Snakes!

[r0GuE]

I have found two snakes in the last few days.

1rst one was very small, all black with a yellow or whiteish mark behind its head. - It's now dead.

2nd one had that speckeled camo look (similar to a rattle snake, but I didnt see a rattle. Probably 14 - 16 inches long and very aggressive (or at least defensive) against a broom. It would open its mouth wide and strike. - Now dead.

Just wondering if either were dangerous had I not seen them and stepped on them. As you might guess I'm no snake fan. I have kids and don't ever want to have to worry about bites and bacteria and poison and whatever. I keep stickky traps in the basement now.

 

[pruntyc]

I'm pretty sure the first one is not poisonous, and I don't think the last one is either, but hard to tell by what you say, one almost has to see a picture or something to tell more about them. You have copper heads up there, but it don't sound too much like one, from what you said. Because they are not speckeled. A lot of non-poisonous snakes will strike, even if they can't really do you much harm.

 

[BB_TX]

I killed a <font color="blue"> copperhead </font> last Saturday. Almost stepped on it as it blended in with the fallen leaves. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif You can tell most poisonous snakes by their head. Most will have a triangular shaped head.

 

[ronjhall]

r0GuE
The one that look like a rattler is probably a Water Snake. This thread has a different title than the one I used. But there is a lot on this aggressive snake. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[pruntyc]

Beside the triangular head, the generally have a blunt tail, where as the non-poisonous ones have a long thin tail. But you can't put a rule on it, as sometimes you can be wrong.

 

[r0GuE]

I'm still crawling just thinking about it. I really hate them bad!

 

[farmerpsv]

I hear ya rogue.
our first farm was an 1800 victorian which had been abandoned for several years, it was a complete restoration. we killed about 60 wasps a day for weeks, and of course the requisite lady bugs. one day i was picking up some plastic tarp i layed in the house and underneath was a 5 ft snake. yikes. back then i would break out in a cold sweat if i saw a snake twenty feet away, this one was at my feet. i've gotten progressively better, now involuntary squeaks don't escape me when i see one. we got a mighty hunter (okay, she's a cat), but i've watched her corner a snake and bat it into a cowering position. she kill's about 2 mice a day, so the snakes have pretty much left. i've found two baby snakes at our new farm, sans head. go molly (our cat).

 

[MossRoad]

Here's a link that might help. It says there are 22 species of snakes in Penn., 3 of which are poisonous... copperhead and 2 species of rattlesnake.

And a few more links to quell your fears. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
http://aginfo.psu.edu/News/april99/snake.html
http://www.post-gazette.com/garden/19990529clips1.asp

And finally!

Sorry for the in-line post, but I just couldn't resist! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[r0GuE]

GREAT LINKS!!!

I can vividly recall that this snake had round pupils... now they are x x /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Slamfire]

Poisonous Pythons? Musta been livin' in a toxic waste dump. That link was great, just turn the snake over and check out the scales on his tail. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
Here in copperhead country I find makin' a lot of noise will generally warn the snakes that you are coming, and they leave.

 

[rdam]

I grew up in suburbia, but had snakes as pets. I work as a Deputy Sheriff in Central Florida and have become the unofficial snake call responder.

Most of the snakes that are encountered are non-poisonous and beneficial to have around. They help control the rodent and insect population.

Since most of us tractor owners live in the country, it is a good idea to learn which poisonous snakes live in your area and learn to recognize them. Personally, I would kill a poisonous snake if I located one on my property. The non-poisonous ones are better left alone.

I have yet to see a snake that didn't "strike" when cornered with a broomstick. It's kind of their last resort.

 

[pruntyc]

I agree rdam, I'm not sure the little green grass snake will strike, but it is probably the only one, if it didn't. Even black snakes will, and they are very harmless.

 

[r0GuE]

A squirrel will bite you if you could catch it. Luckily, my kids aren't that fast. With snakes (aside from the fact that I hate them in a big way), I have to worry that my little ones might catch one.

I thought abut tossing that one in the woods, but I figure the reason he came in to my house is to get warm, and he would probably try it again.

 

[RiverV]

I live along a river valley, swamp and woods... Anything that creeps, crawls, walks or flies shows up around the house. Once I stepped outside in the grass, bare feet looking for my dog, felt something warm squirming under my foot, looked down...it was a snake. I was standing on the thing and it was starting to crawl around my foot. I jumped about 6 feet in the air and I think they could hear me swearing 2 miles away.

I don't like snakes but they do a lot of good so I don't kill them. After my heart got down beating to the normal rate, I got the broom and chased him back into the woods. After all the years being around them, I still get starlted when I come across a snake.

Dave...

 

[MossRoad]

Little brown ring neck snakes are very docile. They never get over a foot long. Most of them that I have found have been about 6-8 inches. Light brown with a light ring around their necks. Very good snake to teach kids with, as it is so small and un-intimidating. Most night crawlers are bigger than this snake.

 

[rh1346]

Hey Rogue, feel free to ship those snakes up to me. While a snake can give a start to the most experienced outdoorsman (me included), the bigger danger you probably be facing are the tick borne diseases: Lyme disease, Human granulocytic ehrlichiosis and Babesiosis.

http://info.med.yale.edu/eph/eip/tick%20brochure.pdf

Integral to the reproduction and spread of disease carrying ticks are deer and rodents, and rodents are a favorite food of snakes. Lyme can knock you or your kids for a loop, and it is not always cureable. Both my dogs came down with Lyme, and I'm careful as can be after an outing. Have the wife check me over oh so carefully - some immature deer ticks are not much bigger than a pinhead. As long as snakes eat rodents, they're welcome on my farm - same goes for spiders - my great aunt used to say that if they can find enough to keep themselves alive, they're more'n welcome. Especially if they pick off a mosquito or two - don't want to take any chances with West Nile virus. Oh, and those rodents - did I mention hantavirus, spread by mouse droppings, which can be fatal?

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hanta/hps/

So next time you see a snake, don't be so quick to dispatch it - just another of God's creatures trying to make a living. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Slamfire]

I found a black ring necked snake under a sheet of plywood I use to crawl under equipment while working on it. It was glossy black and had a yellow ring around his neck. Wasn't more than 6" long, and scared. I wonder if he was livin' on the scorpions that normally occupy that space.

 

[rdam]

Yup, Snakes and Spiders are handy to have around.

I've got a bunch of the little lizards that run around the yard on my city lot/home. It's cheap entertainment watching them chase down insects on the window screens!