# Southern California Invert Hunting...



## GQ.

We have had much better winter rainfall in San Diego County than we did last year.  The heavy rains usually mean it is a good time to find invertebrates.  Yes, even in the winter!  I have hit the trails for the last few weekends.  I have also found several new areas that I am now smitten with.  Below are a few photos of my winter excursions.  I have tried to post a variety of different species so as not to bore everyone with my many Southern California posts.

Oak Habitat






This pretty little Aphonopelma was found while lifting rocks.  I rarely find tarantulas while flipping rocks or debris in the San Diego area.






This is the rock the tarantula was found under after I replaced the rock.  This is what all flipped rocks should look like when you leave an area.






Another flipped tarantula.  Most likely Aphonopelma eutylenum type in a completely different area.


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## GQ.

Rocky Habitat






P. silvestrii burrow.  I don't have any decent photos of the surrounding habitat on this one.  It is quite a bit different than the above habitat shots.






Vaejovid?  This one was quick with the telson.  This was found under a rock in the same area as the P. silvestrii burrows.


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## GQ.

Uta sp.






A Herper's dream - This piece will definitely have a California Kingsnake and a Southern Pacific Rattlesnake or two or three when March rolls around.






Eumeces sp.






There are A LOT of millipedes out this time of year.


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## GQ.

I have been wanting to find a cocoon in a trapdoor spider to see what emerges ever since I saw the below wasp waiting for a trapdoor to emerge.






...I didn't want to have to dig up several trapdoor burrows to find one though.  I lucked out and saw the top of a cocoon down a trapdoor burrow.

I dug out the entire trapdoor spider burrow tube in very wet soil.






This is a photo of the orange cocoon.  You can see the remains of the tarantula with a bit of fuzz growing on it in the bottom of the tube.






A better shot of the cocoon.  I will post photos if anything emerges.

Reactions: Like 1


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## aliceinwl

Great shots! Your "_Sceloporus_ sp." is actually a side-blotched lizard (note the dark patch behind the elbow and granular scales): _Uta stansburiana_  

-Alice


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## GQ.

Ugh.  I knew better than that.  Thanks for the correction and thank you for the compliment.

Here are a couple Sceloporus from last season to make up for my error.


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## cacoseraph

nice

i caught Scolopendra polymorpha on xmas day last year =P


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## ronin

Awesome pics as usual Gil.  The Sceloporus takes are hilarious.


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## GQ.

Thanks cacoseraph and ronin.

I found a nice sized S. polymorpha on Christmas eve last year.  The weather was too nice to not take a hike.  The only photo I took turned out horribly or I would have shared.

I caught the male lizard, with the regenerating tail, so my daughter could take a closer look at him.  I had to set the male lizard down so I could grab my camera.  It stayed propped up in the grass in a similar position.  I thought it was funny so I sat it upright for the photo.  I posed the female for the same shot when I found it a few weeks later.


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## GQ.

We hit up the area with the are above with all the rocks this weekend.  The temperatures were right under 70 degrees F.  I was hoping to see a some Red Diamond rattlesnakes as the habitat looked perfect.  Luck was on our side and a beautiful _Crotalus ruber_ female was found under a rock.

_Crotalus ruber_ coiled up in situ.






_Crotalus ruber_ uncoiled with a darkling beetle.  The darkling beetle had been resting, or perhaps trapped, within the coils.






_Crotalus ruber_ out in the open.


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## UrbanJungles

WOW...Very very Nice!!!!!!!!!
:drool:  :drool:   

I have to get out there!


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## Fince

LoL, the beetle chose serious bodyguard! Very nice pictures, thank you for sharing!!!


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## Oasis Inverts

Those are great pic's......


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## GQ.

Thanks everyone!  I occasionally miss having four seasons, but finding a rattlesnake in January sure is nice.


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## josh_r

very nice ruber as well as the rest of your pics! do you ever run into ensatine e. klauberi while your out?? or aniedes lugubris?? 

i am going to be doing a trip through california from diego all the way to the oregon border in march. will be looking for many salamander species (hydromantes and B. campi particularly) dont worry, not to collect, just to photograph. i am also excited to hit some of my old stomping grounds in the bay area. my main goal is to find and collect a few calisoga theveneti. i have found one years ago and it was an amazing spider. maybe while i am in the diego area we can meet up. i do want to collect 2 species while im there that i havnt found in a couple years. cryptethum and what i believe is reversum. though cryptethum is considderably north of you, it is a species worthy of the trip. 

i have a question for ya. B. californicum is a, more less, a low evelation, coastal scrub species from what i understand. i am aware of inland populations as far as arizona, but my question is can they be found at high elevations into the pine line? above 6000 ft?? i was in some pine forest directly east of you looking for ensatina e. klauberi and i found a very large trapdoor burrow that had been abandoned. i hear there is another species that gets very large in the area but i have no idea what species it could have been without actually seeing the animal. maybe you know something about this.


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## GQ.

Hi Josh,

     I haven't done much hiking in salamander territory.  I find Batrachoseps sp. in the back yard and that is about the extent of my salamander finds in this state.

     I have not really done much exploring in the higher elevation areas.  I will make it a point to do some searching in the higher elevations this year.  I don't know if B. californicum is up that high or not.

     Send a message to me before you hit San Diego.  I'm usually up for a hike if I have some free time.

Later,
Gilbert


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## Triprion

Josh -
   I grew up in San Diego; if you are going there in search of trapdoor spiders I can give you a locality where they have always been abundant...email me for more info. Also, I have seen all of the western salamanders so if you need info...
   Tim


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## Noexcuse4you

Sorry to hijack your thread.

I hiked around mission trails last week.  I kept finding these holes in the ground, but when I flooded them nothing came up except for one that had a widow living inside of it.  I don't know if they were abandoned tarantula holes or what.  They were too small to be a gopher or mole.  I also did some rock flipping.  I didn't really find anything but a mole cricket, Kukulcania (I think) slings and adults.

I also hiked around Sycamore Canyon this past weekend.  There was lots of reptile life.  I found the first horned lizard I'd ever seen in real life!  It was pretty exciting!  I also came across a dead long-nosed snake laying on the trail.  Poor little guy.  Some biker probably ran over it.

Here's some pics...

The hole.











Widow






The horned lizard






Kukulcania slings






Kukulcania adult


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## josh_r

those burrows look to be carolina wolf spider burrows. wolf spiders tend to make a collar of grass or other debris around the hole and web it up with very tough single strands of silk woven together. tarantulas have a ver soft silky white web that almost falls apart when you grab it. i would definitely say that is a carolinensis burrow. the last spider "adult kukulcania" looks like a loxosceles actually. very good pics tho. where abouts do u live?? 

-josh


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## Noexcuse4you

I live in san diego.


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## Brent H.

I can't tell what the last spider is, but it's not _Kukulcania_ or _Loxosceles_.  The eye pattern looks familiar but I cannot put my finger on it right now... cool pics, though!


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## GQ.

*Thread Resurrection*







I never did update this thread.  I put this cocoon in a 60 dram vial with some pinholes in the lid.  I placed it on a bookshelf and didn't offer any other care.  I left town for a few days one week and came back to find a nice blue wasp like the one a few posts back.  Cool stuff.


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## sharpfang

GQ. said:


> I have been wanting to find a cocoon in a trapdoor spider to see what emerges ever since I saw the below wasp waiting for a trapdoor to emerge.


That is what I saw in the Angeles Crest Forest Last Summer!  Very Pretty, Very Cool - TY 4 Pic! - Jason


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## ZergFront

I don't know about you, but I'm finding a ton of Aneides lugubris (arboreal salamanders) this time of year. Including babies.

 I thought some of the babies I found were dying but once I got them under room temperature, they took termites and earwig nymphs. The oak forest areas you have are great for finding them after a rain. Usually I find them under wood.


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## John Apple

And I still have that Thevenetti Josh...very black and blue


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## josh_r

Good John. Theveneti is one of the coolest spiders in cali as far as I'm concerned. Lets plan a trip out there to get some breeding stock!


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## hexme

I live in lakeside. I plan on lookin around mission trails soon


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## neubii18

*Resurection: Some of my finds*

Here are some of my finds to bring this thread back to life:

Paruroctonus Silvestrii:

Anuroctonus Pocki(I plan to be breeding these guys this year):


Typical Threat posture(she just wants a hug)

Frog I found on my window:

Alligator Lizards:

This one had some really nice reds!:

My favorite 2 Scolopendra Polymorpha I've found(I have breeding plans for this species as well):



Some kind of salamander:

Unidentified Scorpion Species(probably Pseudoroctonus Sp.)


Smaller scorpion,probably same species as above,just younger:

Dysdera crocata:

Here you can see the massive fangs of this species:

Large(5"+) blind centipede:

Unknown species of millipede:


I'm in Oceanside,where most of these were found.


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## Pulk

Cool, looks like the kinds of things I find in Encinitas.
Good luck breeding the A. pococki!
Are you sure the geophilomorph is 5"?  I think the largest I've seen is half that.


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## neubii18

Pulk said:


> Cool, looks like the kinds of things I find in Encinitas.
> Good luck breeding the A. pococki!
> Are you sure the geophilomorph is 5"?  I think the largest I've seen is half that.


Encinitas isn't too far away from.And it is definately that big,if not a little bigger.The largest I've seen by far.It looks a little different than the ones I usually find.Very strange.


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## nics

asn1234 said:


> Here are some of my finds to bring this thread back to life:
> 
> Paruroctonus Silvestrii:
> 
> Anuroctonus Pocki(I plan to be breeding these guys this year):
> 
> 
> Typical Threat posture(she just wants a hug)
> 
> Frog I found on my window:
> 
> Alligator Lizards:
> 
> This one had some really nice reds!:
> 
> My favorite 2 Scolopendra Polymorpha I've found(I have breeding plans for this species as well):
> 
> 
> 
> Some kind of salamander:
> 
> Unidentified Scorpion Species(probably Pseudoroctonus Sp.)
> 
> 
> Smaller scorpion,probably same species as above,just younger:
> 
> Dysdera crocata:
> 
> Here you can see the massive fangs of this species:
> 
> Large(5"+) blind centipede:
> 
> Unknown species of millipede:
> 
> 
> I'm in Oceanside,where most of these were found.


awesome looking scorps there! where do you go hunting?


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## compnerd7

nice finds! I live in south oceanside I've seen most, but not all ur finds!:clap:


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## neubii18

nics said:


> awesome looking scorps there! where do you go hunting?


I hunt no further than 5 miles from my house


compnerd7 said:


> nice finds! I live in south oceanside I've seen most, but not all ur finds!:clap:


Very cool.What haven't you found?Maybe we could go collecting together this summer:??


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## nics

asn1234 said:


> I hunt no further than 5 miles from my house


thats awesome! i haven't seen scorps around san diego area or i just don't know where to look :?

i saw a tarantula once in iron mountain but thats it. i always wanted to go out and collect but i just dont know where lol


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## Midknight xrs

Are there any good places to go to in the Long Beach area?  Anyone in the Cypress area want to do some hunting this sunday 5/29?


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## neubii18

Scorpions are almost literally ever where in So Cal.You just have to know how and where to look.Most species around are burrowers,so you need to go out at night with a black light to see them.If anyone ever wants to go,let me know!I'm going out this weekend to a really cool spot where I find S.polymorpha centipedes,as well as S.donensis scorpions that are super rare!

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nics said:


> thats awesome! i haven't seen scorps around san diego area or i just don't know where to look :?
> 
> i saw a tarantula once in iron mountain but thats it. i always wanted to go out and collect but i just dont know where lol


If you come down to Oceanside,I could show you where I find my scorpions.


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## compnerd7

asn1234 said:


> Very cool.What haven't you found?Maybe we could go collecting together this summer:??


Defiantly! A friend and I frequently go out to the desert or mountians ( Palomar mountian, or the Ortega mountians, sometimes idyllwild ) mostly hunting for snakes and lizards, while my eye is out for scorps and T's. I recently just moved out of south O, East a ways close to Temecula. In all my herping days ( which is pretty much every time i walk out the door ) I've never seen an Anuroctonus Pocki and alot of those species of scorps you found. But yeah, Southern California kicks ass when it comes to finding scorps / T's / reptiles and amphibians. I do want to plan a summer trip to sonora mexico to catch different scorps and beaded lizards.. amongst other things, were thinking august, and night herping.


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## neubii18

compnerd7 said:


> Defiantly! A friend and I frequently go out to the desert or mountians ( Palomar mountian, or the Ortega mountians, sometimes idyllwild ) mostly hunting for snakes and lizards, while my eye is out for scorps and T's. I recently just moved out of south O, East a ways close to Temecula. In all my herping days ( which is pretty much every time i walk out the door ) I've never seen an Anuroctonus Pocki and alot of those species of scorps you found. But yeah, Southern California kicks ass when it comes to finding scorps / T's / reptiles and amphibians. I do want to plan a summer trip to sonora mexico to catch different scorps and beaded lizards.. amongst other things, were thinking august, and night herping.


Sounds very cool.I went out today and found a really nicely sized and colored S.polymorpha.It's a really good looking specimen.The species in my area are much more orange and blue than most others I see.Very cool.I also found a 3' rattle snake shed skin.I also saw a Whiptail lizard,as well as a young western skink that still had the blue tail!There are lots of herps where I go as well.I'm more of a herp person than an invert person,but I much prefer collecting inverts than herps.Idk why:?And if you want me to tell you a place to find A.pocki and P.silvestriis,PM me.I don't give the spot out much,but I like to share as well!


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## compnerd7

I've had crazy good success this year thanks to all the rain. covering San Diego county and riverside county, also southern san bernedano county ( Joshua tree, 29 Palms ). Back in February I found two Mojave green sidewinders, and Chuckwallas in March! which I was shocked at. This summer is gonna be a good one. If it ever warms up again:wall: I like catching herps better too, and collecting the inverts  I just got a hairline fracture in my ancle yesterday, so I wont be herping for a while, atleast a week lol I know some of my favorite herp spots ill still ht up on crutches


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## neubii18

Went out today and found something new to add!

Jeruselum Cricket(Smaller species than I've seen before,but first I've ever caught!These things are soooo meanthey are around 2"):











And a scorpion that I believe to be Paruroctonus silvestrii.Definitely a female,and most likely gravid!:


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## neubii18

It's warming up,and the snakes are out!I've found multiple Cali Kings this year,and there are surely more cool things to come!I'm going out to my spot tomorrow,so I'll post pictures of anything cool I find.Anyone else having any good luck and want to share stories or photos?


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## khil

Dang asn, cali kings that's amazing!
And the jerusalem crickets are such interesting guys, huh? Everyone who sees them FREAKS LOL.
I caught mine when I took a trip to socal. They live in coco fiber and bury real deep, and they eat leek. Have yours eaten anything else?
And I hope to share stories this summer too. I'll be looking for places to find scorpions.


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## neubii18

khil said:


> Dang asn, cali kings that's amazing!
> And the jerusalem crickets are such interesting guys, huh? Everyone who sees them FREAKS LOL.
> I caught mine when I took a trip to socal. They live in coco fiber and bury real deep, and they eat leek. Have yours eaten anything else?
> And I hope to share stories this summer too. I'll be looking for places to find scorpions.


I'll post some pictures of the Cali Kings for you.They really are cool snakes.And my jeruselum crickets eat crickets and carrots,lettuce,and other greens.


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## Sunset

i havent been out this year at all been busy with school and work. But im plaining on goiing out in the next week. im not really sure on where to look i want to try something new if any of you guys that live in san diego have any good ideas please let me know or send me a message thanks.


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## cnapple

I've only gotten seriously interested in Ts and inverts since emigrating from Oceanside, CA where i spent the first 21  years of my life. :wall: Now i'm in MI, where we don't have nearly as many cool spp. Awesome pics though! Next time I visit my parents in SoCal, i shall definitely go herping/invert hunting!


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## neubii18

Anyone wanna do some collecting anytime soon?I'm pretty bored just hanging around the house looking around and finding the same old stuff.Hit me up if anyone's interested!


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## neubii18

Still looking for someone to go with.I don't bite,I promise(unless you're a double-double or animal fries from In-N-Out...then you've got a big promlem:biggrin!I've got a really good spot where we'll definitely find some cool scorpions,and possibly some Scolopendra polymorpha centipedes!Also some cool beetles and Jeruselum crickets.Or if you'd rather hit up your spot I'd be down with that too!Just shoot me a PM an we can plan.


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## neubii18

Well it's warming up and I've already came across a couple A. pocki, S. polymorpha, P. castaneus minimus(Yup, finally ID'd that neat little species) and California Kingsnake! I know that others in So Cal have to be having some luck or would like to have some luck, so post it here or PM me if you're looking for someone to go with!


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## Titandan

What's up folks?   Are there any California peeps willing to represent?  Have any of you gone out in the desert for some Tarantula or Scorpion sightings?  I'd like to go sometime this summer but I don't know where to start.  If any of you are down, I'd like to help set up a trip somewhere to look at some inverts.  What do you say?


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