Attitude

[pepperj]

Went to the garden on the ATV and coming out if the gate it was right beside me.
Now stay still-whats with the attitude?
Ok-thanks have a good day.

 

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[smokeythecat]

I want cicadas! Give them to me! They are tasty!

 

[Megalodon]

I want cicadas! Give them to me! They are tasty!

Just about everything that slithers, crawls, swims, flies or walks will eat cicadas. The strategy of mass emergence like those of cicadas is interesting. Some say it is a "satiation strategy" - that when so many prey become available to predators who gorge themselves but that cannot time their own abundance to match every 17 years to take advantage, enough will survive to perpetuate the species. It is an amazing thing to see, comparable IME to the mass emergence in some areas of Hexagenia mayflies and the fish that gorge on them. There are predators like snowy owls that respond with higher reproduction to the cyclical abundance of small mammal prey but it is not on a 17 year cycle.

I once had a little cat named Peanuts - who in a cicada eruption in the early 80's, would capture then and then run around excitedly as the cicada buzzed in her mouth with her jaws open enough to form a sort of weird little cage. It is always nice to have cats that can perform unusual tricks like this when friends visit.

Looking at the maps and charts, it looks like we will miss this year's brood X cicadas.

 

[tamrock]

Seems snakes get a lot of attention on this thread when posted. That's a serious looking reptile.

 

[pepperj]

Seems snakes get a lot of attention on this thread when posted. That's a serious looking reptile.

Black Rat snake, I always know when there's one around.The chipmunks disappear. Oh we welcome them as they keep other rodent population down. Though the birds have a time with them stealing eggs.

 

[fyrffytr1]

I moved two of them out of my tomato patch a couple days ago so they wouldn't startle my wife. You have a healthy looking snake there.

 

[Megalodon]

Black Rat snake, I always know when there's one around.The chipmunks disappear. Oh we welcome them as they keep other rodent population down. Though the birds have a time with them stealing eggs.

I also appreciate the rodent control.

Nothing quite wakes you like opening a birdhouse and finding a snake curled up inside looking at you a few inches away. They climb trees easily, so I put my bluebird nesting boxes on metal poles. I have seen one stretch almost straight out from a nearby tree to reach a bird house.

My favorite metal poles to use are the chain link fence rails. Rather than toss cut waste pieces in the metal recycling bin, I like to set the straight post in the ground and then attach the nesting box to a short rail section with a male end that drops into the straight pipe like a socket. I can then lift this off to clean the house between nests and turn it to find the direction the birds seem to prefer with the season.

 

[billb]

What a sight to see..!!!
I have not seen to many snakes so far this spring..but I always recall sitting on the rocky shoreline while fishing and a large copperhead crawled behind me and went down into the rocks

 

[jeff of pa]

you would have seen me jump straight off my feet

no it's not necessarily because it's a snake.

it would be the surprise and not being able to tell poison from safe in a fraction of a second fear

 

[pepperj]

you would have seen me jump straight off my feet

no it's not necessarily because it's a snake.

it would be the surprise and not being able to tell poison from safe in a fraction of a second fear

That's one good thing about around here, none are poisonous. Seen some big Garters around these past few years.

 

[jeff of pa]

although I can't say I've been near a rattler or copperhead, I've searched areas they are supposed to be prevalent , even trudged through high weeds
hoping my coil would get the warning strike, if at all. but so far what little experience I've had were black and garden varieties.
the only one that sent me jumpin was a black, right by my foot. again I didn't take the time to think, just extricate myself.
since I was told Rattler area

 

[Megalodon]

What a sight to see..!!!
I have not seen to many snakes so far this spring..but I always recall sitting on the rocky shoreline while fishing and a large copperhead crawled behind me and went down into the rocks

Rockpiles are the preferred habitat, followed by brushpiles. Luckily for you they are not the most aggressive snakes.

I don't burn my brush since so much of it has poison ivy vines. When I was in grad school, I supported myself with generous teaching and research assistantships that provided free tuition and medical insurance and a living stipend. To supplement the stipend, I tutored organic chemistry and worked weekends as a carpenter at a girl scout camp. Another worker there was burning brush loaded with poison ivy and I accidentally inhaled the smoke while outside building tent platforms. That was the sickest I have ever been. Unable to breathe and with a face so seriously swollen I didn't want to be seen, I just curled up and waited to die, but a fellow grad student discovered and nursed me back to health. I will never forget her kindness. Now I make brush piles and they are used by a variety of wildlife. Box turtles overwinter under them, snakes climb them to sun themselves, possums and raccoons den in them; birds use the smaller twigs to build nests. In my yard, the copperheads go from a rockpile to a brushpile.

 

[Megalodon]

although I can't say I've been near a rattler or copperhead, I've searched areas they are supposed to be prevalent , even trudged through high weeds
hoping my coil would get the warning strike, if at all. but so far what little experience I've had were black and garden varieties.
the only one that sent me jumpin was a black, right by my foot. again I didn't take the time to think, just extricate myself.
since I was told Rattler area

You've probably been closer to them and not seen them. When I mow, I expect to see 3 or 4 species (usually worm snakes, black rat, garter, and yes, copperheads). We have to teach our 2 1/2 year old grandson not to pick up any snakes, even if he sees Pop-Pop do it. He loves to grab lizards and everything else.

 

[Megalodon]

That's one good thing about around here, none are poisonous. Seen some big Garters around these past few years.

We live in an area known for the highest density of copperheads in the state. They are a common sight and usually bite when something messes with them. Dogs and cats are commonly bitten. Every vet in the area is prepared for copperhead bites.

The only person I know who was bitten did something dumb. He cut off the head with a lawn edger and then tried to pick up the head - which immediately bit him and injected the venom. His wife drove him to the hospital and now enjoys telling the "my husband is so stupid" story.

 

[Megalodon]

If you have copperheads and rattlers, you might want a snake that eats them. This is an eastern kingsnake on lattice under one of my decks. Immune to the venom of copperheads and rattlers, it preys upon them along with the usual snake prey. It is my favorite snake and I won't remove rotting logs because they are the preferred places for female kingsnakes to lay their eggs. Oddly, they are much more scarce than copperheads here.

 

[jeff of pa]

I found a Black Snakes shedded skin in my Bathroom Ceiling several years Back.

Heard several Stories about Snakes in Walls since first Sharing the Story.

One there are probably snakes in allot of older homes feeding on mice.
another, it may have been a Practice by Home builders to place them there

I don't know natural Life span, I can't believe they would have lived there 150 years.

my house had a dirt basement and tunnels branching off under it.
probably dug later and
used to distribute plumbing to the kitchen and bath room.in the 40's when the mine sold the homes..
. so no idea what
all was down there

 

[Megalodon]

Lifespans can be longer for snakes kept as pets. Black rat snakes can live 30 years in captivity; 20 years in the wild is more common.

Snakes in walls generally do not spend their entire life cycle there.

 

[Megalodon]

you would have seen me jump straight off my feet

no it's not necessarily because it's a snake.

it would be the surprise and not being able to tell poison from safe in a fraction of a second fear

Over 40 years ago, I shared a room with an old college buddy and fellow biologist at the annual meeting of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists (ASIH). The first night there was a function at which we socialized and gorged ourselves on smoked salmon and drank too much beer. When we got back to the room, he told me to check my bed for rattlesnakes because some herpetologist had come in to show him some snakes. Naturally, I said "well I hope he got them all back in his bag..." but the idea had been planted. Just as I was about to pass out, I heard a rattle from behind the pillow and then remembered the story. I catapulted from the bed and simultaneously grabbed and pulled off the thin mattress. There was a monofilament fishing line going from his bed to a plastic beer cup containing some popcorn kernels attached to my bedframe. Yes, there had been a snake guy in the room - but at my friend's request to calibrate the sound made by the cup and popcorn kernels for authenticity.

 

[Louie D]

Seems snakes get a lot of attention on this thread when posted. That's a serious looking reptile.

Snakes are interesting animals and generate a lot of attention, be it good or bad.

 

[jeff of pa]

mustn't have been poison, or she heals fast May 18, 2021
Caught on camera: Mooresville N.C. woman bit by snake while trimming hedges



Update: The non-venomous black racer was four or five feet long

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article251528783.html