snake

First Eastern Gartersnake of 2023 /  by Todd Henson

On April 2nd while hiking Seven Bends State Park in Virginia my father sighted our first Eastern gartersnake of the year. It was resting just off the trail on some leaves. He said he might not have seen it if we hadn’t been actively looking for Virginia bluebells and that while scanning the edge of the trail he noticed the coiled snake. He called me over and I created a couple photos.

The photo below was the first photo I created, looking down on the snake, trying to get something quickly in case the snake fled. This is nice in that it shows how the snake can blend into the scene. Look closely and you might notice at least a couple boxelder bugs.

First view of an Eastern gartersnake in 2023

Then I got down low to get closer to eye level with the snake. I love the added intimacy of these sorts of views. Getting low and close with a macro lens helps simplify the scene by blurring out the background, really focusing the viewers attention on the snake, and in particular the eye of the snake.

Eye to eye with an Eastern gartersnake

Unfortunately, shortly after I created the photo above the snake slithered away into the leaves. I always hate it when I scare away a subject, but as slow and quiet and respectful as I try to be, it does sometimes happen.

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A Return Visit to Voorhees Nature Preserve /  by Todd Henson

The entrance road to Voorhees Nature Preserve. There’s only a very small amount of parking, so plan accordingly and arrive early.

It’s always nice returning to a location, getting to see how it’s changed and what else it has to offer. Several months back, in early to mid-July, my father and I visited Voorhees Nature Preserve and enjoyed what we found enough we wanted to return, even after being chewed on by chiggers. This time I learned my lesson and put on some bug spray before we entered the woods, though it is getting cool enough bugs should become less of an issue until spring.

I will warn you up front, the majority of the photos I created during this trip were of fungi growing along the trails. But keep reading and you’ll see a couple other species (some that move) and a view of the Rappahannock River.

Tis the Season for Fungi

I loved this view of the small mushroom

We couldn’t believe all the mushrooms we found along the trail. It was almost impossible to walk the trail without stepping on some of them. And there were quite a variety, as well. Unfortunately, I’m not yet very good at identifying fungi, so I’ve done the best I can with some of the variety here, and I welcome any corrections or additions if you’re more experienced with these species.

We saw several bluish-purplish mushrooms, ones I don’t remember seeing before except in other folks photos. I believe they might be viscid violet cort mushrooms.

A mushroom and an acorn. This might be a viscid violet cort mushroom.

I’ve no idea what species the mushrooms below are, but I was fascinated by how they were growing around the fallen pine cone. And if you look very closely you might notice they’re even growing out of the pine cone.

A pine cone planter

I love pine forests. The forest floor always looks so beautiful with all the dried out brown pine needles fallen from the trees. And apparently, some mushrooms enjoy the nourishment, like this grouping of what might be downy milk cap mushrooms.

What might be downy milk cap mushrooms growing from a bed of pine needles

I don’t know what the species below is, and I didn’t do a good job of photographing all the mushrooms from multiple angles to assist with identification. Sometimes, as in this instance, I just photographed what caught my eye. And here it was the underside of the mushroom showing off all the gills.

Viewing the gills

Most of the mushrooms looked somewhat soft. But the mushroom below was an exception, sporting a shiny top that appears a bit more rigid.

This darker brown mushroom has what appears to be a harder shiny top

Another mushroom found amongst the pine needles was the orange-brown mushroom below. There were several in the area with another out of focus in the background.

An orange-brown mushroom growing through the pine needles

And speaking of orange, that’s exactly what caught my eye below. I saw that little ball of orange almost completely hidden from view. I don’t know what it is, but I do wonder if perhaps it’s a Caesar’s mushroom just emerging from the ground.

Could this be a Caesar’s mushroom just emerging from the ground?

Below we found a grouping of mushrooms that look almost slimy. They were growing out the side off a cut tree beside the trail. Could they be golden pholiota?

Perhaps a group of golden pholiota?

Below is another fascinating fungi, this time growing as a ring around a branch. There were several layers of it, and I loved that green ferns happened to be in the same area.

A fungal ring

Perhaps the most unusual species of mushroom we saw, at least to us, were the bluish ones below. They just didn’t look right. They almost looked as if they might be infected with something else causing that bluish color. But after a little research I wonder if these might be indigo milk cap mushrooms. One of them has a small slug feeding from the top of it.

A small slug feeding from the top of what might be an indigo milk cap mushroom

Blue and green

And the Frogs Were A-hoppin!

An Eastern cricket frog on a leaf

On our last visit we were amazed by the numbers of small toads along the trail. They were like the mushrooms during this trip, all over the place and a challenge not to step on. We didn’t see nearly so many this time. And to be honest, I don’t know for certain if we saw any. Most of what we saw was very small and hopped away before we could get a good look. Because of how far and fast they hopped I suspected they might be frogs, and when I got home and looked closer at a couple of the photos I believe at least some of what we saw were Eastern cricket frogs. I didn’t manage to get a single photo of a frog that was fully in focus. It was somewhat dark in the woods, and I was handholding the camera. I could have done better with the mushrooms if I’d used a tripod, but a tripod wouldn’t have worked with the frogs. There were just too skittish.

Great Big Orange Spider

A marbled orb-weaver, also known as a pumpkin spider

Viewing the marbled orb-weaver from the side

Spiders are all over the woods, sometimes making their webs right across the trail, leaving them for us unwary hikers to walk right into. But in this case, thankfully, the large web was just to the side of the trail. I noticed it because of the spider right in the center of the web, with a large orange body and black markings on its back. This is a marbled orb-weaver, sometimes called a pumpkin spider because it can resemble a pumpkin. After I’d gotten a top down shot I worked at getting as close to the side of the web as I could without hitting it so I could capture a side view.

The River View

Overlooking the Rappahannock River

Last time we visited we took the pond trail. This time we opted for the river trail. It started out very level, but later took us downhill to a small, almost dry, creek. We laughed that it must be the river view the sign out front had advertised. But we kept walking and eventually the trail turned to the left and began going steeply uphill. When we reached the top we saw the first overlook of the Rappahannock River. You can see it in the distance, as well, as it winds back and forth. We both thought it might have been nice if we’d arrived maybe a week or so earlier to get a little more color in the trees across the river, but at least there was still a little to see in late October.

Highlight: SNAKE!

A garter snake on the forest floor

One of the highlights of this trip for me came very near the entrance on our way back out of the preserve. I was down on the ground photographing a mushroom when I noticed an interesting pattern just beyond. When I looked more closely I realized I was right next to a garter snake! I know this is a somewhat common snake, but I get excited anytime I have the opportunity to photograph snakes in the wild, and I thoroughly enjoyed the brief time we spent with this one. As you can see they blend in fairly well, even when in the open as this one is.

In this photo the snake is a bit agitated, and none too happy with our presence right near it. While trying to get closer with the camera the snake actually struck out at me and I was surprised by its reach. I also noticed it flattened its head making it look perhaps a little more like a viper, hoping to scare us away. It was also very actively flicking its tongue trying to get our scent. I was very happy to have captured this in the photograph. After spending a brief time creating some photographs we went on our way, leaving this beautiful snake in peace.

So what did you think of our return trip to Voorhees Nature Preserve? We had a great time and hope to return again. The river trail is actually much longer than what we hiked and we’d like to hike a bit more of it at some point.

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Careful Where You Step - Eastern Copperhead /  by Todd Henson

I almost walked into this beautiful Eastern Copperhead

I’ve often encouraged you to keep your eyes open and learn to become more aware of what’s around you. Usually this is to allow you to better observe and appreciate the wonders of the natural world, but sometimes it’s also for your own safety. This past weekend while hiking with my father I almost walked right into an Eastern Copperhead, one of only three venomous snakes in Virginia and one of only two in this area (along with the Timber Rattlesnake), though thankfully it is the least venomous of them all. The third, if you’re curious, is the Northern Cottonmouth, also known as a water moccasin. I’m not sure I can describe the feeling I had when I looked down and saw the snake just below me, especially since this was, I believe, my first time seeing a copperhead in the wild. 😁

Thankfully, the Eastern Copperhead is not a naturally aggressive snake and will typically only lash out as a last resort at self defense. However, their natural defense is to remain perfectly motionless, which is how we can unknowingly disturb them if we do as I almost did and walk right into one. If touched they can because aggressive, and apparently if they’ve been sitting in the sun for a good long time and are nice and warm they can become aggressive more quickly than usual. I’ve read their bite is painful but generally not fatal. Still, it’s best to avoid the bite.

This particular Eastern Copperhead was just minding its own business, resting on the mud along the edge of the creek, perhaps coiled up watching for any small animals that might wander by and become prey. From what I’ve read this coil pattern is very common, with the tail raised in the air, and the head elevated at a slight angle. It was hard to say for certain, but it appeared to be about the average length of an adult, which is two to three feet. And it had a darker tail tip, unlike juveniles which have a yellow tail tip.

The best side view I managed to capture of this Eastern Copperhead

When threatened or nervous Eastern Copperhead will vibrate their tail, though they aren’t rattlesnakes so you won’t hear that typical rattle sound unless they vibrate their tail in dry leaves which apparently can cause a sound very similar to that of a rattler. Interestingly, they will also sometimes vibrate their tail to attract prey, which leaves me (jokingly) wondering if I happen by a copperhead and it’s vibrating its tail is it trying to warm me off or is it trying to attract me as prey?!? 😁 This particular copperhead remained perfectly motionless the entire time we were there, which wasn’t all that long, just long enough to get a good look at it and create several photographs.

We found the snake along a creek in a wooded area with plenty of exposed rock surfaces, perfect habitat for them. But you can find them all over Virginia in many different habitats. Unfortunately, that can bring them right to your home. I have friends who’ve had problems with copperhead in their garage, around their deck, or in their shed. As I’d mentioned they’re not a naturally aggressive snake, but because they remain motionless when nervous it can be easy to run right into one without knowing it’s there. And that can be a problem for young children or pets, so folks who live in those areas take special care to watch for them.

A cropped in view to show you the entirety of the coiled Eastern Copperhead. Notice the tail raised almost straight up and the head raised at a slight angle.

As is often the case these days the only lens I had with me was my 105 mm macro lens. In this situation I wish I’d had a longer focal length so I could perhaps have gotten some better closeups, but I was also very glad I had my 105 mm instead of a wider angle lens. I moved as close as I felt I could without disturbing the snake. I wish I could have maneuvered more to the side to get a better profile view, and I wish I could have gotten down on the ground to get an eye-level view. But there wasn’t a lot of room to move around, I didn’t want to disturb the snake, and this being the first I’ve seen in the wild I’m not comfortable enough with my knowledge of their behavior to risk moving too close and seriously aggravate it. But I’m very happy I was able to capture the images I did, and I hope to safely create more in the future.

A heavily cropped view to give you a better view of the back of the head, some of the patterns, and the tail. Notice that very angled shape to the head, which can be used to identify the venomous snakes in this area.

A heavily cropped view to show you the very distinctive vertical pupil in the eye, another feature of venomous snakes.

For the two photographs with the wider views I cropped in just a little, they’re almost full frame. But I did create some other versions far more heavily cropped to let you better see some detail in this remarkable snake. In the closeup of the head notice the angled shape of the head and the vertical pupil in the eye, distinctive of vipers. They’re called pit vipers because they have heat sensing pits located between eye and nostril and used to help locate prey. Unfortunately, these photos don’t provide a good view of the pit. But I’m hopeful they do contain enough detail to give you a decent (and safe) view of this Eastern Copperhead with the beautiful patterns along its length and that coppery colored head that gives the viper its name. It really is a remarkable creature.

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