For me all snakes are bad - or at least I need to stay away from them. I see so many of these in my beds and under rocks in my yard that I think this just may be a garden snake that could be doing good. But just in case it's a bad one I need to know. It's a gray colored snake and they are usually always pretty small, never any bigger around (at least that I've seen) than a womans index finger but usually not more than like a pencil size.
Good snake. Bad snakes have pupils that are slit, not round. The vipers have triangular shaped heads (venomous). The coral snakes are red, yellow, black with red against yellow, and striped. The rattlers have - you know, rattles.
This message was edited Jun 29, 2006 10:22 AM
I'm glad someone else sees snakes on a regular basis. Luckily I haven't seen any "bad" ones. They all still make me jump!
MJFU,
If THAT snake is the size of a woman finger, I'd like to see the SIZE of THAT WOMAN, lol.
I am guessing cotton mouth, which is NOT a good snake. Welll, not good for RABBITS and people.
CEE,
I think you came on a cure for rabbit prob, import snakes!!! lol
I detect a rabbit war coming between CEE and I, lolrof
Best;
bluelytes
Neat site with decent photos to help you ID it possibly-
http://www.pitt.edu/~mcs2/herp/SoNA.html
Any snake that eats rabbits is a good snake in my book.
Nasty injury that snake you photographed sustained. Good thing it healed.
EQUI,
Agreed re: good rabbit eating snake. But I think CEE will disagree, lol.
Best;
bluelytes
MJFU,
If you find out what kind, be sure to report back, ok?
Best;
bluelytes
Sorry, didn't mean this snake was the size of a woman's finger, just that I've seen the exact same type of snake in the yard as big around as that. This was a smaller one. I sure hope it's not a cotton mouth. I'm still trying to research it - no luck yet.
no, it's NOT a cottonmouth. look at the head. the head on cottonmouths are triangle shaped. look at this picture. http://www.fws.gov/backbay/images/Images%20For%20Web/cottonmouth.jpg
TRAC,
Baby cotton mouth?? lol I dont know squat, was just taking a SWAG.
Best;
bluelytes
Thank goodness - I just hope it's not poisonous because I sure find a lot of these in my beds and they are always hiding in the pinestraw, mulch or under a rock and scare the daylights out of me!
Looks like the ones I find in my garden and I think they are smooth earth snakes; however, I could be wrong.
Brenda
I think they are worm snakes...they only get as long as about 12" and about 1/4" wide. I see them around too.
Blue - See, you scare the dickens out of people when you make your SWAGs! You knew that wasn't a cottonmouth! And then I have to come along and clean up after you! Jeeze! LOL
CEE,
Thank God FOR your fine clean up work!! Thats the beauty of a SWAG, its a G!! lol We dont got none of them scary critters round here, otherwise my machete would be in high gear whacking off their slimy little heads.
Best;
bluelytes
and i'm only going to say this one more time....even a baby cottonmouth would have the unmistakeable viper head. they are not typically a "garden dwelling" snake anyway, unless you live in a swamp.
Yall are making me feel much better - a worm snake sounds much nicer!!!
I don't know if it's true or not but someone told me that good snakes will try to get away if you disturb them or go towards them while bad snakes will hold their ground. Not foolproof probably, but I have found it to be true with the snakes I've encountered in my yard.
TRAC,
Ummm, all of FLOR IS a swamp!! lol, isnt it??? hehehehe
Best;
bluelytes
Thanks for my morning giggles reading this thread. Too funny Tracks-
and i'm only going to say this one more time....even a baby cottonmouth would have the unmistakeable viper head.
This is a great site. I know you don't live in Florida, but I couldn't find one for Mississippi. You'll have many of the same snakes, living in the south. In particular follow the links to the comparison between water snakes and water moccasins.
Blue - are you there? This for you too. Just a little lesson, m'dear.
vcb - I'd sure hate to test your theory. LOL
CJ
This message was edited Jun 22, 2006 11:29 AM
EQUI,
Whats he eat??
Why thank you for the lesson, Mistress CEE, ;) ;)
small children, don't worry... no shortage on those around here.
I shouldn't tease like that. This snake is friend not foe. It eats nightcrawlers, slugs, snails, and other insects. it is heavily predated by cats, other mammals, birds, and other snakes which is unfortunate because Virginia valeriae can do a number on slug populations.
I agree completely about snakes being friends not foes -- even the poisonous. I would never kill a snake if I could help it. I suppose there are some wierd scenarios where I couldn't get away from it where I would kill it, or it had already bitten someone, but mosly I believe in live and let live for snakes as well.
But........., I regard all snakes as creatures that shouldn't be touched. You see how much trouble we had identifying this one. In my experience, poisonous ones are generally obvious -- triangular head, etc. but I just don't trust my snake identification enough to stake my life on it.
The preferred method for dealing with poisonous snakes -- and I consider all snakes poisonous until positively identified -- is to back away slowly but carefully. Snakes strike at fast movement. And even if the snake is not poisonous, its bite can become infected.
So be kind to it, but let it be. If your garden has an infestation of rattlers or such, I guess I would call animal control if I lived in a city. In the country?? I'm not a country girl -- I just wish I were.
The poisonous snakes in Mississippi fall into the following categories cottonmouths, copperheads, rattlesnakes and coral snakes. That one doesnt appear to be any of them, also the head shap is the best way to tell. I am sad now as my pet oketee corn snake passed away last week and I miss her. I have to find another one (different breed....maybe another California King snake), I wish I lived closer, and I would take one off your hands. I dont mean to sound weird, but snakes can be sweet and very friendly. Mirakaih used to always like to watch TV with me. I am very serious.
He he, we have friends who let their teenage son get a corn snake. It is lose in their basement right now. It's been down there for a year. It is growing. It has to be eating mice that are getting in. The last time they saw it the snake had doubled in size. Interested in locating the snake in the basement of a house that people have lived in for 20 years that is crammed with boxes and wood working tools?
I like snakes very much myself. Not enough to have one as a pet because I would struggle with their diet but I do respect them and find them fascinating.
EQUI,
LOL re: not enough for pet, heheh, and WHY would YOU struggle, you dont have to EAT THEIR diet, ROF!!!
Best;
bluelytes
I don't have it in me to put a mouse in the aquarium with them. They do need to eat. I just couldn't do it.
All snakes are dangerous . If they are around , wear gloves . Snakes eat things that carry dieases - IE - rats carry fleas ,Ticks , lime disease , and Rabbies . [ birds - bird flu - west nile virus - don't know if a snake can transfer to people .
A snake defends itself by bitting and if it ate something with fleas ,Ticks , lime disease , or Rabbies it will be in it's mouth - I don't know for how long .
Kids will "catch snakes" - and play with them , bad news .
They're reptiles. They're all cold blooded. I suppose you could get an infection at the site of a bite and you could get really sick or die if you were bit by a venemous snake but snakes are generally quite shy around people and they eat the critters that carry diseases communicable to humans.
I don't think a snake can "infect" humans with West Niles Virus. Mosquitoes are the vector for WNV. I also don't think they can "infect" humans with Lyme Disease. The Deer Tick is the main vector of Lyme Disease. I'll add that they can't "infect" a human with rabies either. I read where a zoo keeper did pick up gastroenteritis from handling a snake with Plesiomonas shigelloides but we humans can just as easily pick that up from our fish tanks. I don't think we can get infected with Edwardsiella tarda from snakes but I suppose it is possible as there was one documented case of a person getting gastroenteritis from a turtle infected with Edwardsiella tarda. There have got to be some obscure diseases out there that humans can be infected with but for the most part, I was always led to believe that snakes were our friends because they eat the critters that can infect us with nasties.
Here in south florida we have every critter that was ever born that might be looking for a warm condo for their retirement, just like so many two legged creatues do...
This looks like a baby black rat snake. A garden friend. I have several, along with some 18 inch knight anoles, and a pair of florida anoles too. The welcome mat is out for these snakes, though it can be a little unnerving to find one; once I was pulling up a "root" that was in the way of where I wanted to place a fern. That "root" wraped itself around my arm and then took off along the top of a chain link fence...the black rat snake. (At that point I took off for the great INdoors for a valium!)
Amy
