Graduate School Fieldwork Begins

I started my graduate program last week, on the first of May. After getting through the typcal red-tape, we hit the ground running and started fieldwork that weekend. We traveled to Southwest Texas in search for the spot-tailed earless lizard and desert massasauga rattlesnake. We visited Tom Green, Mason, and Kimberly counties.

Our first stop was at San Angelo State Park. We found some habitat that could foster STEL observations, as well as some areas that we determined STEL wouldn't reside. The picture below shows what STEL habitat should look like.

We observed a few lizards, though we only had a confirmed identification on one six-lined racerunner and a Sceloporus. None the less, we did see some cool western herpetofauna on our trip, and gained a perspective on what the future fieldwork may entail.

Left to right: Mandy with a barn swallow she rescued, myself and and western diamondback rattlesnake, myself and a Woodhouse's toad, and a Couch's spadefoot.