Well I live in Oklahoma and the Snake book says that most snakes here are
not poisonous. We try to leave them alone when we can but when they start
getting around my buildings I say forget it.
My husband & kids grew up with the opinion that a dead snake is a good
snake.
One of the funny things that happened was when my daughter was about 15 we
were out feeding cows and her boyfriend came along. He was a nice country
guy but still went into shock from what she did. She was getting out of the
truck to open a gate , looked down at her feet and there was a snake about 6
feet away. She promptly reached into the truck grabbed the 45 and blew it's
head off. After making sure the gun was safe turned around and told us "GOOD
SNAKE !" with a big smile on her face. Her ex - boyfriend hasn't forgot that
one yet ! She made a funny picture long blonde hair, blue eyes, built like a
model and a darn good shot. Word got around town and the boys were sure to
behave.
bsk
bsk@brightok.net
bsk wrote:
> She was getting out of the
> truck to open a gate , looked down at her feet and there was a snake about
6
> feet away. She promptly reached into the truck grabbed the 45 and blew
it's
> head off. After making sure the gun was safe turned around and told us
"GOOD
> SNAKE !"
Ugh! Now why did she do that? Did I miss something or did she kill the
snake just for fun or to show off, or what? If that's the case, I find
this story about as amusing as if she'd "blown the head off" of a
neighborhood cat or a stray dog. Shame on her.
Sheryl Highsmith
shighsmith@vines.colostate.edu
Fort Collins, CO
Zone 5
bsk wrote:
Well, I don't think that's very funny. I love snakes too and they're a
really important part of any ecosystem including your garden.
Your book is correct that not many species are poisonous. The poisonous
snakes are easy to identify in that they have golden or green eyes with a
black diamond shaped pupil. If a snake has solid black eyes, it is not
poisonous. Believe it or not this is fairly easy to tell at a reasonable
distance. Also, among the poisonous species, although cottonmouths are
nasty and aggressive, rattlers are not inclined to attack you if you leave
them alone. Thus, they rattle to warn you that you're getting too close.
Don't get any closer, and the rattler is only too happy to "live and let
live."
Most common snakes actually seem not to mind being picked up and handled by
humans if we're gentle. I will usually pick one up and play with it for
awhile if I come across one - the 6 foot rat snakes just as well as the
little garters. Around here (the South), lots of old farmers use the trick
of putting boards and rocks out around their barns in order to attract rat
snakes (they like to hide under large boards). The snakes help keep
rodents out of the barn.
Now HERE's a funny story, told to me by an Appalachian farmer who did what
I describe above. Each morning he would lovingly lift up the boards around
his barn to see how his little helpers were doing. Well one day, he saw a
large oval shaped lump about halfway down one of the snakes, something it
had eaten and not digested yet (snakes usually swallow their food whole).
He didn't think much of it until he noticed that a few days later, the lump
was still there and the snake hadn't moved - in fact, it looked awfully
sick, maybe even close to death.
So my farmer friend picked up the snake and began massaging it behind the
lump, forcing said lump back up the snake's body until it regurgitated.
And it turned out, this snake had swallowed one of my friend's plastic nest
eggs! Needless to say it had no idea how to digest plastic! But it was
fine after its "rescue", and a few days later my friend caught the same
snake in the act of stealing one of his hens' (real) eggs. Free range hens
have this habit of laying eggs in places where farmers can't find them but
snakes can. Well, my friend saw the snake swallow the real egg whole,
watched the lump go down its body, and then, the snake sort of twisted
itself at a right angle and broke the egg! After having had its "plastic
egg" experience, my friend said, "I never thought there could be such a
thing is as a look of relief on a snake's face, but I swear there was!"
= Lee =
***********************************************************************
Lee A. Flier
lflier@mindspring.com
http://lflier.home.mindspring.com
Atlanta and Ellijay, Georgia, U.S.A.
"My excuse for venturing across disciplines, continents, and centuries is
that the world extends across disciplines, continents, and centuries.
Nothing in nature is quite so separate as two mounds of expertise." -
Marvin Harris
bsk wrote:
Wonderful story, Gave me a wonderful belly laugh as I pictured this as I
take a break from cleaning pots and trays for my lovely seeds.Sorry
about the snake, I kinda like them...I stil think twice but they don't
scare me . I had a "pet" named "sneaky" and my mom discovered it when
she took laundry from the washer. I never was forgiven. It lived in my
jeans when not in a "pen". I didn't know my mom could talk like that :*)
Marg
--
memillard@ns.sympatico.ca
on the south shore of N.S.,
in Canada...Zone 5b
Hi Lee,
We loved this story! Both of us were familiar with snakes in Africa. On
the whole, "leave them alone and they leave you alone", but they could
be a nuisance. Moira's parents had trouble with the small local cobra
which /would/ insist on coming and nesting in the house.
Also they used to have african farm hands coming to them for treatment
for bites. (Africans did NOT tolerate snakes!). OTOH, in some parts it
was quite fashionable to keep a python as a house pet. They mostly lived
in the rafters, and they kept the house free of small vermin!
> Now HERE's a funny story, told to me by an Appalachian farmer who did > what I describe above.
Tony
--
Tony & Moira Ryan
Wainuiomata, New Zealand
Reply from Kris Johnson to #98.6661448 From drea@VERMONTERS.COM(Drea Thew
> Do snakes eat
> slugs?
According to Rodale's Encyclopdia of Organic Gardening snakes prey on slugs. I suspect that they eat them more than toads since they are so plentiful.
Kris Johnson - gardening in
Williston, Ohio (near Toledo, close to Lake Erie, zone 6)
KRIS_JOHNSON.parti@ecunet.org
In a message dated 20/09/98 23:33:26, you write:
<< In the last month I've
removed three off the porch and one from a ledge that goes around the shower
in the bathroom. >>
I take my hat off to you Carol, Mary in France.
My former house was a beauty - seven wooded acres over looking a valley
above a rocky creek bank. One sunny day in late April I went to attack
my spring gardening chores in my new home. I hadn't got six feet out
the door when I saw my first rat (or black) snake. Eight more feet down
the flag stone path - another, on the deck by the cliff, another!!
Before two hours were up I had encountered six snakes!!
Frantic, I called the snake expert at our local university. He advised
that our property most likely had it's share of rattlers and copperheads
- but to be thankful that the rat snakes were the ones near to our
house! He said as long as they were lurking about, they would keep the
majority of the poisonous snakes away. He also advised that I put away
all bird feed for the warmer months and store in a rodent proof
container. Since I had over ten feeders, he stated that was probably
the explanation for so many snakes. They were coming around for the
rodents, who were also attracted to the feed!!
He additionally advised to make sure the wood pile was as far from the
house as possible.
Tammy
mid Missouri
Zone 5a
We have chicken snakes and rat snakes around our place. They are usually
about 5 feet long. The chicken snakes we have are black with yellow or
orange. We have them because of the animals. They probably were trying to
keep cool.
Joyfully,
Jackie
Looking for a safe alternative to harsh, toxic products for your family?
Need to earn a little extra every month? You can have both! E-mail me at
snippets91@cs.com
Ada, I looked at the picture. My snake was black top and bottom, unlike the
ring snake. Come to think of it, though, it did have a greenish yellow band
across its neck. I really didn't care much as to what is was, but more as
to what it *wasn't* -- specifically a copperhead. Having verified that, I
gently removed it to safer territory.
Pat
I just read a post about snakes and it got me thinking. I see
quite a few, or the same one, on my way to the garden. I call all of
them "charley" as this is what I told two little girls so they would
be less afraid of them. My idea being if they knew who it was it
wouldn't bother them. Worked like a charm. Every time they saw a
common garden snake they would say "look there is charley." In a
couple years they would see a different kind of snake and said it was
one of charley's cousins. I never taught them that.
Anyway would snakes predate on slugs and or snails? If so they
would make a welcome addition to my garden.
Also my sick legumes seem to be recovering by themselves, unless
it had something to do with several doses of my compost tea which is
switching over from mostly coffee grounds to an excellent manure tea
with little bedding in it. I pass it through an old bed sheet to
keep the solids from plugging my sprinkler wand. I think I need a
few small holes in it though because it is slow to pass the liquids.
The out put is a grey colored fluid with little odor.
I think there are some snakes that specialize in eating slugs and snails
(I've seen them on TV) but the snakes that are in my area, and I've read the
life history on, eat insects, birds, egg, rats, mice, etc. I think turtles
may eat slugs but they also eat my tomatos.
I have a little book of reptiles and amphibians of my state. We keep it
handy to identify and learn about the critters around our home. It is well
worn from use. My boys have especially enjoyed it.
Sydney
Oklahoma
Hi everyone.=0D
Hi Bob from Oz.=0D
Snakes are protected here in Queensland too. Even the deadly Taipan. Used=
to
get an odd one in the backyard once, but now that all the vacant land for
miles around is taken up with housing estates, don't see them any more. I=
f
you keep birds in cages outside tho, you have to watch out for Carpet
Pythons, as they get into the cage and eat the birds, then are so fat the=
y
can't get out of the cage again and are usually caught.We are taking all
their natural habitat poor things.=0D
Queen's birthday on Monday, so a holiday. although now we are retired isn=
't
every day a holiday????=0D
Just to put a bit of garden content in. I am anxiously waiting for my
Angraecum Orchid to flower. It is the first flowering, and is in bud.=0D
Regards to all JUNE FROM QUEENSLAND
I can just imagine what your place looks like -- all those fantastic orchid
plants, living in a tropical paradise, parrots flying about, tree ferns....
How do feel about visitors??? heheheheh
karen in NJ
to
isn't
Hi everybody=0D
Hi Karen in NJ.=0D
=0D
Yes we sure do live in Paradise. We say of our State. Beautiful one day.
Perfect the next.=0D
Regards. June from Queensland
