snakes and welcome

[Guest guest]

A belated welcome. You will be amazed at the recipes

and lots of other information available here.

My high school biology teacher let those who would

touch a snake. I come from a family who can't stand

even the thought of a snake, but that dear teacher

gave me and the other students a great gift of love

for all creation. Even in retirement she taught at

nature centers. Her enthusiasm, upbeat attitude, and

love of life shall be missed on this wartorn earth.

Now, a question for you. I saw the most beautiful

snake on my patio sunning itself. It was brown with

yellow diamond markings on its back. The underside was

pale yellow. Do you know what kind it might be. My

reptile book is very poor. I live in MD. I do have the

most beautiful salamanders living by my back door with

irridescent royal blue on their backs. Hope the snake

doesn't get them.

Diana

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Being a Northern Virginia transplant, I can tell you that if it was this:

http://herpcenter.ipfw.edu/index.htm?http://herpcenter.ipfw.edu/outreach/account\

s/reptiles/snakes/N_Copperhead/index.htm & 2

 

or this:

http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/rattlesn.html

 

I would strongly recommend you not approach it with extraspecies communication

in mind. From your description, it sounds more like the timber rattlesnake.

Both the timber rattlesnake and the copperhead are very venomous. Steer clear.

Not to say hurt the thing, noooo!!! I love our snakes as long as they stay away

from the dogs, who go out, and as long as they do not get in the house or cat

houses. (Happened before) If it is the timber rattlesnake, be very cautious

before picking up a tarp or getting wood from the woodpile.

 

Maybe someday you'll be very fortunate to see the coral snake, which is highly

venomous, or the scarlet king, which is not venomous but rather more

aggressive. We have them down here, both species, and they are exquisitely

beautiful. There is a really wierd looking snake that, when frightened, will

puff up and look really dangerous, but that is a hog nosed snake. Freaky

looking, but not dangerous. Between the snakes outside and cats inside, we

don't have much of a rodent problem.

 

Our friends who supply us with free range, candled eggs from pet chickens own

a reptile show that goes to fairs, schools, etc. I look several times before

sitting anywhere in their house.

 

HTH, Jeanne in Georgia

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

Doesn't look like either picture. I've seen

copperheads. The body background was brown and the

yellow diamonds were unfilled and straight lines.

Never seen anything like it. Incidentally, my

brother-in-law saw a black snake in WVA which when

turned over was a copperhead. Didn't know they could

interbreed, so take care!

Diana

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Where I'm from (northern California) there are several breeds of

rattlesnakes and they definitely inbreed with other snakes. So I was

taught, from a young age, to look at the shape of the head and the pupil

of the eye. <shudder> My solution was to move to the city as soon as I

was of age. I HATE snakes! :-) I stepped on a rattle snake when I was

11 - it was a young snake and it fit right under the arch of my

loafers. I was staring at the grass as I was walking and I thought,

that twig I just stepped on is flicking it's tongue. It was like you

see in the cartoons. I levitated a foot off the ground as I started

pumping my feet and arms, heading at full speed for the front door.

(This was a few yards from my front door.) Of course, the door was

locked, my mother wasn't home (enjoying coffee at a friend's house) and

the key to the door was hidden behind the house in the garage. I snuck

around to the back (the snake didn't move, I guess it was stunned, but

it wasn't dead), got the key, snuck back round to the front, let myself

in, and phoned my mother's friends until I located her. She came home,

killed the snake, asked if I was OK, and went back to her friends

house. Yes, my parents were no-nonsense pioneer sorts of folk. :-)

 

(Not everyone knows that young rattle snakes are more dangerous that

adults. Young snakes, when they bite, are usually in a panic and eject

all of their poison. Adults generally gauge the amount of poison by the

body temperature of the creature and so give a smaller dose of venom to

humans that is required to kill. Rattlesnake bites are generally not

fatal, though bites from younger snakes can be.)

 

Sharon

 

diana scott wrote:

> Doesn't look like either picture.

>

[Guest guest]

That is a relief! Other than the big four, copperheads, water moccasins,

rattlesnakes and corals, the other snakes in the Eastern USA are non-poisonous.

I don't think you will have corals up there, but even if you did, they are more

likely to avoid you than to take a stand. The non poisonous Scarlet King,

though, is an aggressive stinker which will strike rather quickly. (Then all

thoughts of wait a minute, was it yellow touch black, jump back or.... go out of

your head.) There is a pretty brown snake that I cannot for the life of me

remember the name, possibly it was that fellow out for a soak in the sun.

 

 

mmmmm soak in sun. Sounds good, TTFN, Jeanne in Georgia

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

Black Snakes and Copperheads have been interbreeding for years and have a

poisonous bite but not as lethal as the Copperhead.

 

Marilyn Daub

mcdaub

Vanceburg, KY

My Cats Knead Me!!

-

diana scott

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 11:58 AM

Re: snakes and welcome

 

 

Doesn't look like either picture. I've seen

copperheads. The body background was brown and the

yellow diamonds were unfilled and straight lines.

Never seen anything like it. Incidentally, my

brother-in-law saw a black snake in WVA which when

turned over was a copperhead. Didn't know they could

interbreed, so take care!

Diana