Incidental Herps p1

All text copyright © Eitan Grunwald. All photographs copyright © Eitan or Ron Grunwald except photographs by others are copyright per photo credits. All rights reserved. Terms

While visiting friends in upstate in New York. A common herp of the northeast ― don’t care how common they are, I still think they’re stunning. While on another visit to the same place. My daughter grabbed this frog, flipped a board and came up with a handful of snakes, and I lifted a stone to reveal two more. While hiking a forest trail with my family along the coast of Oregon. On a cool but sunny day in October, this snake unexpectedly darted across our path. While camping with my brother’s family in North Carolina. These little guys were scurrying near our tents: While walking along a river in Yosemite. This Garter Snake was basking on its waterfront balcony. While driving cross-country with my son. In South Dakota I spotted my first Bull Snake by the side of a road bordering a farm field. While hiking with my family among the redwoods in northern California. This Ringneck was just crawling along the trail . . . . . . while this Garter Snake was lounging in a pool. While visiting an archaeological site in Israel with family. Very cool to flip rocks from a 3,000-year-old wall. While walking with my son through a local nature preserve. On a cold day in early spring we unexectedly found this Ribbon Snake, my first New Jersey snake of the season. While driving in Nevada and Utah on a family vacation. There was much slamming of brakes. While hiking in the Catoctin mountains of Maryland, stopping to explore ponds and streams. While driving through the Pine Barrens with my family. This first Spotted Turtle was rescued from the road, and we saw four more while kayaking that day. While having lunch in Everglades National Park. For more than 30 years our family has made a picnic there every December, sitting in virtually the same place, watching alligators (the same ones?) glide by.