A few notes on responsible herping

I'll be posting about trips I've been on and species I've seen on this blog, but its important to point out everything that goes into a trip that I don't neccesarily want to bore you with in postings.

For starters, you have to have proper permits/licenses. This varies from state to state and from area to area. I'm fortunate enough that most of my trips are with my advisor through a university, and he takes care of all the paperwork. If you're caught doing anything with wildlife without the proper permission, you could face big fines or worse. Remember that at least a portion of the fees you pay for licenses/permits benefits the very wildlife you're trying to see.

Also, you should know what you're seeing. That isn't to say that you should instantly identify a species when you see it, but many species have special conservation status, be it "protected," "threatened," or "endangered," and even so much as detaining their movement for a few seconds of photography might be illegal.

Most importantly, leave an area the way you found it. If you turn over rocks or debris to look for wildlife, be sure to put those structures back EXACTLY the way you found them. Shifting them a few centimeters could completely alter the temperature or moisture regime beneath and may make them unsuitable for whatever might be living there.

There's much more to consider, but those are the basics. Be safe, be responsible, and have fun!