I’m no crocodile hunter but I do enjoy hunting for and catching reptiles, amphibians and pretty much anything that hops, slithers, crawls, or swims. Every since I was a kid I have tried my best to become adept at catching snakes (the scars on my hands from when I was a kid prove it).
I’ve never really taken any photos of the things I’ve caught over the years, but I’m going to start doing so and sharing them here. In Pennsylvania we have a fairly diverse ecosystem of creepy-crawly things and I’ll do my best to seek them out. First up, a snake and a frog.
On Saturday while visiting a nearby park I caught a few Garter snakes (probably about 6 different snakes) and frogs. The type of Garter snakes we have around here are the eastern version of the Common Garter snake, a relatively calm, absolutely harmless snake. The only way you’d be bitten (and these guys have extremely small yet sharp teeth so even if you get bit the wound is very minor) is if you pick up a female too quickly. The males could generally care less if they are picked up. However, it is all about the approach. If you approach these guys in a calm manner, you can pick them up gently without any fear of harm or even aggression from them.
And then, of course, a bullfrog.
I’m going to make a concerted effort to catch more wild things over the course of this summer and also to share some of my techniques with catching things, releasing them, and causing as little harm to the animals as possible. I hope you will enjoy a little something different here at First Initial, Last Name.