Growing up catching snakes with my dad in Northern California, from the foothills of Mt. Diablo, the farmland of San Joaquin County, the Mendocino Coast, and all areas in between, I have always lived in and had access to some of the best habitats the top half of the state can provide. Now that I reside in Western Arkansas, I have been presented plenty of new herps to find and an equal amount of new stuff to learn.

Shooting Actinemys marmorata marmorata in Mendocino County, California - Photo © Natalie McNear