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| no partners | | I went to Joshua Tree National Park this weekend. I had nothing going on in the East Valley, and I didn't want to go up north and possibly run into you guys - no offense (just kidding, take offense).
I've never been to the park in June and wanted to see what was different about June from the other months. I like to explore areas at different times of the year to see how the flora and fauna respond to each season.
June is a lot like May, but with some key difference. First off, the park has fewer visitors in June and that might alter the behaviors of some animals. Secondly, there were fewer flowers. I didn't see any chuckwallas, and I saw fewer lizards over all, with the exception of geckos and desert spiny lizards. In fact, the key difference that make June unique from any other month at Joshua Tree is that there were a plethora of desert spiny lizards everywhere. June is when they pair up and they were out in full force.
Another difference is that the snakes were coming out very late at night (mostly after 10pm) because the days were longer. The temps were between 84 and 90 degrees where I was at - not too hot. I didn't get much love from the park this month, as animals were tougher to find than usual. Staying up until 2am and getting up at 5am is not fun, but if I don't photograph the snakes, then who will?
Snake sightings (2016):
- Gophersnakes: 18
- Sidewinders: 19
- Dbacks: 21
- Kingsnakes: 9*
- Ground Snake: 1
- Threadsnake: 1
- Coachwhips: 13
- Night Snakes: 7
- Spotted Leaf-nosed: 3
- Lyre snakes: 3
- Checkered garters: 2
- Patch-nosed: 5
- Long-nosed: 3
- Shovel-nosed: 8*
- Speckled Rattler: 3
- Sand snake: 2
- Glossy snake: 2
- Terrestrial Garter Snake: 4
Total = 124 
*The most that I've ever seen in one year. |
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Route Editor
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