
3 of 5
Year Three of the EDB project repeated the pattern of previous years (see South Carolina 2013 and 2014). Most of
the regulars were on stage while I was down there in March, but the big stars didn’t make their appearances until
later. Fortunately, enough Diamondbacks were found to increase our sample size significantly, and the data collected
from tracking those snakes contributed valuable new insights about the precarious population.
So, although I wasn’t around for the real action, it’s a privilege being part of the team, and always a pleasure to
wander a fresh spring burn in the Carolina coastal plain.
Here, then, a small sampling of some species that turned up at the beginning of this field season:
This rare snake was a lifer for me.
When I found this snake, the only thing I could see at first was its back. For a sec I thought it was a Pygmy.
During my stay the only EDBs I saw were the remains of a mortality, probably killed by feral pigs, and a healthy
one found under tin at another study site for a different project.
Red-cockaded woodpeckers make their nests by boring out cavities in living pine trees. Below the nest they drill
a ring of small holes, causing sap to flow down and coat the trunk.
The sticky resin forms an effective barrier against Rat Snakes, who have specially-adapted ventral scales to grip
bark, enabling them to climb tall straight trees without needing the support of branches.
With the gradual accumulation of new EDBs found later in the season, the project was well-positioned to take a
big step forward the following year.
Carolina Anole
Anolis carolinensis
Brown Snake
Storeria dekayi
Rough Green Snake
Opheodrys aestivus
Scarlet Kingsnake
Lampropeltis elapsoides
Timber (Canebrake) Rattlesnake
Crotalus horridus
Eastern Kingsnake
Lampropeltis getula
Corn Snake
Pantherophis guttatus
Southern Toad
Anaxyrus terrestris
South Carolina Slimy Salamander
Plethodon variolatus
Southern Chorus Frog
Pseudacris nigrita
Oak Toad
Anaxyrus quercicus
Mud Turtle
Kinosternon subrubrum
Pine Woods Snake
Rhadinaea flavilata
Green Tree Frog
Hyla cinerea
Eastern Ribbon Snake
Thamnophis sauritus sauritus
Eastern Hognose Snake
Heterodon platirhinos
Carolina Pygmy Rattlesnake
Sistrurus miliarius miliarius
Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake
Crotalus adamanteus
Eastern (Yellow) Rat Snake
Pantherophis alleghaniensis
