(Above) Bryan Hudson (left) and crew measuring a snake that does not want to be measured, the first step in the data collection process. (Lower right) A dab of superglue is all that is needed to hold the tiny radio transmitter onto the hognose snake. (Upper right) In the field, the students use a directional antenna and radio to listen for the ‘ping’ of each transmitter.
Snakes! The eastern hognose snake is a bit of a rarity in these parts, and not a lot is known about their overwintering habits. That could change, thanks to a research project by senior Piedmont biology student Bryan Hudson of Roswell. Hudson, with help from a number of Piedmont biology students, attached tiny radio transmitters to six hognose snakes to track their movements in the Wilson Shoals Wildlife Management Area in Banks County. Hognose snakes, also known as
puff adders for their habit of hissing when disturbed, are harmless snakes that feed mostly on toads. Hudson said by tracking their movements for several weeks in the fall, he hopes to learn how large a range the snakes use, when the snakes hibernate, and whether, like many other species, they hibernate individually or in groups. The snakes, which were caught in the Wilson Shoals WMA, were tagged with transmitters and released where they were found. Every day for the next several weeks, Hudson
and the other students have located the snakes with a radio direction finder and recorded the location data. Hudson hopes to publish the results of the study, which is part of an independent research project. Assisting in the project are Sam Thomas of Jefferson; Abby Atkinson of Homer; Katie Faith of Simpsonville, S.C.; Jenna Hoffman of Dawsonville; Spencer Braggs of Dalton; and Seth Klepal of Loganville.
FALL 2013
| The piedmont college journal
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