Great pictures, thanks for posting.

I always enjoy your photography, some amazing pictures and knowledge thrown together

Thank you!

V

Great photos! Glad I have never ran into one!

Thanks everyone! I love that so many have an appreciation and respect, even if they might not love them as I do. I really appreciate that outdoorsy people here don’t have a “kill ‘em all” attitude like I encounter south of the border.

I should mention that folks should not handle the hognose. Not venomous like a rattlesnake, but it has a sort of venomous saliva.

Are you a medic, by chance? Calgary zone?

Great photos, thank you for sharing in your adventures.

Love the pics!
It never ceases to amaze me just how much different wildlife there is that yhat we take for granted or do not even notice when we are out doing other things!
Cat

Awesome, learned something new today, the lizards...very cool. Knew about the rest and someone did comment scorpions too...do we have those? I didn't think we had. Also didn't know we had the hognose, never saw one of those at the denning area i found.

I discovered a denning site sometime ago a few hours from calgary, tons of garter snakes, 3 different color variations i always called the red siders, grey siders, and then i don't know what you call the one with the orange stripe and the lime green belly but they are my fav, only ever found the first two in and around calgary but when i found this denning area i found the third color variation.

Bull snakes and rattle snakes at this denning area also, caught a bull that had to be near 9' one day early spring, just came out and was warming up on a rock. Huge snake, i'm 6' tall and i held it up with a foot and a half on the ground and a foot and half beyond my hand held way above my head (tail nubbed shorter). Would not have tried to handle her if it was much warmer, she could barely move, will never forget that slow hiss she warned me with that just kept getting louder and louder as i wondered when it was ever going to stop...when i first started picking her cold self up, wish i had digital camera then...i had no camera. Left her there of course. Caught many rattle snakes there. The babies are quite something to see at the dens, so tiny.

Anyway, great pics and thanks for posting!

Can you still trade a horny toad for an old yeller dog?

That depends. With rabies, or without? Rabies will cost you extra.

(Great novel, great movie!)

They made that movie into a book?
I’ll have to read it...

The book came out a year before the movie.

http://i.imgur.com/oP3hIETl.jpg
We had our 3rd. Annual Open House at Medicine Hat Rifle and Revolver club on June 23rd.
These two showed up and decided it was time for some procreation on the drive way 12 feet across from the main entrance to the Club house .We posted a Member to stand on guard to warn passers by and give them as much privacy as possible ,although they didn't seem to have any problem concerning that.
About 1.5 hours later{not like bunnies ,for sure} we nudged them to the other side of the fence where this photo was taken.
Lots of people had a look ,some had never seen Rattle snakes before, never mind while mating.
A nice added bit of nature bonus to a great day of shooting.
It's not unusual to see snakes on the Range ,but due to the construction next door we're seeing a few more this year.

I found some of those scorpions on a dry hillside in the Porcupine Hills a few years ago. I didn't believe what I saw until I got home and confirmed that Alberta does indeed have scorpions. Now I just need to see one of those lizards!

Great photos and story Archnodisiac. Sure missed ya posting.

Black widow
 

Are these black widow spiders dangerous to humans?
Great pics---thanks for sharing.

Cool thread.

I used to go with my dad in the fall to the rattlesnake den sites.

Wasn't uncommon to see 100 rattlesnakes on a sunny September afternoon.

Have found everything on your list (including the little scorpions) except the lizard... On the to do list!!

Thanks for the flashbacks :)

Great pics! Is that Black Widow in Alberta? Med Hat area? How common are they? Are they the same as the Black Widow we are all thinking of??

Love this post. I have hoped to find horned lizards but never have, so nice to see one. The hog nose snake is cool too, new one for me as well. Looks like some great adventures.

Yup, sure is. There are many species of black widow and this one is found into the U.S. and Mexico. Its venom is neurotoxic, but not usually fatal. There hasn’t been a. Documented fatality in North America from this species. (But it wouldn’t be fun. It’s painful and can cause pain for several months apparently.)

They aren’t uncommon. They are usually found in gopher holes, with a messy, disorganized webs. Around human habitation, they like to build their webs not too high, but they like open space above and below their webs. Think the opening of a watering can or under a bench.

They are found in the southern belt of Alberta, probably right to the mountains. They are super fun to keep!

Thank you for posting and sharing. This is something I could never do intentionally. Your herping threads are alway fascinating!

BW

I am super curious to know where! I have not seen them outside of the river areas associated with rattlesnakes, and that type of habitat.

I saw my first and only scorpion in the old Medicine Hat train station in mid-December lol , it was -20 C outside , there was a hole in the floor and this small light brown scorpion was right beside it . I don't know if anyone believed me when i told them what i had just witnessed .

Another odd sighting was in the souther interior of BC at the end of March with snow in patches , there was a long snake at the side of the road . I couldn't believe it seeing how it was still so chilly . It was a bull snake that had it's head squashed , the rest was ok so i took it and skinned it later . It's burrow must have been a warm one for it to be able to be out and about give the cold weather .

Glad to see so many people interested in the rare critters we have , gotta keep their habitat undisturbed .

Used to find them frequently in the gravel pits that used to be just up from power plant near the waterslide park. Back in the sixties.

Great thread and pics Arachnodisiac!

Awesome thread!

I'm still watching for animal skulls for your collection, but I don't see anywhere near as much as I did when I worked for highway maintenance.
Still, there is always a chance.

I'll get to see a rattler some day. I am planning on a week in the south some time in the next few years, to photograph southern wildlife. On the top of my wish list are Rattlers and Sage Grouse.

I operated on the block for near a decade and there were hundreds of widows. In addition, rattlers, hog nosed snakes, bullsnakes, giant toads, kangaroo rats.

Sure do enjoy your posts and miss them when you dont post in a while about the critters some dont ever get to see. Im surprised i never got bit as a kid. Used to crawl around out in the middle of nowhere mostly on my own. Seen all the ones you've mentioned in there natural habitat. I grew up in the kinda country you speak of. Im down there at least 5 -6 times every year visiting.

I worked on the block as a summer student about 20 years ago, documented 18 rattlers that I had seen from pencil sized to the big ones. Seen bull snakes and a red sided garter snake as well but no hog nosed snakes (great pic by the way!) Also seen more black widow's than I care too as well in the utilidor's that cover on site piping!

Great place to check out the cold blooded kind!

Hey everyone, thanks so much!

I really love sharing these photos and stories with folks that appreciate them.
This summer, I’m moving to Medicine Hat (I work there full-time now) and I’m so jacked to be able to call that part of the province my home. :sHa_shakeshout:

Looking forward to hunting the area too, and sure hope to get out with a few of y’all.

Looking forward to your 2019 adventures. Always love the pictures.

Dodger.

We just went thru your pics and story for the second time

Love it

I went to college in Lethbridge. Got introduced to the coulees by a girl. We sat and just marvelled at it many many evenings. For me, it was like being on another planet as i came from northern Alberta