Snakes

[Wakey]

I have seen a lot of black snakes around here recently, which are eastern rat snakes.

This snake had a mate with him, you can see it behind the landscaping timber. I don't ever recall seeing a snake with such a knotted appearance.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Years ago, I was driving up our road and I saw a copperhead heading towards our house. :thumbdown: My first thought was to stop the truck, get one of the 2x4's used to hold cargo in the truck bed and wack the snake. Thought about that idea for a second... Figured getting close enough to wack the snake with a short 2x4 was not the best idea and I was missing the obvious... RUN THE DANG THING OVER WITH THE TRUCK! :laughing::laughing::laughing:

So I did. Once in gear, and to make sure, put the truck in neutral and rolled back over Mr. Poison No Legs.

Got a stick and tossed a flattened Mr. Poison No Legs into the woods for something to eat. It was gone the next day.

Don't like killing snakes but poisonous ones near the house are a threat.

Later,
Dan

I remember when I was a kid, living in Missouri, we saw lots of snakes on the road. My Dad would run over them and slam on the brakes. Even on a dirt road, it made hamburger out of them.

 

[jaxs]

This story is more about how people embellish storys than it is about snakes. Post WWII,there was a fighter plane training base near Sherman Tx. One day while refueling mid-air,they dropped the hose in our pasture. The thing was about 4" dia and wrapped in cord very similar in appearance to what electrical wire was wrapped in before plastic jackets. My brother I cut off a manageable piece,tied fishing line to it,hid in tall grass one night and dragged it across the dirt road as cars approached. Only one brave guy stopped to investigate. He was a good time sort of fellow so he didn't reveal our secret. People told stories at the barber shop and country store about trying to smash the giant snake beneath their wheels and it lifted the car to escape. One guy supposedly went head to head with the serpent wielding a bumper jack. Another talked about how it coiled and rattled. As the hose rested in our barn and days passed,additional sights were reported along with some really bazar stories.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

This story is more about how people embellish storys than it is about snakes. Post WWII,there was a fighter plane training base near Sherman Tx. One day while refueling mid-air,they dropped the hose in our pasture. The thing was about 4" dia and wrapped in cord very similar in appearance to what electrical wire was wrapped in before plastic jackets. My brother I cut off a manageable piece,tied fishing line to it,hid in tall grass one night and dragged it across the dirt road as cars approached. Only one brave guy stopped to investigate. He was a good time sort of fellow so he didn't reveal our secret. People told stories at the barber shop and country store about trying to smash the giant snake beneath their wheels and it lifted the car to escape. One guy supposedly went head to head with the serpent wielding a bumper jack. Another talked about how it coiled and rattled. As the hose rested in our barn and days passed,additional sights were reported along with some really bazar stories.

Human nature at its best!

 

[Bigfoot62]

. . . To me a snake is a snake and I am making dust the other way. :confused2:

A buddy of mine says, "A snake is a snake. They all have the same last name!"

Personally, I only kill Rattlesnakes, Water Moccasins, and Chicken Snakes. I let the rest go. (the first two are venomous, and the last one eats bird eggs, not just chicken)

 

[bcjmmac]

No poisoned varieties in our area - garder snakes, green snakes etc. Anyhow, wife hates em/scared. I chip brush, alders mainly,and the piles heat up ergo the snakes love em. Couple of times I have gotten mulch for my wife, as she knows there will be snakes on top, & have inadvertently brought her some snakes- can you hear her yelling?

 

[Jstpssng]

I first saw it shared here, but given the thread it seems appropriate to repost.
This girls fears anything! She catches Aggressive Water Snakes! - YouTube
Enjoy.

 

[two_bit_score]

Watch your water meter box.




.

 

[bunyip]

Watch your water meter box.

View attachment 555842View attachment 555843


.

Very rarely we see snakes in a group like that, in fact the only time I have seen more than one was when I ran over a mating pair on the road, I often think of little lines to go with that 'did the earth move for you too' etc etc

 

[s219]

This snake had a mate with him, you can see it behind the landscaping timber. I don't ever recall seeing a snake with such a knotted appearance.

View attachment 555762

I have noticed the same thing here -- they will really have a convoluted shape sometimes -- but they go right back to normal. Must be the way they move around. I saw one the other night that was somehow moving horizontally on our brick foundation. He slithered over to an opening in the brick and then was poking his head up over the siding. Looking for those little green frogs I suspect, as they climb all over the walls at night.

 

[dmccarty]

Watch your water meter box.

View attachment 555842View attachment 555843


.

Last century we were looking for land to buy. One property had a house that was around 100 years old, and at some point, a mobile home was on the parcel. The mobile home was gone, but the power pole and well was still in place. The well house was pretty large, about 5 feet by 3 feet by eye height tall. The well house had a lid that opened up. I was curious what was inside said well house and lifted the roof/lid up. As I did so, right in front of my face, a Mr. No Legs went slithering quickly from my right to left. Did I mention that the well house was at eye level? :shocked::laughing::laughing::laughing: I said some adult vocabulary, dropped the lid/roof and jumped backwards about 100 feet all at the same time. I really should have gotten a Gold Medal for those moves.

After I worked my heart back into my chest, I reopened the well house to see what was inside. :confused3: Well, there was Mr. No Legs which was a black snake. Funny enough, I can't remember much else about what was in the well house. :confused3::laughing::laughing::laughing:

We did not buy the place for a variety of reasons but the snake was not one of them.

A few decades after seeing Mr. No Legs in the well house box, I had replaced our 10ish year old "temporary" well house with a big, huge, fake rock. I went out one winter day to check on the well and when I lifted the big huge fake rock, what do I see slithering away? Yep, another black Mr. No Legs. We had a chat. I leave him alone and he leaves me alone. At least he was not in my face but he was too close to my fingers when I lifted the box. Really surprised to see him there at the time of year.

At least these are black snakes and not poisonous ones.

Later,
Dan

 

[YLee Kioti]

If yah'll need a quick reply on what type of critter yah gots this guy is a good go to feller.
Texas Snake Identification Guides

I killed a broad band water snake but at the time did not know.
Next time, I'll relocate the feller and let him control the frog population.

 

[Jstpssng]

If yah'll need a quick reply on what type of critter yah gots this guy is a good go to feller.
Texas Snake Identification Guides

I killed a broad band water snake but at the time did not know.
Next time, I'll relocate the feller and let him control the frog population.

I'd rather have the frogs.
When I was in HS years ago I was in waist deep water holding the rope to go water skiing. When a big snake came swimming along my brother and his MIL started splashing and harassing it, chasing it over in my direction. I didn't see it until they called to me as it swam into my space and I just yelled, throwing my arms up to scare it. I must have caught it dead center because the last anyone saw of that snake it was flying through the air, then hit the water again and disappeared. With relatives like that, who needs enemies??

 

[VroomVroom]

I live in eastern Canada. Nothing of the sort here. But there used to be an old guy down a back road from us for years until his passing several years ago. He had little schooling and would be near 90 now if he was still living. He was guiding a moose hunter sometime in the 1960's. All he wore back then , even in the bogs and bush was an old sports jacket and loafers/deck shoes. Looked like he was going to the dance. The hunter asked him if we had any snakes in newfoundland, and he looked at the fellow and said, " No, we don't have any snakes but we have lots of sneaks"