Mr No Shoulders is no more

[oosik]

We have the Timber rattler and Western rattlesnake here. I've never seen either- on my property - in the 40+ years I've been out here. That's just super fine with me. I'm still "on alert" when busting around in my brush stands.

 

[EddieWalker]

A few years ago we where over run with snakes. They where so bad that you couldn't stand on the driveway without one coming down it. Sitting on the back porch, they would come across the lawn. Our dogs where killing them, we where shooting them, and they just kept coming. I think we killed around 50 that year. I know I got 24 myself.

Then we had a pregnant cat show up and have her babies. Then another cat showed up and she had some more babies. In about a year, we had 20 cats!!! They ate all the mice, which where feeding on the chicken food, and bringing in the snakes. No more mice, no more snakes. Almost no snakes. We still have a few, but now it's just a couple a year.

Same thing with mowing out on the land. I was never able to get all of it mowed before, and I usually saw a snake somewhere while out there, but since getting the 12 foot batwing, and being able to mow everything a couple times a year, I haven't seen a single snake while mowing. It's very odd to go from snakes everywhere, to not seeing very many at all.

 

[ponytug]

A few years ago we where over run with snakes. They where so bad that you couldn't stand on the driveway without one coming down it. Sitting on the back porch, they would come across the lawn. Our dogs where killing them, we where shooting them, and they just kept coming. I think we killed around 50 that year. I know I got 24 myself.

Then we had a pregnant cat show up and have her babies. Then another cat showed up and she had some more babies. In about a year, we had 20 cats!!! They ate all the mice, which where feeding on the chicken food, and bringing in the snakes. No more mice, no more snakes. Almost no snakes. We still have a few, but now it's just a couple a year.

Same thing with mowing out on the land. I was never able to get all of it mowed before, and I usually saw a snake somewhere while out there, but since getting the 12 foot batwing, and being able to mow everything a couple times a year, I haven't seen a single snake while mowing. It's very odd to go from snakes everywhere, to not seeing very many at all.

Yup! That's why we have cats. Our neighbor across the street doesn't and he is in a constant battle with rattlesnakes. We had a cat that loved to play with rattlesnakes (!).

We use cows as mowers since a big chunk of the property is not mowable due to slopes of 45+ degrees. My Power-trac can mow to about 30 degrees, but gopher holes or a rock are good for an adrenaline rush.

All the best,

Peter

 

[oosik]

Beside the rattle snakes we have one very unusual snake. A rubber boa. I see one almost every year. About two feet long - shiny, steely gray color - about big around as your thumb. They eat bugs and move about as slow as molasses. Lying out in the lawn around my tool shed.

The head is shaped like a fine Cuban cigar. The tail is blunted and rounded off. I keep a sharp eye out for this one. Will move him to already mowed area so he doesn't get hurt.

I've had barn cats too. At times - close to a dozen. But - slowly but surely - the hawks by day - the owls and coyotes by night. I haven't had barn cats for over ten years now.

 

[lman]

All we have around here are harmless garter snakes like the one pictured. They do reduce the mouse population.

 

[Jstpssng]

All we have around here are harmless garter snakes like the one pictured. They do reduce the mouse population.

Not as much as people think. I mentioned this to a biologist once and he told me that they really don't eat many mice.

 

[Hay Dude]

I hate snakes, but all the snakes in our area are beneficial in that they are non-poisonous and kill rodents which carry diseases, but still don’t like them. We even have black snakes, which I believe eat other snakes.

 

[ponytug]

Not as much as people think. I mentioned this to a biologist once and he told me that they really don't eat many mice.

I believe that they feed on newborn mice in nests, rather than adults, though they are more of an insectivorous and a consumer of young amphibians.

Garter snake | Habitat, Diet, & Facts | Britannica

Garter snake, any of about 35 species of nonvenomous snakes having a striped pattern suggesting a garter: typically, one or three longitudinal yellow to red stripes, between which are checkered blotches. Forms in which the stripes are obscure or lacking are often called grass snakes.

www.britannica.com

The rattlesnakes here prey on ground squirrels by raiding the babies.

Still, there is nothing like a badger for making a dent in ground squirrel populations.

All the best,

Peter

 

[Jstpssng]

I believe that they feed on newborn mice in nests, rather than adults, though they are more of an insectivorous and a consumer of young amphibians.

Garter snake | Habitat, Diet, & Facts | Britannica

Garter snake, any of about 35 species of nonvenomous snakes having a striped pattern suggesting a garter: typically, one or three longitudinal yellow to red stripes, between which are checkered blotches. Forms in which the stripes are obscure or lacking are often called grass snakes.

www.britannica.com

The rattlesnakes here prey on ground squirrels by raiding the babies.

Still, there is nothing like a badger for making a dent in ground squirrel populations.

All the best,

Peter

I wondered if they went after the babies. Just before posting I did a quick search, information I found agreed with what the biologist had said.

We had a heavy mouse population last year. In late fall I started noticing a lot of fox scat in my field. Hopefully the mouse population was reduced... especially since she killed most of my hens one day last summer.