Rocky Mountain West August 2011 Effects of Bison on Plant and Animal Communities in the Southern Great Plain: Reptiles & Amphibians Jean Fleming August 15, 2011 I drove down to south eastern Colorado this morning excited to learn more about what the herptile group is working on.

The rest of the group made their way down here yesterday, so when I arrived they were out at Carrizo canyon hunting for interesting reptiles and amphibians. Once they got back we headed out to check the traps for animals. It was very hot so we didn't find too much, except for a ton of earless lizards running around. We had a great time trying to catch them. On our drive back to the ranch we saw a male ornate box turtle chasing a female across the road. August 16, 2011 Got up early this morning to check the arrays, there are still lots of earless lizards around. But today we also found two prairie rattlesnakes right next to each other. It was exciting to see something new and to find an animal that we were able to pit tag. This afternoon we headed to Carrizo canyon to look in the river for amphibians and saw a couple of frogs and some turtles in the water. It started raining as we headed back and we are hoping it will continue through the night. It is so dry down here that any rain may mean that more animals will be out when we check the arrays tomorrow.