A cool picture of a Cal king crossing a dirt road in Western Riverside Co.
What a site!
A Cal king found eating a Red Diamond Rattlesnake.
High band count.
A very clean sided specimen.
Another very clean sided specimen found near Temecula.
No spots on the side like most Riverside stripers.
A triple striped morph with few dark markings on its lower sides and a nearly
complete dark belly.
complete dark belly.
This individual was found near Lake Elsinore, but it looks more like its from San
Diego. I've never seen a striped king from Riverside Co. with this much speckling
and the head pattern is also off for the area. This just goes to show there's always
an exception to the rule.
Diego. I've never seen a striped king from Riverside Co. with this much speckling
and the head pattern is also off for the area. This just goes to show there's always
an exception to the rule.
Aguanga locality, captive bred. Striped kings are said to be rare from this locale.
A wild caught striper from Aguanga. Notice the slight coastal influence in this
population? Matt is fortunate enough to live in the area and has found a few so
far. His friend has seen a triple striper on his property from this area too.
population? Matt is fortunate enough to live in the area and has found a few so
far. His friend has seen a triple striper on his property from this area too.
A hypo Cal king from a wild caught pair found in Temecula CA. 2012
Notice how the 2nd and 3rd side stripes are flared out to 3 rows wide
in certain areas, instead of the normal two. This is somewhat uncommon.
in certain areas, instead of the normal two. This is somewhat uncommon.
Found near the 15 freeway North of Temecuala. I'd call it half aberrant and half
banded. Anywhere a partial aberrant is found, a fully aberrant can be found.
banded. Anywhere a partial aberrant is found, a fully aberrant can be found.
This DOR was found a few miles south from the one above.
Half barred and half banded.
A nice SD striped aberrant found near Temecula.
Another very interesting individual Jesse found. This one is half aberrant.
Another interesting individual similar to the one above. The belly pattern is
typical for Riverside Co. The photo makes it appear white, but its not.
typical for Riverside Co. The photo makes it appear white, but its not.
A good example of a SD striped "highway" morph.
Another SD striped "highway" morph.
This highway morph was found near the SD border where kings start looking
more like desert phase.
more like desert phase.
The next two photos are of the same DOR highway morph. This one is almost a
perfect example.
perfect example.
Another highway morph.
A SD striped "dotted" morph with mostly clean sides.
A gorgeous aberrant.
These next four photos are of one of the nicest wild caught Dotted kings I've
seen. This individual appears to be 90% or more dotted.
seen. This individual appears to be 90% or more dotted.
A mostly dotted striper. Another uncommon find.
Some nice looking Dotted morphs from the same locale. Adam told me he's found
these to be about 50% of the population so far. They are not nearly that common
in most places.
these to be about 50% of the population so far. They are not nearly that common
in most places.
A very nice half barred half dotted SD striped aberrant. Not a common find.
A nearly perfect SD striped "barred" morph found in Western Riverside Co.
These next two photos are of the same snake. This is a San Diego striped aberrant
that is known as the wavy striped morph. This is a rare find.
that is known as the wavy striped morph. This is a rare find.
A SD striped "blotched" morph from Western Riverside Co. This is considered a
very rare find.
very rare find.
An extremely light Desert phase from near Morongo Canyon found by Jason
Bass in company with his father Jim Bass (hellihooks) on FieldHerpForum.
Bass in company with his father Jim Bass (hellihooks) on FieldHerpForum.
Same snake as above. Its debatable whether this snake was hypo or not. An
absolutely awesome find.
absolutely awesome find.
These next five are captive bred La Quinta locality kings.
As the story goes, Gary Keesler's employees found a dotted/striped black &
white king at their work site many years ago. A few days later, they found a
banded black & white there in the same yard and that's how the founding stock
came together.
white king at their work site many years ago. A few days later, they found a
banded black & white there in the same yard and that's how the founding stock
came together.
Found at a work site in Anza by a non herper. This specimen may have looked
more mid way between a coastal and a desert phase.
more mid way between a coastal and a desert phase.
A nice Desert phase.
From Palm desert, which is an area where desert phase and coastal phase
mix and blend. Some specimens may look more desert phase or more
coastal phase in areas like this. this individual looks half and half.
mix and blend. Some specimens may look more desert phase or more
coastal phase in areas like this. this individual looks half and half.
A couple of juvenile Whitewater kings. These are typical for this area.
Probably the nicest example I've seen from the Whitewater area.
This one is only around 2' but already a nice chocolate brown. It may not be hypo,
but its an example of how light the normal kings can be here. This is not typical
at all and I would consider it pretty uncommon.
but its an example of how light the normal kings can be here. This is not typical
at all and I would consider it pretty uncommon.
A small WW king with nice wide bands.
Another nice desert phase my friend Mike found on Whitewater.
Another from Whitewater
Whitewater king
Whitewater king
Tony found this very nice chocolate brown desert phase at Whitewater.
The next two photos are of a nice brown colored Whitewater king.
A typical Whitewater king.
Found near Whitewater.
Whitewater
A nice dark chocolate Cal king my friend Tim found on Tipton Rd. near Whitewater.
Another from Tipton Rd. near Whitewater Rd.
These next two are a pair of Verbenia Cal kings. This locale shows a bit of
coastal influence in some of the kings. Most of the kings I've seen there have
looked strait desert phase but a few will have yellowish/white bands. This
one is a nice chocolate brown. This area is just a few miles from Whitewater.
coastal influence in some of the kings. Most of the kings I've seen there have
looked strait desert phase but a few will have yellowish/white bands. This
one is a nice chocolate brown. This area is just a few miles from Whitewater.
This one is an exceptionally nice specimen. Right away the coastal
influence is obvious.
influence is obvious.
Verbinia
Found near Palm Springs.
From Snow Creek Rd., near Whitewater. This individual is showing strong coastal
phase influence.
phase influence.
Another from Snow Creek Rd. with a yellowish tint.
Snow Creek Rd.
Snow Creek Rd
These next three shots are some of my favorites from this area. This desert phase
was found near Cabizon.
was found near Cabizon.
A gravid female found near Mecca in early/mid July. Click photos to enlarge.
Mecca
A large Mecca male.
This individual found near Mecca has a very reduced belly pattern.
This Mecca individual seems to have about a 99% reduced belly pattern. Not a
common find in the wild.
common find in the wild.
Indio
Indio
A very nice individual from Box Canyon.
Joshua tree
A DOR found near the Mojave National Preserve.