Tag: Gopher snake

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This Gopher Snake Is Doing Her Part in Keeping Down the Rodents

Posted on June 24, 2014 – Written by Chris Kasten

This gopher snake is doing her part in keeping down the rodents.  This photo was taken recently in the Fern Lodge area of Big Santa Anita Canyon.  Snakes of all kinds abound, mostly non-venemous.  All snakes are by nature, secretive, preferring to not be seen.  Unfortunately, gopher snakes are occasionally mistaken for rattlesnakes.  However, this snake, like most, is harmless to people.  Gopher snakes seek out mice, rats, frogs  and occasionally ground squirrels.   This snake is also a mortal enemy to rattlesnakes.

Gopher Snake in rock wall. Big Santa Anita Canyon, Fern Lodge area.

Like king snakes, gopher snakes  take their prey through constriction, swallowing their catch whole.  This is done by the snake purposely dislocating its’ jaws, allowing larger prey to pass on through to the esophagus and stomach.  Gopher snakes can grown upwards of 4′ in length, climbing through rocks and even occasionally up a tree!   My wife and I once watched a 3 footer climb up the side of a mature canyon live oak at the trail junction of the Upper Falls and Gabrielino trails.  It was amazing to watch it slowly and carefully work it’s way up the steeply sloping trunk.  These are patient creatures to say the least!  If you are lucky enough to spot one, give him or her a little space.

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Warmer Days Bring Out The Creatures Here In the Big Santa Anita Canyon

Posted on May 24, 2013 – Written by Chris Kasten
This juvenile rattlesnake has just settled into digesting her meal. Notice how the camouflage blends with the fallen oak leaves.
This western fence lizard suns himself on a warm rock near Slider Rock, Big Santa Anita Canyon
A young gopher snake exploring on freshly raked sand at cabin #63, Fern Lodge in Big Santa Anita Canyon.

All of the front country of the San Gabriels are warming up, especially here along the Chantry Flats Trails.    Days are lengthening, grasses are drying out, stream flows are lessening and the lizards and snakes are on the rise!  There’s so much to see.  And to smell…. The fragrance of last year’s decaying leaves in the loamy stream bed’s sands is at times pungent  or mildly in the back ground of your senses.  This “signature” scent is throughout all the deep, steep canyons of our range.   Anywhere you’re in the Angeles National Forest, perhaps on a waterfall hike, organic reminders of our earthy platform that all life springs from.   White alders are fully leafed out, their canopies swaying lazily back and forth in the breezes of warmer days.  Bright greens of leaves and blue sky mingle together above us as the old earth tips more and more northward with the promise of longer days.

At our feet, creatures are wide awake and stirring about.  The lack of winter rains has in some way been a catalyst for our Spring season changing to Summer in a few short weeks.  Take time to look down at this miracle all around our feet.  Snakes and lizards make good use of camouflage to blend in with their native surroundings, so take your time and be still. The top image of the rattlesnake was taken after I almost stepped right on it by accident while alongside a cabin just below Sturtevant Falls.  You can see how well it blends in with the fallen oak leaves.  The lizard image was taken on the side of a cabin wall near the East Fork of Big Santa Anita Canyon.
These insect eaters are agile climbers on the textured rock surfaces.  The bottom image is of a mature gopher snake that has just recently shed its’ skin.  These non-venemous snakes are often incorrectly identified as rattlesnakes.  Gopher snakes constrict their prey, which consists primarily of mice and other small rodents.  While out hiking, stop once in awhile to look and listen to all the small miracles happening all around you.  You’ll be glad you did.