Posted on 08/21/2016 12:31:16 AM PDT by EinNYC
Authorities in Maine have warned the public about snakes after a large snake skin was found near the Presumpscot River on Saturday.
Westbrook police said they have been searching for a 10-foot snake since June after a woman reported seeing it near a playground. There have been several other sightings of the reptile, dubbed “Wessie,” since, according to WMTW-TV.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
We’ve seen a few Michigan rattlers over the 30* years we have been here. They are small and easily killed with a shovel. Seen lots of green snakes, blue racers (my least favorite)a couple of black snakes, and a few eastern milk snakes. Just a couple of years ago I was watering a flower bed right near our front door. All of a sudden a blue racer abut 4 feet long came up out of the ground at me. I hit the water hard and he didn’t like it, writhing and trying to get away. I cornered him and picked up a large rock and threw it down at him, a couple of times. It was all I could do as I could not stop with the water. He was good and dead but it was evening and I just let him lay there. In the morning it was gone, most likely raccoon dragged him off. My policy is live and let live for snakes as long as they keep away from the house.
That was a different and far funnier story than I expected. I was thinking the second snake you grabbed was going to be far less pleasant than a garter snake.
ICK! You just described my worst nightmare!
Paging Gary Larsen.
Longest snake in North America – Black rat snake
Posted on Apr 24, 2012
How big can it get?
The longest recorded black rat snake is a shade over two-and-a-half metres (8 feet).
The biggest black rat snake ever documented in Missouri measured 84 inches. The longest on record anywhere was 101 inches — more than 8 feet.
When my children came running to the house to tell me what they saw, the snake was at least 20 feet long!!!
Thank you for raising the question.
I was about 12 years old, camping in Pennsylvania with the Boy Scouts when I saw a snake flare up like a cobra and start a striking motion.
Not sure why I was not afraid of it, but I walked over and picked it up. It was about 4-5 feet long. Funny thing, it would roll over on its back and play dead. If I rolled it over upright, it would roll over again and play dead.
It was a Hog Nosed snake. First one I had ever heard of or seen. Kept it as a pet for over a year, letting it go on our farm. Have never seen another one.
It’s best to first KILL the rattler, then hold it by the
TAIL; well away from the body. - We have got to where we
mostly just don’t kill ANYTHING any more. - A while back,
I did turn around and drive back to run over a rattlesnake
crossing the road across from a house where several kids
were playing in the yard. Mostly, animals out here stay in
their designated areas and don’t bother us.
In the mountains of southeast KY we have lots of snakes about with the rattler and copperhead being the poisonous ones. Where I live in the mountains I see plenty varieties and quite a few copperheads and they are the most aggressive. One year I shot14 of them about my property and one 4ft rattlesnake that decided it would be fun to crawl along next to my tractor a ways. .357 with snake loads do wonders on their heads.
My brother a few years back go nailed on the big toe, he was wearing flip flops on a fishing trip. He took a half load of venom one fang of the snake hit the strap between the toes. He was in the hospital for 5 days and off work for two weeks. 10 yrs later the foot still hurts him on cold winter days.
(funny video, but the narrator's vocal stylings are a pain.)
People don’t realize that a shed skin is about 1/3 longer than the actual snake.
Either you’re right about the rat snake or it’s somebody’s former pet, who does not have long to live.
Cold will kill it.
Yep.
Just cleaned houses and fed the other night.
All mine are home.
:)
ROFLMAO!!!
Snakes’ *mouths* are not where salmonella would come from...their butts, *maybe*.
You stand more risk of contracting that from eggs, chicken and vegetables picked by migrant workers.
:)
I think Phyllis is deceased. I just pinched myself and
felt it. I don’t think her “Fang” was real. Mine IS real.
I think she was married to someone else of another name.
I like to watch “Last of the Summer Wine” on PBS. It has
been off the air about 5 yrs. The woman who played the
part of “Pearl” (Howard’s wife) was on there for about 25
yrs. When she first started on that show; her husband had
just died & left her with 3 fairly young kids to raise.
She was skinny as a skeleton and worried her part would not
last & how would she provide for her kids. Howard was cast
as a cheating husband with Marina. In real life; he was
and still is, married to his high school sweetheart. They
are both about 90 yrs. old.
Hawaii supposedly has a poisonous sea snake, but unclear if one is ever actually sighted. In fact, the state Dept. of Agriculture captures all snakes it can, around a dozen a year.
Call Harry Potter if you come across this snake.
https://monsterlegacy.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/basiliskskin.jpg
Although concentration is highest in the intestinal tract, there are lots of documented cases of infection following a reptile bite with no other contact.
I’m just repeating what the vet told me.
Good story..
I was about 12 years old when our Boy Scout troop was out camping for the weekend and our scoutmaster decided to take us to the church that hosted our troop. We went straight from camping to church and sat in the front row, right in front of the choir.
I had a per garter snake in my pocket and when I reached in to find it, it bit my finger. As I pulled out my hand, the snake was dangling from my finger. Boy did that ever cause a ruckus in the church choir!!!
Another time I had a huge water snake in a one gallon glass jar and I took it to school. I reached in to grab the snakes head and it wrapped its body around my arm making it that I could not pull my hand back through the mouth of the gallon jar. Knowing that water snakes are real nasty and bite quick, it was a stand off. I wouldn’t let go of the snakes head and it would not unwrap from my arm.
After about 15 minutes I very slowly relaxed my grip, the snake relaxed its grip on my arm and I was able to gently pull my hand out of the jar without it nailing me.
I’ve been bitten often. You just have to pull their teeth from your skin afterwards, kind of like pulling out big briers. Occasionally a big snake would draw blood, but not much.
The funniest one was when a friend of mine ran into our outhouse to take a dump. He sat down on the crapper and there coiled up beside him was a big black snake. He ran out across the yard with his pants around his ankles!!! Was funny. Too bad I didn’t have a camera.
My wife stepped on a copper head as they often laid on our cement carport floor for the warmth at night. She didn’t see it and when she stepped on it, the snake came up and nailed her in the ankle.... she had flip flops on..
The darn anti-venom shot was $25,000. But it saved her life as the venom had already traveled up her leg by the time she got to the hospital.
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