Texas Fall/Winter thread!

   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,081  
Kyle, you do know that Timber Rattlers are a protected species in Texas, don't you? Certainly, if it had been run over, dispatching it would have been the humane thing to do, but I don't know if a game warden would see it that way.:confused3:

Wouldn't be a protected species if he was on my place :D
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,082  
Neat connections, bindian. You aren't the only one in your family to have the ability to work with your hands! :thumbsup:

Yep, your soil would let you stick him a LOT deeper than I could get him dug into here.
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,083  
My wife was using the string-trimmer while I was mowing this week. She told me she had seen a tiny-tiny snake much smaller around than a pencil and dark blue-gray with a ring behind it's neck. Of course, she didn't cut anymore in that location so it could get away. That news really excited me because I've also seen another one on my place. It's the Texas version of the ring-neck snake. The picture below was captured from a website, but very close to what we saw. When you look closely, beauty is everywhere.

Diadophis_punctatus_punctatus_1b,_Tallahassee,_200304.jpg
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread!
  • Thread Starter
#2,084  
Ring snake I think they are, I have seen a few on the edge areas of the yard usually around some cover
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,085  
My new brother in law's family makes boots. They own the shop that is famous for making senior boots for the fighting Texas Aggie Corp of Cadets!!!
I get a lump in my throat watching the Corp marching band. They are my favorite and they are awesome!
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,086  
jinman; That is a very pretty snake! I wonder how large they can get. (Yes, I am too lazy this AM to look it up, as I am on my way out the door!)
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,087  
jinman; That is a very pretty snake! I wonder how large they can get. (Yes, I am too lazy this AM to look it up, as I am on my way out the door!)

The one in the photo is probably full grown. They reach 10" to 14" normally with the largest ever recorded in Texas at 16". They do not bite humans, but feed on bugs and small insects. Their saliva seems to be toxic to insects, but I guess you could say my saliva is toxic to a hamburger because it never survives after I bite it.:rolleyes: My book on ringnecks says they do not travel far from where they hatch. It says they have found and marked snakes and always find them within a 400' diameter circle around their discovery spot. They live in the woods under the canopy of dried leaves/grass and are very shy.

The first one I ever saw was the day after I read about them in my field guide. I was shocked. How could I go all my life and never see one, and then see one the day after reading about them. What are the odds of that?

Kyle:The reference for the Timber Rattler I saw yesterday said a maximum of 40". However, today I am looking at my Texas Snakes Field Guide and it seems we grow them bigger here (Of course!). The book says they are commonly 4' in Texas, with the longest being 74".:D
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,088  
My new brother in law's family makes boots. They own the shop that is famous for making senior boots for the fighting Texas Aggie Corp of Cadets!!!
I get a lump in my throat watching the Corp marching band. They are my favorite and they are awesome!

I can't agree more about the Texas Aggie Marching Band. I cry anytime I hear the Aggie War Hymn now. I had it played in his church for his funeral service.
hugs, Brandi
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,089  
I picked what I think will surely be the last of our blackeyed peas yesterday. This morning, I picked 3-1/2 lb of okra and 8 nice sized yellow squash. This afternoon, I shelled most of the peas and my wife helped me with the final ones. Bird, I sure wish you were nearby because with the large number of snaps and small peas, you'd love these, and we'd be happy for you to have them. We have to make room to freeze stuff these days. Yesterday, I even took 3 lb of okra with me to the county dumpsite to give the operator there.;)
 
   / Texas Fall/Winter thread! #2,090  
Yep, Jim, we're coming to the end of another season. We went to the Denton Community Market Saturday, which includes the Farmers Market that is there on Tuesdays and Thursdays also and Saturday was the last day for this year.

My brother and his wife who spend the summers in Washington State arrived back in Elm Mott for the Winter today.

And tomorrow we'll pick up Margaret's sister at the DFW airport. She tries to come visit from West Virginia when State Fair of Texas is going.

And I hope we get a big rain tonight and tomorrow with the cold front coming.
 
 
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