Was on a two week Business Trip in the Chicago Area, from May 29th to June 9th.
I got the message that I have to go there in a very short time so I was not able to prepare myself for a high class herping.
The only thing I found out was that the next best rattlesnake place was a five hour Drive away, not possible.
I had only time for herping at the weekend and I found only a few Herps and just the very common stuff.
I visited the Fulton Sand Prairie at the Mississipi Side and the first Snakes I saw was the northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon)
in situ
Juvenile in situ
Juvenile
Nerodia courting under water, most of the time the head of the female was out of the water, from time to time I saw one or two head from the males
Of course tones of fat bullfrogs were everywhere
Some very shy big tadpoles, you can compare the black tadpoles with our Bufo tadpoles so you can imagine how big they are
Saw also a lot of northern Leopard frogs (Lithobates pipiens), never saw them in water, they where basking in the high grass and dissapear in the bushes
in situ
Lithobates pipiens - Unkenreflex
The only turtles I saw was the painted turtle (Chrysemys picta)
egg laying
and an other one on Land
found also one of the huge Monster
in situ
Nice eyes
Sunday I drove south east to the Kankakee Sand prairie in Indiana
I expect a lot and found almost nothing beside the very common blue racer (Coluber constrictor foxii)
All in all I had a great Weekend, it was very nice to herp in an other part of the world.