# SNAKES...



## RWA6541 (Jul 23, 2012)

Hello Again,

     Been missing for a while, had a winter vaca from work and went like gang busters on the firewood, got a few years ahead. I guess I burned myself out because I havent given the wood much though since, its all stacked on pallets and drying under tin, with lots of air gaps everywhere. Walked my piles the other day and all I can say is bring on the frost cause the damn snakes are  freakin me out.  I guess the dry weather has them on the move, I hadnt seen a rattler in a few summers and I got 2 in the wood pile the other day. I getting mad a scared typing it now.

   To top it off I went to do an oil changeon the car the other day and found a gartner snake in the top of my tool box all coiled in the sockets I damn near had a heartattack.  Used some long needle nose pliers to send that mother to the promise land    Jeez I hate snakes!


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## begreen (Jul 24, 2012)

Rattlers in the Bronx??!!


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## RWA6541 (Jul 24, 2012)

begreen said:


> Rattlers in the Bronx??!!


 got a week end place in western massachusetts these a lot of them there I believe they are timber rattlers or northeastern diamond back  what ever they are I wish they'd go away cause Im scared like a school girl of them


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## begreen (Jul 24, 2012)

Ah, yes. We had them in the Berkshires. I never saw one where I lived, but heard plenty of tales about them from friends that were in areas where they liked to hang out.


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## RWA6541 (Jul 24, 2012)

Thats where I am the beserkshires


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## begreen (Jul 24, 2012)

God's country up there. I love it.


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## RWA6541 (Jul 24, 2012)

yeah this past winter was a cake wlak and the summers been real dry, I think the hammers coming again this winter  I'm ready


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## bogydave (Jul 24, 2012)

NO SNAKES IN ALASKA


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## Realstone (Jul 24, 2012)

I guess in your case long pants are the rule, regardless of the heat.


bogydave said:


> NO SNAKES IN ALASKA


 
With 50,000 eagles, I guess not!


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## DMZX (Jul 24, 2012)

I need a snake or two.  I have a family of moles that have taken up residence under one of my stacks.  The dog chomped one of them that came up for air at the wrong time, wrong place, but they are still busy working my wife's flowers.


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## ScotO (Jul 24, 2012)

A snake here and there is a good thing, that does tell you that there are varmints in that wood stack, I would be cautious of the poisonous ones, but leave them in there.  Keeps the moles, mice and chippies in check!


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## onetracker (Jul 24, 2012)

snakes?
they teach me to pay attention. i like that. i leave them alone, they leave me alone. as has been said by scotty and dmzx, they keep the rodents in check. spider's? i leave them alone they leave me alone. they catch flies and mosquitos. unlike deer flies and ticks.

has anyone noticed an increase in bald-faced hornets this year? i'm guessing its due to the heat and drought. got stung twice in 2 days. they sting me or my family those nests get removed. 

OT


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## thewoodlands (Jul 24, 2012)

We have these little guys in or around the wood that is stacked outside.
http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/eastern_garter_snake.htm

zap


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## Jack Straw (Jul 24, 2012)

Hey Scotty.....can you move to your right in the avatar, we need a better view of the nice lady.


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## ScotO (Jul 24, 2012)

She'd KILL me if she knew her picture was on my avatar at all!


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## burnagain (Jul 24, 2012)

Sounds kind of crazy but round up a king snake (black snake) and put it close to the piles.  They actually eat venomous snakes so they are the best kind to have around.

My wife is terrified of snakes and demands I shoot any that are around.  After a couple years of making her angry becuase I would leave the black snakes we have on our property I had her google them, sure enough she doesn't mind having those around anymore.


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## Jags (Jul 24, 2012)

Ain't no friggen way I would let a venomous snake knowingly live anywhere around me. They end up dead. Period. I am not even gonna make an excuse for my actions. .22 birdshot from a pistol keeps me a safe distance away and dispatches snakes quickly.  Get a cat for the rodents.  I HATE snakes.  They don't scare me - I just kill them.

Something with no arms, no legs, no fins or wings shouldn't be able to move that fast.  Proof that they are evil.


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## fox9988 (Jul 24, 2012)

burnagain said:


> Sounds kind of crazy but round up a king snake (black snake) and put it close to the piles. They actually eat venomous snakes so they are the best kind to have around.
> 
> My wife is terrified of snakes and demands I shoot any that are around. After a couple years of making her angry becuase I would leave the black snakes we have on our property I had her google them, sure enough she doesn't mind having those around anymore.


 I bring King snakes home every time I get my hands on one, Copperhead problem.


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## Jags (Jul 24, 2012)

fox9988 said:


> Copperhead problem.


 
Three words:
Diesel
Road Flare.


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## Wood Duck (Jul 24, 2012)

I wish I had more snakes here. We have an excessive number of chipmunks, rabbits, and what are probably meadow voles that eat the tubers of a lot of the flowers in the winter. A couple of Black Snakes would really help out. I enjoy seeing rattlers in the wild, but I'd rather not have poisonous snakes in the yard - we have too many kids running around this place to feel comfortable about poisonous snakes. On the other hand, snakes may seem like a major threat to people but I believe hornet and bee stings kill far more people than snakes. There is not much I can do to keep stinging insects off the property except eliminate the occasional nest that I am able to locate.


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## BrowningBAR (Jul 24, 2012)

I have had it with these mother****ing snakes on this mother****ing wood stack!


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## bad69bird (Jul 24, 2012)

Ill take the rodents any day over snakes,  my goal in life to erradicate all snakes on my property and I have alot


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## BrowningBAR (Jul 24, 2012)

bad69bird said:


> Ill take the rodents any day over snakes, my goal in life to erradicate all snakes on my property and I have alot


 

I'll trade you some rodents for a few snakes? I've caught 18 mice in the house in the last 10 days. Never seen anything like it. I think everything is under control, finally. The little bastards were actually tunneling through the damn mortar of the stone walls.

Yes, you read that correctly. The mice dug through stone walls to get inside.


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## Jack Straw (Jul 24, 2012)

Mice chewed the main wiring harness on my fairly new Tundra, they have gotten into most of my other vehicles and caused damage, I say learn to live w/the snakes! I'm not a big fan of the snakes, but I don't kill them. I do kill mice as often as possible, and so does my cat.


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## thewoodlands (Jul 24, 2012)

http://www.animalplace.net/invertibrates/timber-rattlesnake-facts-characteristics-habitat-and-more/

We had one of these guys back in the woods (southeast side) when we first moved in, I never noticed it until Pat Curran of http://curranpellets.com/products.html pointed it out. I've never seen one since.

Pat Curran (Seaway Timber Harvesting) cleared some of our property for our contractor.

zap


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## RORY12553 (Jul 24, 2012)

Scotty Overkill said:


> She'd KILL me if she knew her picture was on my avatar at all!


 
I would be scared to make a comment Scotty looks like a pretty big guy!

I also have some snakes which like to come out while i'm mowing the lawn...honestly first time they came out I screeched like a little girl! HAHAHHAHA


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## Pat53 (Jul 24, 2012)

bad69bird said:


> Ill take the rodents any day over snakes, my goal in life to erradicate all snakes on my property and I have alot


 
Same here. I live on a small lake and we like our frogs here. I kill ALL garter and pine snakes. Whacked a huge 5' pine snake last week out by my koi pond, and later that day stomped a 3' garter snake that was eating a huge toad. Unfortunately, it was too late for the toad, but there were 2 less "frog-eaters" at the end of the day.

I've never had any problem with mice, besides this area has lots of hawks, owls, foxes and coyotes. They probably do a fine job keeping the mice in check. Besides, I'm sure I only see (kill) a small percentage of the pine snakes that are in the area.


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## iskiatomic (Jul 24, 2012)

I have mentioned it before. Three things that scare me. 1 running out of beer, 2 snakes, 3 fat chicks. Not always in that order.

KC


*Jack Daniels Fishing Story I went fishing this morning but after a short time I ran out of worms. Then I saw a cottonmouth 
with a frog in his mouth. Frogs are good bass bait. 
Knowing the snake couldn't bite me with the frog in his mouth I grabbed him right behind the head, took the frog, and put it in my bait bucket. 
Now the dilemma was how to release the snake without getting bit. So, I grabbed my bottle of 
Jack Daniels and poured a little whiskey in its mouth. His eyes rolled back, he went limp.*
*I released him into the lake without incident and carried on fishing using the *
*A little later, I felt a nudge on my foot. It was that snake, with two more frogs. *


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## ScotO (Jul 24, 2012)

zap said:


> http://www.animalplace.net/invertibrates/timber-rattlesnake-facts-characteristics-habitat-and-more/
> 
> We had one of these guys back in the woods (southeast side) when we first moved in, I never noticed it until Pat Curran of http://curranpellets.com/products.html pointed it out. I've never seen one since.
> 
> ...


Timber rattlers are EVERYWHERE here in the central PA mountains.  My hunting buddy catches them all summer, FOR FUN.  Yes, he's NUTS.......he's been bitten several times, and never went to get an antidote.  He's got some immunity to them now, I think.  He's caught literally HUNDREDS of them over the past several years, in woodpiles, stone slides and dens on the mountain.  He even brings one home from time to time so he can "play" with it.  Yes I said he was nuts, I meant it.......


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## osagebow (Jul 24, 2012)

lotsa snakes here in western VA...had trouble loading pics, I'll try PBkt . Lots of copperheadsthese 2 were in my yard. We have 2 morphs of timber rattlers, both of these were in nearby yards.


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## osagebow (Jul 24, 2012)

some more... The first is a black rat - good to have around. The second Milksnake will actually eat smaller venomous snakes if it is big enough., but gets killed due to it's brown markings


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## bad69bird (Jul 24, 2012)

Pat53 said:


> Same here. I live on a small lake and we like our frogs here. I kill ALL garter and pine snakes. Whacked a huge 5' pine snake last week out by my koi pond, and later that day stomped a 3' garter snake that was eating a huge toad. Unfortunately, it was too late for the toad, but there were 2 less "frog-eaters" at the end of the day.
> 
> I've never had any problem with mice, besides this area has lots of hawks, owls, foxes and coyotes. They probably do a fine job keeping the mice in check. Besides, I'm sure I only see (kill) a small percentage of the pine snakes that are in the area.


Funny, I too have a koi pond and came across one laying in my stream bottom, scared the hell outta me as i was stepping over it,  I put my fears aside when it comes to protecting my koi


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## osagebow (Jul 24, 2012)

Scotty, I'm 32-1 with copperheads. Usually relocate them to the natl forest.One finallty got me picking the garden, didn't see her at all!


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## billb3 (Jul 24, 2012)

I welcome garter  snakes in the garden. 
The common one we have here supposedly eat slugs and they are welcome to dine on them in my garden 24/7.

Used to have a couple of good sized black racers sunning in the yews outside the front door, but I haven't seen them for a couple of years now.


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## firefighterjake (Jul 25, 2012)

BrowningBAR said:


> I have had it with these mother****ing snakes on this mother****ing wood stack!


 
For some reason I read/heard this as if Samuel L. Jackson was saying it.


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## begreen (Jul 25, 2012)

Our third day in India and my son had to try this out. Yes, they are cobras, defanged, I sincerely hope.


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## Mesquite (Jul 25, 2012)

Here is a small rattler. Right outside my back door.


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## osagebow (Jul 25, 2012)

Great pic Mesquite -that's a pretty rattler!
begreen - cool shot!


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## Mesquite (Jul 25, 2012)

Thanks Osagebow.  I have quite a few diamond backs on film taken through the years.  If I can figure out how to shrink it, I will post one taken a year ago February on the ranch.  Most people never see this in their lifetime.  Rattlesnakes mating.

Give me a few minutes to figure this out & I will put it up here.


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## Mesquite (Jul 25, 2012)

OK, my old brain finally figured it out. Here is the picture I mentioned above. Taken February 2011 at my ranch in South Texas.


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## bogydave (Jul 25, 2012)

Great picture. Both are smiling. 
Off the trail looks pretty  thick & dry, great place for them to hide.


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## Shadow&Flame (Jul 25, 2012)

Mesquite said:


> Here is a small rattler. Right outside my back door.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
I have a brave body, but my legs wont stay under it when something like this is close...


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## Jags (Jul 26, 2012)

The pic of the two trying to get it on...only thing I can say is "two in one shot".


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## Pat53 (Jul 26, 2012)

Jags said:


> The pic of the two trying to get it on...only thing I can say is "two in one shot".


 
EXACTLY, was just thinking the same thing. 12 gauge w/ full choke at 15 yards would smoke 'em both !!


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## firecracker_77 (Jul 30, 2012)

Pat53 said:


> EXACTLY, was just thinking the same thing. 12 gauge w/ full choke at 15 yards would smoke 'em both !!


 
I have zero tolerance for snakes, and around here, they are harmless.  I won't even mess with the wood pile in the overgrowth area where I have alot on unsplit rounds strewn about.  I would love to split that, but it's going to wait until the colder weather returns and the snakes hibernate.


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## RWA6541 (Jul 31, 2012)

Good snake stories, you guys that like em and I know a few too  I'll never get that...  I've been a half assed gardener my whole life and one thing that really bothers me from getting into it big time is snakes       Heard a story once from a guy who sailed southern pacific waters, he said one day they opened up the sea water strainers to clean and some wild sea snake come flying out like and scared the crap out of him, I would've s--t myself.  I keep shovels and a 410 handy for all these little critters everybody mentioned, I have a good deal of Owls around, my neighbor is a big rabbit hunter he hates Owls


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## eclecticcottage (Jul 31, 2012)

About all we get are garters, but I've never seen one at the Cottage.  We used to have a nest next to our house at the Old House until the $#%$% crows cleared it out one year.  If we weren't in the city, I'd have had some bird shot loaded and a lot less crows pretty quick that year.  Used to get 40-50 garters coming out of hibernation from that spot every spring.  I like snakes.  I wish we ahd some of the bigger ones (like Rats or Milksnakes) around to work on the mouse population here at the Cottage.  Dang field mice, hate the little fur balls. Rodents are a lot more destructive than snakes.


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## ScotO (Jul 31, 2012)

Here's some pics of a couple my buddy caught on some of our archery scouting trips a few summers ago.  First pic is a yellow phase timber rattler that is still in the molting process.  I think that is one of the prettiest snakes out there when they are in that phase.  The second one is out of the same logpile, on its normal colors.  Both snakes were around 3 1/2 to 4' long.....


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## red oak (Jul 31, 2012)

I had a black snake a few years back that lived in my wood pile.  Every afternoon it would slither up on top of the stacks for some sun.  I don't mind them at all, in fact I remember doing some splitting close to the stacks and it was just watching me for awhile.  Now I will kill poisonous snakes but they usually don't come near the house, at least not where I can see them.


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## Jags (Jul 31, 2012)

Scotty - you would be amazed at how fast those things would have ended up dead if I were there.  Ninja like reactions - "hiiiiYA!"  Dead.


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## ScotO (Jul 31, 2012)

Jags said:


> Scotty - you would be amazed at how fast those things would have ended up dead if I were there.  Ninja like reactions - "hiiiiYA!"  Dead.


Jags, I dont touch those damm things, my one buddy has been hunting them since he was a kid.  I am content staying back for the occasional picture.  He's been bit several times, never went to the hospital either!  Totally NUTS!


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## firecracker_77 (Jul 31, 2012)

Yeah...I can't handle them.  I strongly dislike them and even thinking about them makes me nervous.


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## Pat53 (Jul 31, 2012)

Jags said:


> Scotty - you would be amazed at how fast those things would have ended up dead if I were there. Ninja like reactions - "hiiiiYA!" Dead.


 DITTO


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## burleymike (Jul 31, 2012)

All we have is Garter snakes, a lot of them.  When we moved in 6 years ago we discovered they were in the walls.  When the dinkus previous owner put new larger windows in he cut too much of the stuffo.  Instead of patching the stucco up he put furring strips over it and attached vinyl siding.  He did not install the siding well at all so there were large gaps under it.  The snakes would slither up the stem wall under the siding to the windows where teh stucco was missing and get into the walls. 

In the middle of winter I was breaking up a section of basement floor to install a perimeter drain and I found the nest under the slab about 12 little garters all piled up.

We also had an infestation of mice getting in through all those gaps.  After tearing that vinyl crap off I patched up all the stucco and sealed every single gap/crack I could find.  We have not had a single snake or mouse in the house for the past 4 years.

I still see them on occasion in the yard which is fine, they keep the bugs/mice under control.  We still have too many mice.  The first time I flood irrigated this year I saw a bunch of them running for dry ground.


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## osagebow (Jul 31, 2012)

Wow, Scotty -  that's gotta be one of the prettiestsnakes I've ever seen. Our yellow phase are darker and often have an aberrant pattern of blotches.  I usually don't kill snakes, even venomous ones.  I do usually save the skin of roadkilled  /neighbor killed/ @#$%&#* that bit me snakes  by slitting up the belly, carefully peeling and tacking it to a board stretched a bit,then put them on my bows. Think i'll start a thread on that later, though.son has earned computer by cleaning room...


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## golfandwoodnut (Jul 31, 2012)

Around here it is mostly black snakes and garter snakes, I am not a big fan but I usually let them live.  I killed one strange looking snake in my pond and later found out it was a good snake.  We are supposed to have some copper heads around but thankfully I have only seen a few babies.  But you know what that means, the mother is around here somewhere.  The rattlers are up in the mountains, and Scotty can keep them up there.  I used to see them at hunting camp.  I bought some property in NY and I heard there are not a lot of poisonous ones, but I will always keep my guard up.


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## osagebow (Jul 31, 2012)

golfandwoodnut said:


> Around here it is mostly black snakes and garter snakes, I am not a big fan but I usually let them live. I killed
> one strange looking snake in my pond and later found out it was a good snake. We are supposed to have some copper heads around but thankfully I have only seen a few babies. But you know what that means, the mother is around here somewhere. The rattlers are up in the mountains, and Scotty can keep them up there. I used to see them at hunting camp. I bought some property in NY and I heard there are not a lot of poisonous ones, but I will always keep my guard up.


 
Unless you are in a real remote subburb, the babies may have been  Milksnakes -They look similar. Grew up in McKeesport area and flipped about every rock in 10 square miles, never found a copperhead. I know up by Butler, down by Uniontown there are still many populations left.

Now here in VA  I have old golf clubs stationed all around my property  -  low irons work best for pinning & catching / whacking if need be. I'm getting older and slower, the snakes aren't....Take that sand wedge you keep shanking up to NY with ya!           Congrats on getting the property up there - I used to hunt Tionesta and St. Mary's by the border.


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## golfandwoodnut (Aug 1, 2012)

osagebow said:


> Unless you are in a real remote subburb, the babies may have been Milksnakes -They look similar. Grew up in McKeesport area and flipped about every rock in 10 square miles, never found a copperhead. I know up by Butler, down by Uniontown there are still many populations left.
> 
> Now here in VA I have old golf clubs stationed all around my property - low irons work best for pinning & catching / whacking if need be. I'm getting older and slower, the snakes aren't....Take that sand wedge you keep shanking up to NY with ya! Congrats on getting the property up there - I used to hunt Tionesta and St. Mary's by the border.


 Thanks Osagebow, but I know there are some Copper Heads around here, I spoke to a landscaping owner and he said he has seen several near us.  I have seen them on the golf course (In Beaver) I live in Moon.  And please do not mention that shank word again.


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## osagebow (Aug 1, 2012)

Oh yeah - I stand corrected - very pretty way out there! Used to hunt a game land up by Mcandless?maybe..., and there was a rifle range, too. Never golfed up there though. I worked at Butler's and Riverview GC's back in the day. (south of Pit) Riverview had all kinda snakes - pretty course, I recommend it.


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## Angus (Aug 2, 2012)

I ve never seen a snake before, only on tv


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## RWA6541 (Aug 2, 2012)

Angus said:


> I ve never seen a snake before, only on tv


 your a damn lucky fella if thats the only place you've got snakes is on the TV, id change the channel.  St. Patrick drove the snakes from Ireland, who ran them out of Scotland??  Ive got a Scottish surnames, when i'm hunting in a swamp on a cold wet day i think about my ancestors in the bogg


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## tcassavaugh (Aug 3, 2012)

had a little....copperhead, i think, in the woodpile the other day. i was pulling from the drying stack and putting it in the shed....grabbed a stick and there he was. was only about the size of a pencil. i missed......saw it a couple of days later in the other side. couple of years ago, had a big black snake out under bark and pieces. must have been about 5 foot long and a couple of inches in diameter.

cass


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## Angus (Aug 3, 2012)

RWA6541 said:


> your a damn lucky fella if thats the only place you've got snakes is on the TV, id change the channel. St. Patrick drove the snakes from Ireland, who ran them out of Scotland?? Ive got a Scottish surnames, when i'm hunting in a swamp on a cold wet day i think about my ancestors in the bogg


I would hate to live near snakes. St Patrick chased them out of Ireland, but the Irish and Scots being Celtic cousins, he probably chased them out of Scotland also!?


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## jjs777_fzr (Aug 6, 2012)

After 41 years...found my first snake - eating one of my koi in my pond. I was laying a couple boards down to allow some shade from the direct sun - and at first glance thought one of them committed suicide. Closer look I realized it was a 2 foot long garter snake.


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## firebroad (Aug 6, 2012)

Snakes, spiders, bats.  Love them all, they do me favors.  I tend to relocate poisonous critters if at all possible, to another part of the property.


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## Jags (Aug 6, 2012)

firebroad said:


> tend to relocate poisonous critters if at all possible


 
Me too - but they are dead by then.


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## joescho (Aug 6, 2012)

RWA6541 said:


> St. Patrick drove the snakes from Ireland


 
Didn't that take place in a Buick????

Sorry, I apologize....I just couldn't resist!!


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## Flatbedford (Aug 6, 2012)

Found this guy in my woodpile a few years ago. He got camera shy after a few minutes and took off. I only kill mice, rats, stinkbugs and mosquitos at my house. I'd like to kill the woodchuck that ate my sunflowers, lettuce, and cabbage though.


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## Bspring (Aug 7, 2012)

Wood Duck said:


> I wish I had more snakes here. We have an excessive number of chipmunks, rabbits, and what are probably meadow voles that eat the tubers of a lot of the flowers in the winter. A couple of Black Snakes would really help out. I enjoy seeing rattlers in the wild, but I'd rather not have poisonous snakes in the yard - we have too many kids running around this place to feel comfortable about poisonous snakes. On the other hand, snakes may seem like a major threat to people but I believe hornet and bee stings kill far more people than snakes. There is not much I can do to keep stinging insects off the property except eliminate the occasional nest that I am able to locate.


 
I have grown quite fond of skunks. They have been digging up all the yellowjacket nest around the property.


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## Angus (Aug 7, 2012)

Completely differant wild life where I live, never seen snakes, skunks, yellowjacket (whatever that is?) grasshoppers, ants, large spiders, lizards etc.

We have plenty; deer, rabbits (about 100 million), red squirrels, fox, sheep (more sheep than people), a few eagles and ospreys, plenty buzzards, some hawks, ducks, some wild cats, seabirds and plenty small fat cattle!


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