SNAKES

[SchoolOfHardRocks]

I know this isn't "Animal Planet Net" but I'm excited to share my first rattle snake experience! On Saturday my girlfriend and i decided to hit the Euchre Bar trail on the North Fork of the American River. Not sure on the milage of the trail but you go up and down over 1700' in mosquito infested forest...it was rough. But it was all worth it, right when we got back to the top of the trail i see a rattle snake sitting there sunbathing. I grabbed a stick (just in case) and got within 5 feet of the guy and managed to snap some photos before he was on his way. He paused for a moment and coiled as he left just to make sure that I wasn't up to any funny business and even rattled at me (which i caught on video!) On Sunday I headed to mineral bar and ran into a black water snake. He was lingering in an area that i was trying to prospect so i gently nudged him along and he turned away and started off, I guess i wasn't happy enough with his departing speed so i gave his tail end one more nudge which was a VERY BAD IDEA He turned around with the quickness and charged toward me stopping about a 3 feet from my legs and holding his ground. LOL i had to leave the area because of this snake. Guess it was my fault for provoking him so I bounced so nobody had to be bit or killed. I spent the rest of the day prospecting and looking over my shoulder for that angry serpent. Very exciting weekend.

 

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[bobw53]

something dosent look right about that picture. They usually swallow the head first and this looks like a tail first swallow

No, its got the head, tapers down, and the part the black snake has in its mouth is fat.. It would taper down to a point if it was the tail, and you would probably see rattles....

Suckers got a skinny neck though... If snakes even have necks.

 

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[Alamosmoon]

Skinny neck, for sure!


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[Oregon Viking]

You guy's are FREAKIN' me out with all these snakes.....
I wear zip-up snake boots (18") gives me a little piece of mind. Wanted Danner...nope Cabela's is all I could find in size 14

 

[lockster99]

18" boots don't protect you from the ones that hang out in the trees!

 

[Oregon Viking]

18" boots don't protect you from the ones that hang out in the trees!

True, true. I have yet to see a snake in a tree 'round here though.

 

[bobw53]

18" boots don't protect you from the ones that hang out in the trees!

He's already freaked out, now you are going to give him nightmares... I'll sleep like a baby tonight though... We don't even have trees here.

 

[lockster99]

Yeah Viking....they're extra creepy when in the trees...you know...eye to eye. You don't even see 'em until they jump out and flop down just missing you. Worst part...you dont have time to figure out...good snake/bad snake.

 

[Oregon Viking]

Yeah Viking....they're extra creepy when in the trees...you know...eye to eye. You don't even see 'em until they jump out and flop down just missing you. Worst part...you dont have time to figure out...good snake/bad snake.

You do realize the forests we have here....it would take 5 minutes for da snake to fall!

 

[lockster99]

Yeah well imagine how mad he will be by the time he gets to you!

 

[Alamosmoon]

This guy is the go-to guy for good info on snakes. Especially for Florida. At the end of this video one will notice he mentions to be careful of places that sell live plants- that snakes are often hiding in there, too. Ah! They are everywhere!

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[bzbadger]

I wear rocky boots 18", best boots for everything plus snake proof as they were tested by a well camouflaged angry water snake as I came upon it while detecting, sucker hit my boot at least a half dozen times before I removed him.

Not scared of snakes just respect them.

My Hungarian father in law found a 6'+ black snake, the big kind not the skinny ones, in my front yard and had everyone upset as he tried to get it to leave. My daughter ran to me told me to hurry and why, I come out to my family standing behind my father in law who's saying to the snake "shoo" while waving my rake at it..i busted out laughing at him and said snakes don't have ears he cant hear you. I went over, reached down and grabbed the snake by the head looped its body around my neck and walked to the ditch at the far end of the property and let it go. You should have seen the looks on my in laws faces.

 

[Jimmydolittle]

I absolutely hate it when I see dead snakes on the road, knowing that someone has left the road surface to kill the snakes, off to the side. I don't get it.

 

[bfloyd4445]

These black racers are my favorite. No rats/ mice here.

I owned a section of grassland oaks a few pines in Siskiyou county and I had this snake that lived by one of the springs that was FAST. Didn't know what it was but was told by a local oldtimer that it was a black racer. Are the ones on your place that fast also?
Why don't you hold him/her in your hands?

 

[Alamosmoon]

Oh, yes. They are fast. And, they often hide/sun themselves near the landscaping around the pool area. Because we have the occasional Cottonmouth, I use my handy-dandy grabber or hook to reach in there instead of my hands. They look similar upon first glance. Also, they actually can be a bit aggressive when cornered. They are not venomous, but can and do bite. A large big rat snake bit my dog hard on the nose and ear. I got the hook after that. I just grab them and quickly move them back to the edge of the property, away from the kiddos and dogs. A rat snake can mimic a rattler, and depending upon which kind it is, can look like one too. My husband is the hand-grabber in the family. Like our Badger friend, he is not afraid of anything! I have never seen my husband loop one around his neck though. Lol.

 

[bfloyd4445]

Oh, yes. They are fast. And, they often hide/sun themselves near the landscaping around the pool area. Because we have the occasional Cottonmouth, I use my handy-dandy grabber or hook to reach in there instead of my hands. They look similar upon first glance. Also, they actually can be a bit aggressive when cornered. They are not venomous, but can and do bite. A large big rat snake bit my dog hard on the nose and ear. I got the hook after that. I just grab them and quickly move them back to the edge of the property, away from the kiddos and dogs. A rat snake can mimic a rattler, and depending upon which kind it is, can look like one too. My husband is the hand-grabber in the family. Like our Badger friend, he is not afraid of anything! I have never seen my husband loop one around his neck though. Lol.

that's funny, but sensible. I'm sure a sensitive intellegent woman like yourself would not have a man dumb enough to put a snake around his neck<smile>?.....well....unless he had other skills to offset the disability....Out here the rattlers have been all killed off and now we have tons of rat issues and other vermin. Sad how so many people will kill any and all snakes just because they are snakes. When they began developing around us as a kid snakes moved under our house big time which I loved but mom didn't. Lost a three foot king in the house for about a month before mom found him curled up in the laundry hamper. I got in trouble for that and had to go let him loose down by the river. Some animals can't be exterminated like mountain lions. In Ca. there was a $200 bounty on them until the late sixties and they were thought to be extinct but weren't. Cats don't like noise and stay away from people that with their territorial ways made sure there would never be lots around just enough. The smallest territory documented in ca. is 60 square miles with the male ranges slightly larger. In Colorado or maybe Utah the range has been found to be up to 1600 square miles. Now the lions are protected we have a problem with the desert bighorn sheep which have almost been wiped out by cattle disease and competition with feral horses coupled with lion depradation.
Anyway, thanks for saving the snakes from harm
Britt

 

[Alamosmoon]

Good post, Britt. Thanks. It was their habitat before it was mine. I am lucky they are willing to share it with me.

I used to live 10 years in the desert, and only came across a Rattler a mere 5 times. Gila, once. A few tarantulas. It was there that I learned that they are not out to get us, unless we are out to get them. Accidentally or purposely.

 

[bfloyd4445]

Good post, Britt. Thanks. It was their habitat before it was mine. I am lucky they are willing to share it with me. Every thing has some kind of crucial/important balance in nature, right? Big snakes eat rodents, and little snakes eat... mosquitos and fire ants (among other insects). Go Ringnecks! I just learned that!

I used to live 10 years in the desert, and only came across a Rattler a mere 5 times. Gila, once. A few tarantulas. It was there that I learned that they are not out to get us, unless we are out to get them. Accidentally or purposely. Survival of the fittest at it's finest. Fight or flight... or stay there and get clobbered. Lol.

My neighbor in Oregon whose family pioneered the valley thinks there is a lion behind every tree. He was a good guy but without any education to speak of and likely never read a book so he tended to go with what was popular and lion bashing is always popular with ranchers. Had this issue with sheep, lambs disappearing and blamed a lion so he contacted the state and they sent out a zoologist to investigate. The zoologist said there was lion sign around and he would authorize a state trapper to come in to catch whatever was taking the sheep. Well the trapper never caught anything except for an old raccoon. The trapper said it may have been the coon doing the damage but my neighbor didn't think so. Well anyway, after the coon was gone no more lambs or sheep went missing. We have coyotes, lions, wolves<new>,bears in the area but they mostly go after their natural prey not domesticated livestock..
I get irritated at people that want to live in the country or woods but then start complaining about some of the wildlife around cause they may be a threat to there kids.....grrrrr....
This pix of part of my farm and the neighbors strip of land on the other side of the creek in the distance which borders BLM land so you can see there is pleanty of room for wild critters. You can kinda see part of his house in the distance which is on the other side of Elk Creek

 

[Oregon Viking]

I agree. With the 180,000 acre Kalmiopsis Wilderness in our backyard (Here) you might see an animal or 3! We have livestock disappear quite a bit around here, Bobcats, cougar, bear coyote etc have to eat too! The bear get into the apples and blackberries in my yard every year. The big cats like the deer. I have lived here 49 years, born and raised.. and have only seen 5 cougars. A few times as I backtracked a trail there were tracks, makes you very aware of your surroundings. Every year there is at least 1 cat sighting, usually inland a few miles. They are losing their fear of man

 

[bfloyd4445]

I agree. With the 180,000 acre Kalmiopsis Wilderness in our backyard (Here) you might see an animal or 3! We have livestock disappear quite a bit around here, Bobcats, cougar, bear coyote etc have to eat too! The bear get into the apples and blackberries in my yard every year. The big cats like the deer. I have lived here 49 years, born and raised.. and have only seen 5 cougars. A few times as I backtracked a trail there were tracks, makes you very aware of your surroundings. Every year there is at least 1 cat sighting, usually inland a few miles. They are losing their fear of man

I've only seen a lion maybe three four times. Twice he was still hunting the same deer i was. First time we came nose to nose at the top of a ridge in the bushes. We both turned tail and ran. Then watched one hunting when i was in a blind. Then I was still hunting and felt funny so looked behind me to see a lion a few feet behind me with his nose on the same deer trail mine was. He realized I was there at the same time i saw him and he took off like a rocket. Deer are there primary food and they follow the deer herds. One time on red star ridge i was wearing camo deer hunting leaning against a big rock watching down this ridge trail for deer. I spotted this light brown animal kinda low to the ground a good distance down the trail and at first thought it was a bear but soon realized it was a lion. I thought to myself, wow, this guy will walk right past me within a couple of feet if he stays on the trail. I thought of safety and figured my browning automatic rifle in 7mm mag and my ruger redhawk in 44mag should insure my safety so i just leaned back to watch the show. As he approached i could see a nice scare accross his nose and he must have weighed as much as I, cept there was no evidence of a beer belly just muscles rippling under his skin. About this time he was very close and i got a sinking feeling in my stomach when i realized my ass was his if he wanted it and all my fancy firepower didnt mean didly sqwatt at this range. Just then the lion saw me and crouched down like a house cat about to pounce on a mouse. I froze, I knew the slightest movement would likely make him attack so i thought of what i could do. I decided to make some bear like low grunts without moving a hair to see if that wouldnt relax the cat. After the first meek grunt the cat relaxed and stood up. He, oh yes it was a he I was close enough to tell for sure. He then looked one way then the other and then again at me. After that he turned away from me giving me a wide berth as he went around me and then back on the trail of the does that had come by earlier. Whew, I relaxed, gave thanks to the lord for saving me. What a dumb thing I did. I should never have allowed that cat to get so close. I tell you that encounter will be vivid in my memory till the day I die even if I get Alzheimers and cant even remember my name I'm sure I will remember that beautiful lion

 

[kayakpat]

What a thrill, Bears we have and I have been very close to them, which was stupid, Lions are not here , makes you wonder how it is going to work out over the years with more and more people. Bear attacks are up, but beautiful animals to see.