Snakes On The Forum

[Pontiled]

Glad to see so many people who don't kill non-poisonous snakes! I'm one of those people. On the other hand, I have no problem with people who kill the poisonous ones.

I was raised on a rather large farm when I was a kid. Every once in a while, my uncle would come in from the far field to get his shotgun. We knew he had found another rattle snake. In the mountains, they could be anywhere.

Years later, I was in Jamestown, N.Y., where we were digging a long trench to "mine out" the old bottles that were there. There was no indication of poisonous snakes there, just the quite common ones that were non-poisonous. After we had dug the trench, we began taking out the surface material and, out of nowhere, there was a rattle snake making its buzzing sound. Everyone else jumped back, but I was left standing in the hole with a shovel in my hand. The snake was dispatched very quickly.

Let me see someone try to kill a black snake and they'll have another problem to deal with! Me!

 

[reptilekeeper]

Well, it is very nice to see my fellow bottle hounds are respectful of snakes, I have worked proffesionaly with snakes both in captivity and in the wild for over 30 years, and have dedicated my life to studying, keeping, breeding, and teaching people the importance of snakes, ALL snakes, Venomous and non venomous. I have handled hundreds of species in all corners of the globe, from Papua New Guinea to Arizona. I have worked with cobras, mambas, many viper species, and all the giant Pythons, Anacondas etc... and in the US hundreds of Rattlesnakes; one of my personal favorites. In all my years I have never been bitten by a venomous snake. We must remember venomous snakes have venom for feeding, it is needed to secure prey NOT for protection; that is what the rattle is for! Snakes do not want to waste it on you, most venomous snakes are cryptyicly colored and blend in to their surroundings and will sit quite praying you do not see them (Like the one pontiled saw, it did not just apear it was there and only made its presence known when it thougt the jig was up) if they can seek a means of escape they will, if not and they think they have been spotted they will warn you before they bite you. Cobras will spread a hood to warn before they bite, this venom is vital and not to be wasted, food dosn't come easy for snakes so they must have it fully ready when needed, they can also control the amount of venom injected, for example a Diamond back rattler would not use the same amount of venom to kill a small rat as it would a larger cotton tail rabbit. The same applies to humans, if the snake is real pissed off it could hit you with a full bite, or as most bites in the US are, it could be a dry bite with no venom injected what so ever. Another factor is if the individual snake has just used its venom to eat it takes them a while to build up another supply, so if you are bitten after this meal you will never get a full dose. Only 10 to 15 people a year die in the US out of the hundreds of reported bites. These fatalities are usually due to allergic reaction or complication , most of these bites are made up of people screwing with them or accidently stepping on them. The average healthy person will not die from a bite, it will be unpleasent, but you will survive. If you live in venomous snake country you should always be aware of where you step, leave them alone and they will do the same. They do not attack people! Snakes ALL snakes are vital to the ecosystems they inhabit, snakes control rodent populations, and are a food source for so many other animals.

Whiskyman, what you found was a group of DeKays snakes this species has a good size range in the eastern half of the US, and is commonly found in urban vacant lots. Your cage set up for them looks great, yes they are insectivours, and will eat crickets grasshoppers earthworms and other soft bodied insects. Keep fresh water avaliable at all times, I would not mist them to much, only if they are not shedding properly, to much moisture in a captive condition can lead to skin blisters. They will cluster to breed this time of year, the females do not lay eggs they will give birth to LIVE young in late August or early September like Garter and water snakes. FYI, Timber Rattlesnakes are becoming rearer in the Northeastern part of their range and already have been extripated from much of there former range, PLEASE do not kill Timber rattlesnakes, I would like for my children to be able to see such an amazing creature in its natural habitat, and for them to be able to do the same when they have children. We do not have the right to choose what species is worth more, they are all part of the natural system and all deserve the same respect. Did I mention at all that I love to dig bottles as much as I love snakes?

Sincerly,
Lou

 

[LC]

That was a very interesting article you passed on the the group, I enjoyed reading it. I have always been infatuated with snakes, do not believe I would want to roam the earth in search of the poison ones though !
I did have a small side winder in a cage in my garage for about a whole summer, friend of mine was out west, caught it and brought it home. I bought white mice to feed it. I put the mouse in the cage, watched that mouse crawl all over that snake. The snake just layed there and flinched when ever the mouse would touch it. I could not figure out what the devil was going on! Anyway, I finally realized that rhe snake was shedding its skin, and I did not even notice it at the time Once it shed its skin, the mouse did not get the chance to get chummy if you get me meaning !

 

[morbious_fod]

I am very bothered by snakes, and would most likely only kill one if I had too. Otherwise I would be five miles away in thirty seconds. Now my best friend loves snakes; however, I personally think he's borderline insane.

The weird thing is that my grandfather, and great grandfather hunted snakes to eat. I guessed that skipped a couple of generations. That's why I tend to stick to fleamarkets, eBay, and antique shops for my collecting needs. There are a couple of great places that I think would actually be good places to find bottles; however, I'm not going anywhere near them this summer. They're in some really snakey places that I don't want to be in when my nolegged friends are out.

I'll just have to wait till winter.

As for Salamanders, the guy I work with and myself found one hanging out in the shop about a week ago. This thing was at least four inchs long, and black. We took it outside and left it in the rain so that it's skin wouldn't completely dry out. Our shop is near a drainage pond, and we get the usual amphibious intruders this time of the year. I couldn't count how many frogs I have taken out of there. This was my first Salamander though.

 

[LC]

A friend of mine was raised in Adams County Ohio about twenty miles east of where I live. He used to tell me about a cave where he and others played when they were Kids. Said they always found arrow heads on the bare ground in front of the cave after it would rain. He said none of them ever crawled in the cave to look around. He said he would take me to it at some time in place, but regretfully I lost him my best friend to a heart attack before we ever got there. Still think of that cave off and on, and can just visulize all kinds of artifacts laying around in it, or artifacts that could be escavated out of the ground inside it. That is Copperhead country, but that would not keep me out of that cave if I knew where it was.

 

[whiskeyman]

REPTILEKEEPER...thanks for sharing all that information...

MORBIOUS...no need ta worry about snakes when hunting/diggin' bottles - they can sense you long before you see them, and usually hide or crawl away...

 

[whiskeyman]

When my younger brother was about 16, he was out riding his motorcycle in a nearby hilly subdivision. It was getting close to dusk when he saw a snake in the road, He stopped his bike, and got off to get the snake out of the road. As he reached down to pick it up, he realized it was a Copperhead, - tried to draw his hand back, but it struck - nailing the side of his little finger. He then got a long stick and "forced " the snake to move out of the road. Next he got a piece of broken glass and slashed his finger, then sucked the blood/poison out. Getting back on his bike, he quickly drove home and Mom took him to the hospital....he remained there a couple days.[/align]I lost my brother to cancer a few years ago, but he was still an admirer of snakes. Even while ill, he'd go rattlesnake hunting , and kept a small one in a terrarium in his home...His wife released it after his funeral.[/align]

 

[muddyfingers]

I walk and dig in creeks alot after it rains, always in search of the next ig addition. And I do at times come across the occasional moccasin, I usually try not to bother them at all because I feel as if I am in there area so maybe I should leave them alone.
So on that note I need to put most of you on my list for people to call for saving helpless little creatures. Because when that 1 of every 10 or so snakes I come across decides to come see what I am up to I usually run and scream like a scared little girl. ( Just for the sake of whats left of my manhood) It's not that i have a problem with snakes, I just don't feel they need to be that close.
Willy

 

[LC]

Well, I am no authority on snakes, but it has always been my understanding that the Moccasins are very territorial concerning their staked out area and are known to protect it when they feel their space is being threatened. There seems to be some pretty well informed people on here lately concerning snakes, maybe they will pop in and put in their two cents worth about them.

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