Who knew they did this.......

[FrontSight]

My mom was bitten by a European pit viper when she was working the farmlands at 17. Different snake, I know, and not as dangerous as a ratler, but since we're on the subject...

She's, curiously rolleyes, never been very fond of snakes since then, for some strange reason...

 

[kenno]

Back in the day, in the places I traveled through, the snakes were in the trees, on tree trunks, climbing through vines and on the ground. It was VERY difficult to sleep at night, you had to learn that they were attracted to YOUR body heat and do NOTHING to upset them. Knowladge IS power. Learn all you can and you'll prevail, thrive.
Be fore warned, they can be in your bedroom closet. Buy a Mongoose, no more snakes

 

[FrontSight]

kenno: May I ask, where, exactly, were your travelling through? Because I'd like to do my best to avoid that area...

 

[Buzzcook]

Buy a Mongoose, no more snakes

Unfortunately mongoose are not as good with rattle snakes as they are with cobras. King snakes will help keep your rattle snake population down.

 

[sc928porsche]

Some species of snake are more agressive than others, but there is ALWAYS an exception. Ive had gopher snakes chase me and there was a western diamond back the never flinched untill I had a noose around him. In my high school years, I used to catch rattlers and take them to the college so they could be milked for their venom. I got 1 to 3 dollars a piece. Its a wonder that 1/2 of us ever survived our childhood!

 

[jgcoastie]

Its a wonder that 1/2 of us ever survived our childhood!

Natural selection... We must be the good half!!!

And if that's true, I got bad news for ya... We're screwed!!!!

 

[Double Naught Spy]

And I must ask.......I mean I know they climb logs and the like.....but who knew a pygmy rattler would climb up in a blackberry bush like that.

A tremendous number of snakes are arboreal on demand and so it should be no real surprise that the little guy wasn't firmly on the ground. This online book from 1972 discusses accounts and conjecture about rattlesnakes (including the pygmy) and their climbing exploits on trees, shrubs, fences, etc. Many of the accounts note avoidance of water or wet ground.
http://books.google.com/books?id=ij...&resnum=3&ved=0CCYQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

[Hog Buster]

I’ve got several large fig trees (bushes) on my property. When the figs begin to ripen it’s not unusual to find a big rat snake or two hiding in them trying to catch one of the many birds feeding on the figs. So far I’ve never seen a rattler or cottonmouth in the fig trees. That’s not to say we don’t have them both, it just seems that they prefer mice and rats to climbing trees for birds. Plenty of big king snakes here too, but never saw one of them in the trees either.

 

[sserdlihc]

Lived not far from ther in St Augustine. Use to go hunting out near the river when I was growing up.

 

[40caljustice]

Cotton Mouths are a WHOLE different snake, they are evil and I've killed more than I can count.
Fishing on the Appomattox River and Swift Creek area of OL' Virginie will learn ya quick.
Shoot fast and keep you're eyes open all the time!

I fish those areas frequently and have smacked alot of cotton mouths with the tip of my fishing rod. I live near Chester. Those snakes take over any body of water available. You really have to be prepared and always be aware. I've seen them in low laying trees and in open water. Makes you think when you take that quick swim on a hot day.

 

[bamaranger]

most

I have killed more Pygamy Rattler (they call'em ground rattlers around here) than Timbers or Copperheads around my place. I hate'em cause they seem so common.

I had a very close call with a big Timber Rattler in the dark next to the AC unit one night in the dark, never saw or heard him till I came back with the light to finish the project.

If anybody asks, a turkey load is a good snake load.

I do not go out of my way to kill poisonous snakes afield, , but around my place they are dispatched on sight. A single bbl .410 sits at the back door for the very purpose, but often a hoe or shovel suffices.

 

[mrbro]

only 10-12 ft. long.

 

[GoOfY-FoOt]

"Only 10-12 feet long"

Yeah... That is relatively small for a python considering what they are capable of in captivity...This one is 3 and 1/2 years old in the photo. She's still a youngin' at 13'-8"...(see below)


Bill and 'Kemo'

 

[JackL]

That little fellow in the berry bush looks pretty well fed to me.

In a past life (or just long enough ago to seem like one) I worked with most of the snakes native to Florida, including the venomous ones. Rattlers for the most part were pretty mellow as long as nobody was messing with them; the cottonmouth, on the other hand, is the only species I ever had nightmares about.

 

[Hunter Customs]

First I'm glad to hear your lady was not bitten, very nice pictures also.

In 1968 while taking all my Army training at Ft. Polk I saw several of those little devils.
Whenever we would get a break the DI's told us to be careful of where we sit as one of them may be there and they are not fond of being sat on.

In our part of the country the two most common poisonous snakes we encounter are timber rattlers and copperheads, I've never had an encounter with either one in a bush or a tree.
However I've seen other snakes in bushes and trees.

That makes me think of an incient that took place this year.
My daughter came over to go mushroon hunting with me this spring.
While out hunting she was by a very large soft maple tree. She placed her hand on the tree while looking at the ground, then she looked at the tree and realized she almost had her hand on a good size black snake that was climbing the tree.
Needless to say, she let out a scream that I'm sure could be heard in several of the surrounding counties and she stayed pretty close to old dad the rest of the day.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

 

[jgcoastie]

My daughter came over to go mushroon(sic) hunting with me this spring.

What caliber/gauge do you use for them mushrooms? I hear they can be pretty ornery in the springtime...





I know, I know... But I couldn't resist.

 

[mquail]

What caliber/gauge do you use for them mushrooms? I hear they can be pretty ornery in the springtime...

Now I gotta worry about those things? Awwwwww man!

I once stepped on a rattler, good thing he needed glasses. My buddy who was walking behind me told me later he missed by an inch then dove down a hole.

 

[hogdogs]

I guess I have to rethink my dewberry pickin' plan.

Who woulda thunk I needed to worry about them off the ground. I already verify the floors in these thickets with the berries before gittin' after it.

Brent

 

[Doyle]

Brent, it isn't just the pygmies you'll need to worry about sitting up high. Several years ago I wounded a turkey and took off through the palmettos looking for him. I happened look down and there was a big cottonmouth stretched out across the top of the palmettos about knee high. My snakeboots don't come quite that high.

 

[Hawg]

You'll find moccasins anywhere. In trees, on the ground, wrapped around bushes. If you're on the river in a boat they'll fall in the boat with you. I was hunting arrowheads one day and started to tie the boat off to a bush until I saw a fat ol moccasin wrapped around the base of it.