Notes from an Alligator Den
Ben Stegenga
Views:217 views The spring field season is in full swing now. Indigo snake surveys have been completely wrapped…
2025 The Year of the Wood Snake
Views:231 views Tropidophis melanurus – Photo by Jake Scott Happy Lunar New Year! Today marks the beginning of…
In a Hole in the Ground, There Lived a Tortoise…and So Much More.
It’s well known that Gopher Tortoises are a keystone species in the dry upland habitats of the Longleaf Pine Ecosystem. Over 350 species rely upon them or their burrows in some way, but what does that actually look like?
Finding Indigo Snake Eggs in the Wild
Views:34 views Ben and Jesus have just kicked off our 2024-2025 indigo snake survey season, and while it’s…
Collaborative Science to Monitor Invasive Snake Parasites
Views:263 views Ben holds up a freshly collected fecal sample from Eastern Coachwhip (Masticophis flagellum flagellum) that will…
Flatwoods Salamander Pond Research
Launching long-term research projects this summer, our Georgia field crew, led by Ben, installed water monitoring wells in ephemeral ponds within pine flatwoods habitat. These ponds are crucial for Flatwoods Salamander recovery efforts, providing essential data for their conservation.
Secretive Blackwater Salamanders
My first true salamander focused foray into the blackwater creek swamps of southeastern Georgia took place years ago with my friend and former colleague Jonathon Bolton. We decided to spend a Saturday exploring a small blackwater creek system. We hiked upstream along the main channel to where it became somewhat braided, and the shallow floodplain swamp spread out beneath a dense canopy of tupelo and other hardwoods.
Hatchling Indigo Snakes and Camera Trap Surveys
Our indigo snake season is winding down, but it was a pretty good winter for snake surveys, and we collected a lot of important data. Now the research crew is beginning to transition into some new spring projects, but they’ve still got a lot of indigo camera trap photos to go through. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, Ben recaps a particularly memorable day from this winter and highlights more sandhill biodiversity with another batch of camera trap photos.