Any Snake Experts?

[bcp (Premo)]

Originally Posted by hippo_pop

haha as scary as that sounds, its funny.

aint nothing funny about those snakes.
one of the few that will actually chase you. Along the Dismal swamp in Virginia, they hang in the trees over the water wating for fish or small mammals to venture by.
Problem is they dont really have a good idea of size when it comes to food, so when you run your boat under them or walk under them, they will drop on down for dinner.
And as God is my witness, the SOBs will chase you if you run from them.

[Parrotmomm]

While avoiding anyone with a triangular head is a good rule to follow if you are unfamiliar or unsure of the species, the Diamond back water snake is one of the species that suffers as a result of this rule :( Here in southern Maryland the eyes are also a safe bet, but most people that don't know what they're looking at right off the bat aren't to interested in getting a real good look at the face :D
I would say without a doubt that this guy is a DBWS :)
As a side note a local snake that suffers from being misrepresented is the Eastern Hognose :( These are beautiful snakes that puff and flatten and much like a copperhead don't seem to book it when approached. I've personally never had one play opossum on me, although they are known for their antics :)

[NatureCenter]

Originally Posted by Sonsie

Can anybody tell me what this ugly cuss might be? He decided to slither up on my back deck and hang out for a while. I stopped hubby from whacking him with a shovel but I've no idea if this one is poisonous or not. I'm in Texas now by the way.

The snake is a type of water snake (Nerodia genus). Specifically, it would appear to be a diamondback water snake. Water snakes are harmless...very defensive (will bite if you threaten them), but harmless.

Originally Posted by forceofnature

OK what is odd here is that the head is diamond shaped which is typical of a domestic to US poisonous species, however the eyes do not have the cat like pupil so I would venture to say it is a type of water snake.

It is a myth that US snakes can be identified as venomous (not poisonous) by the shape of their head. Most harmless snakes have the ability to flatten their heads into that wedge/triangular shape, and there are some harmless species whose head shapes are already triangular shaped in general. Also, again, it is a myth that the ID can be based on the eye shape. There are plenty of harmless snakes have the cat eye slit type pupils and there are venomous snakes have round eyes.

[dustin]

Originally Posted by NatureCenter

It is a myth that US snakes can be identified as venomous (not poisonous) by the shape of their head. Most harmless snakes have the ability to flatten their heads into that wedge/triangular shape, and there are some harmless species whose head shapes are already triangular shaped in general. Also, again, it is a myth that the ID can be based on the eye shape. There are plenty of harmless snakes have the cat eye slit type pupils and there are venomous snakes have round eyes.

what about overlapping scales? i was always told that if the scales overlap it's a sure thing the snake is venomous. if the scales dont overlap its probably non-venomous but still possible...

[NatureCenter]

Originally Posted by dustin

what about overlapping scales? i was always told that if the scales overlap it's a sure thing the snake is venomous. if the scales dont overlap its probably non-venomous but still possible...

Scales are part of the snake's skin..they are the "armor plates" that protect the soft skin underneath (our fingernails protect our soft finger tips). The scales on all snakes are fixed in place on the skin and can overlap or not overlap. ..the amount of overlap depends on the snake. If the snake is fat and full (either with food, excessive intake of air for defensive hissing/posturing, or full of eggs/embryos), the skin will stretch/expand outward so of course the scales spread further apart from each other. If the snake is not full or is sickly/underweight, the skin contracts bringing the scales back together. Think of the skin/scale placement as an accordion.... the skin being the low points of the accordion pleats and the scales being the high points of the pleats and working together allows for expansion and contraction.

[aps45819 (Premo)]

Originally Posted by bcp

aint nothing funny about those snakes.
one of the few that will actually chase you. Along the Dismal swamp in Virginia, they hang in the trees over the water wating for fish or small mammals to venture by.
Problem is they dont really have a good idea of size when it comes to food, so when you run your boat under them or walk under them, they will drop on down for dinner.
And as God is my witness, the SOBs will chase you if you run from them.

When I was Stationed at Dam Neck Va, we'd go fishing and crabbing in Lake Tecumseh. It was loaded with cotton mouth and they chased us out of the water several times.
I was fishing one evening, it started getting dark so I hopped in my jeep and headed back to the barracks. I'm driving out and I see this guy with a couple of Coleman lanterns on the shore and he's sort of hopping/running back and forth between the two lights. I drive on over to see what's up and moccasins are swarming out of the lake attracted by the lights. I tell him he's got to turn off the lights to get the snakes to leave and he tells me he can't turn the lights off with all the snakes here.
I was wearing cut-off and flips flops, not really dressed for kicking snakes, so I left and had a beer. I've often wondered what ever happened to that fellow.