About This Project

I frequently come across live and roadkill snakes in Northern California while roadcruising (herping). Vouchering deceased specimens is a great way to preserve genetic information of the local animals while minimizing the impact to their populations. This project would allow me to continue my search for elusive animals, while providing specimens to museum collections.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

I have been working as a herpetology volunteer at the California Academy of Sciences Museum, where I am currently studying the phylogeography of Hypsiglena, the night snakes. I have seen from this study that there are huge sampling gaps in some areas of their range, which makes it difficult to make evolutionary inferences. This has inspired me to apply for this grant, which will help me fill sampling gaps of the elusive species in my local area. The work I am currently doing on Hypsiglena is not yet published, but it is essentially building off of previous work by using RAD-seq data and more powerful data analyses.

What is the significance of this project?

In the past, I have found species in the proposed study site that have very little or no museum samples. This funding could potentially help to fill sampling gaps for the following animals:

T. planiceps is a secretive, fossorial snake that is a known centipede specialist, which is fairly uncommon among snakes. A recent paper discusses the need for filling sampling gaps.

L. zonata is known for its beautiful coloration and docile temperment, which makes it high risk for poaching. Additional genetic sampling can help with conservation efforts.

A. elegans and R. lecontei are both generally thought of as desert species, but they seem to thrive in some arid grasslands much farther north. There may been some hidden and unexplored genetic diversity in this area.

M. flagellum is a fast-moving, diurnal, active hunter. The local subspecies lives almost entirely in threatened land where grasslands have been converted to agricultural areas.

What are the goals of the project?

From my previous records, I would expect this to yield about 30-60 roadkilled snake specimens from 10 roadcruising trips. These samples can be deposited at the California Academy of Sciences Museum, where I am a herpetology volunteer.