Ben Stegenga, Author at The Orianne Society

Southern Dusky Salamander (Desmognathus auriculatus)

6 minute read

Fieldnotes

Secretive Blackwater Salamanders

ByBen Stegenga
May 16, 2024

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 snake next to a U.S. 25 cent coin for size reference

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Hatchling Indigo Snakes and Camera Trap Surveys

ByBen Stegenga
March 25, 2024

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.

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Indigo Snake Surveys with Camera Traps & Soil Samples

ByBen Stegenga
February 16, 2024

We’re in the second half of the indigo snake survey season, and our field crew has been extra busy with the additional eDNA and camera trap surveys. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, Ben takes us out on a survey and demonstrates how…

using DNA to survey for indigo snakes in the wild

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Using DNA to Survey for Indigo Snakes

ByBen Stegenga
January 15, 2024

This past November we started a new indigo snake project, investigating the possibility of environmental DNA as a means of detecting indigo snakes in the field. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, Ben gives a brief summary of this project and describes how we’ll test our results against other indigo snake survey methods.

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Eastern Diamondbacks and a Chance to Join Us in the Field!

ByBen Stegenga
November 17, 2023

This month Ben is joined by Noah Fields (NKFherping) for some early season indigo snake surveys. We are once again partnering with Noah for #GivingTuesday, so in addition to survey highlights, they share how you can win some cool herp themed prizes and a chance to join us in the field to look for some iconic southeastern reptiles and amphibians.

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

More Drift Fence Highlights

ByBen Stegenga
October 13, 2023

With the snake inventory fieldwork all wrapped up, all Ben has to do is remove his drift fences before moving on to some new research projects. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, he revisits a few more highlights from the project, including a few of the most memorable snakes.

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Checking Artificial Cover for Snakes and Drift Fence Highlights

ByBen Stegenga
September 13, 2023

Ben’s beginning to wrap up the snake inventory project and remove survey equipment from the property. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, he checks some cover boards and tin one last time as he gathers them up, and then revisits some highlights from the project.

1 minute read

Fieldnotes

Surveying for Snakes With Drift Fences

ByBen Stegenga
August 14, 2023

Ben has been working on a snake inventory project in southwest Georgia for the last 2 years, and one of his main survey methods has been running drift fences with funnel traps. In this month’s episode of Fieldnotes, Ben checks some of those traps and highlights a colorful yet secretive snake species with a very specialized diet.