Herpefauna of Elm Fork Preserve

Herpefauna of Elm Fork Preserve

This category includes both reptiles and amphibians.

Comments: The comments section lists remarks in the following order:

^{1Interesting facts and natural history associated with the
animal. Its place of origin is also listed if it is an alien.}^{2Edible, medicinal or otherwise useful qualities of the animal
(for humans). Poisonous potential}^{3Food preferences of the animal and potential predators.}^{4Identifying features of the animal, especially differences
between similar species.}^{5Dates, times and locations of animals sighted. Observed
behaviors.}^{6Synonyms; outdated or recently changed scientific names are
inserted here.}^{7Good references for further information on this animal.}

Common Name	Scientific Name	Comments

Frog, Northern Cricket	Acris crepitans blanchardi	⁵14 Jan 03 – Disturbed a gray-brown, nondescript individual along the bank of the big pond. It jumped into the water and swam a few feet before resting in plain view. Daytime high temperature was ~58° F. 7(University of Texas Herpetological Research Center, 1997 - http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/frogs/acris.crepitans.html
Snake, Red-banded diamondback water snake	Nerodia erythrogaster transversa	⁵2 May 98 -- Naturalist Jimmy Walker observed this distinctive snake while conducting an interpretive walk in the evening.
Snake, Rough Green	Opheodrys aestivus	⁵28 Oct 99 – The author picked up a rough green snake while leading an interpretive hike and allowed the group to view it up close. 7Tennant, 1998, p. 99)
Snake, Speckled King	Lampropeltis getula holbrooki	⁵31 Oct 98 – While conducting a guided hike, we encountered a large (maybe 4’), vividly black & white speckled snake. Tentative identification made later the same day by examining A Field Guide to Texas Snakes points to only one snake matching the description and found in our area. 7(Tennant, 1998, p. 203)
Snake, Yellow-bellied Racer (?)	Coluber constrictor flaviventris	¹The eastern yellow-bellied racer is a long, slender snake that moves away very rapidly when encountered by a human. These generally docile snakes will bite if cornered or captured, but are not poisonous. This is an extremely common snake in our area and hunts during the day which increases the chances of seeing one. (University of Texas Herpetological Research Center, 1998 - http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/snakes). Adults are a uniform color of brown, grey, olive or blue with a yellow belly. ^{3The main prey includes rodents, lizards, smaller snakes and insects. ^{531 Oct 98 – While conducting a guided hike, I picked up and examined a juvenile. Tentative identification was made later the same day by examining A Field Guide to Texas Snakes and should not be viewed as a conclusive determination. ^{7(Tennant, 1998, pp. 175-176}}}

Reference:

Behler, John L. & Wayne F. King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1979.

Conant, Roger. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern North America. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1958.

Herps of Texas – http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/…

Milam, Royce. Natural History Notebook. The following dates: 28 Oct 97, 12 Feb 98, 9 July 98, 22 July 98, 27 Sept 98, 31 Oct 98,

1 Nov 98, 13 April 99, 22 April 99, 28 April 99, 29 Oct 99. (All dates pertain to Elm Fork Preserve, but not all contain herpefauna data).

Milam, Royce. Completed Program Summaries. The following dates: 2 May 98, 19 June 98, 8 July 98, 24 July 98, 22 Aug 98, 1 Oct 98, 10 Oct 98, 31 Oct 98, 1 Nov 98, 2 Nov 98, 26 March 99, 25 April 99, 21 May 99, 21 June 99, 24 June 99, 6 July 99, 28 Oct 99, 4 Nov 99, 31 Jan 00, 30 April 00, 9 Oct 01, (All dates pertain to Elm Fork Preserve, but not all contain herpefauna data). (personal note: This is not a full listing of completed programs for EFP – only those with an after walk summary.)

Tennant, Alan. A Field Guide to Texas Snakes. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Company, 1998.

Tyning, Thomas F. (Edited by Donald & Lillian Stokes) A Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles. Boston, Mass: Little, Brown & Company Ltd., 1990.

Wernert, Susan J. (Ed.). North American Wildlife. Pleasantville, New York: The Readers Digest Association. 1982

Caution: Alteration of this electronic document destroys data integrity and voids all liability for species misidentification by the author.

All identifications were made by the author unless specifically noted. If additions are made to the species list, please be sure to include the person’s name that is making the identification, as well as the date, time, location, evidence used for identification (bones, tracks, scat, photos, etc) and the reference used.

(herpefauna of EFP.doc)