MDM4AU 337 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Just killed a 3' snake on our patio. Nearly as big around as a quarter at it's fattest spot. It was grayish-tan with a black head. It did have a rather triangled head so I assumed it was venomous. The body wasn't very scaly looking. Not sure what kind it was and can't find any pictures on the net of one. I've never seen one like this before. Anyone have any ideas what kind this could possibly be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKW 86 7,872 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 http://secsi.chsys.org/default.aspx?id=51 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RunInRed 18,154 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Just killed a 3' snake on our patio. Nearly as big around as a quarter at it's fattest spot. It was grayish-tan with a black head. It did have a rather triangled head so I assumed it was venomous. The body wasn't very scaly looking. Not sure what kind it was and can't find any pictures on the net of one. I've never seen one like this before. Anyone have any ideas what kind this could possibly be? how did you kill it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 Just killed a 3' snake on our patio. Nearly as big around as a quarter at it's fattest spot. It was grayish-tan with a black head. It did have a rather triangled head so I assumed it was venomous. The body wasn't very scaly looking. Not sure what kind it was and can't find any pictures on the net of one. I've never seen one like this before. Anyone have any ideas what kind this could possibly be? how did you kill it? Shovel. Took its head off. He was a feisty thing, striking at everything that moved. It looked a lot like the one in this link but not as scaly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BZ770 2 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 We used to have the snake man come to our school every year, and we would get to hold this huge python he had. It cost $1 and I always loved it. I will always remember, Red touching black you can pet him on the back, red touching yellow will kill a fellow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AU_tiger_2000 0 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Just killed a 3' snake on our patio. Nearly as big around as a quarter at it's fattest spot. It was grayish-tan with a black head. It did have a rather triangled head so I assumed it was venomous. The body wasn't very scaly looking. Not sure what kind it was and can't find any pictures on the net of one. I've never seen one like this before. Anyone have any ideas what kind this could possibly be? how did you kill it? Shovel. Took its head off. He was a feisty thing, striking at everything that moved. It looked a lot like the one in this link but not as scaly. Reminds me of a chicken (rat) snake. Not poisonous, common in Alabama, pretty aggressive and will strike even without being poisonous. Usually darker colored but I have seen gray to yellow ones before. Here's a link with every snake species found in Alabama with pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quietfan 233 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 The pygmy rattler in DKW's link seems to have a black head, but who knows. Young rattlers don't always have a visible rattle yet, but I would think at 3' long it would be old enough to have developed obvious rattles. While pit vipers--rattlers, copperheads, and moccasins--tend to have triangular heads, several non-poisonous species do as well. As a general rule, I try to discourage people from killing snakes--most are harmless and even poisonous ones are beneficial for rodent control. (And some species actually kill/eat poisonous snakes.) I've encountered several non-poisonous snakes on my carport and I was able to pick them up with a shovel or hoe, or else just "herd" them back into the woods behind my house. But of course I recognized them as harmless. ..found a scarlet king snake once and used it as an object lesson to teach my wife the old "Red on Black--friend of Jack; Red on Yellow--kill a fellow" adage. But when in doubt, and located as close as your patio, better safe than sorry. Do you have pets or small children around? Because of my dog, I would kill a poisonous one at my home if I recognized it. However, I let even the poisonous ones be if encountered out in nature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 Just killed a 3' snake on our patio. Nearly as big around as a quarter at it's fattest spot. It was grayish-tan with a black head. It did have a rather triangled head so I assumed it was venomous. The body wasn't very scaly looking. Not sure what kind it was and can't find any pictures on the net of one. I've never seen one like this before. Anyone have any ideas what kind this could possibly be? how did you kill it? Shovel. Took its head off. He was a feisty thing, striking at everything that moved. It looked a lot like the one in this link but not as scaly. Reminds me of a chicken (rat) snake. Not poisonous, common in Alabama, pretty aggressive and will strike even without being poisonous. Usually darker colored but I have seen gray to yellow ones before. Here's a link with every snake species found in Alabama with pics. Didn't look like that one and I don't see it that site... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 10, 2008 Author Share Posted April 10, 2008 The pygmy rattler in DKW's link seems to have a black head, but who knows. Young rattlers don't always have a visible rattle yet, but I would think at 3' long it would be old enough to have developed obvious rattles. While pit vipers--rattlers, copperheads, and moccasins--tend to have triangular heads, several non-poisonous species do as well. As a general rule, I try to discourage people from killing snakes--most are harmless and even poisonous ones are beneficial for rodent control. (And some species actually kill/eat poisonous snakes.) I've encountered several non-poisonous snakes on my carport and I was able to pick them up with a shovel or hoe, or else just "herd" them back into the woods behind my house. But of course I recognized them as harmless. ..found a scarlet king snake once and used it as an object lesson to teach my wife the old "Red on Black--friend of Jack; Red on Yellow--kill a fellow" adage. But when in doubt, and located as close as your patio, better safe than sorry. Do you have pets or small children around? Because of my dog, I would kill a poisonous one at my home if I recognized it. However, I let even the poisonous ones be if encountered out in nature. It popped at my dog, that's how my wife noticed it. It was behind her chair on the patio. Didn't get her (the dog) but caused much commotion. I have jack russell terriers, and Chloe our female is scared of nothing. She wanted to fight it, my wife just wanted it to go away. I tried to get it with the rake and just move it out but the thing was so aggressive, I just wanted it dead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quietfan 233 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 The pygmy rattler in DKW's link seems to have a black head, but who knows. Young rattlers don't always have a visible rattle yet, but I would think at 3' long it would be old enough to have developed obvious rattles. While pit vipers--rattlers, copperheads, and moccasins--tend to have triangular heads, several non-poisonous species do as well. As a general rule, I try to discourage people from killing snakes--most are harmless and even poisonous ones are beneficial for rodent control. (And some species actually kill/eat poisonous snakes.) I've encountered several non-poisonous snakes on my carport and I was able to pick them up with a shovel or hoe, or else just "herd" them back into the woods behind my house. But of course I recognized them as harmless. ..found a scarlet king snake once and used it as an object lesson to teach my wife the old "Red on Black--friend of Jack; Red on Yellow--kill a fellow" adage. But when in doubt, and located as close as your patio, better safe than sorry. Do you have pets or small children around? Because of my dog, I would kill a poisonous one at my home if I recognized it. However, I let even the poisonous ones be if encountered out in nature. It popped at my dog, that's how my wife noticed it. It was behind her chair on the patio. Didn't get her (the dog) but caused much commotion. I have jack russell terriers, and Chloe our female is scared of nothing. She wanted to fight it, my wife just wanted it to go away. I tried to get it with the rake and just move it out but the thing was so aggressive, I just wanted it dead. I've never owned a Jack Russell myself, but have known a few. Ounce for ounce, I think they are one of the ballsiest/gutsiest critters on the planet! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigsixfive 341 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 ..found a scarlet king snake once and used it as an object lesson to teach my wife the old "Red on Black--friend of Jack; Red on Yellow--kill a fellow" adage. How'd you get that point across, let it bite you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AUesquire 1 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Being that aggressive sounds like a Moccassin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DKW 86 7,872 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Being that aggressive sounds like a Moccassin. Ditto, exactly what I was thinking too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AU_tiger_2000 0 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Being that aggressive sounds like a Moccassin. Ditto, exactly what I was thinking too. If it was only about as big around as a quarter it would be awfully small for a moccasin. They're usually recognized for being big around for their length. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aumd03 2 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 Being that aggressive sounds like a Moccassin. Ditto, exactly what I was thinking too. If it was only about as big around as a quarter it would be awfully small for a moccasin. They're usually recognized for being big around for their length. Agreed. Very unlikely to be poisonous. Poisonous snakes usually are stocky and fat. They don't have to work as hard for prey. They just bite and boom, done, dinner. Looking at the triangular head isn't very reliable either. Hognose snakes will hiss, strike and have a triangular dark head. A three foot hognose would be big though. Also, people tend to overexagerate snake lengths. I've seen 18 inch snakes called three footers. It's kinda like recall after a car wreck. Ask 8 different witnesses and you'll get 8 different stories. I can't stand the "all snakes are bad snakes" philosophy. I have family members that have it and it drives me up the wall. I have a fairly large, ~4 foot snake living under my house of unknown species.based on the skins I've found. But I also live next to several large fields and have absolutely no rodent problems. Kinda like bats. People hate bats, but they are one of the best mosquito controls money can buy. Certain animals just get a bad rep based on stereotypes. My guess on species would be king snake. Most snakes if cornered will coil and strike. I've seen some with a dark head. But there is so much variation in skins its hard to tell. If you still had the carcass you could look at the belly scales and also the head for pits or for long fangs. Even with a book by your side, its not always that easy to identify a snake. I worked for the herpetology lab in Auburn and even with all those resources we had some unidentified species. One such unidentified species later recognized was someone's pet cobra that had died and been dropped off as a "meuseum specimen" but nobody bothered to write down the fact that it was a cobra. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AUesquire 1 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 We seem to get a couple of what I call "Rat snakes" in our yard every year. Basically the same markings as a rattlesnake but obviously not one when you get a good look at it. I usually carry him back to the woods but when I get a rake handle or anything near it to pin him down, he strikes like a pit bull. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LegalEagle 22 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 It's not poisonous if it is a native species. You can tell it is not poisonous if it has round pupils. It's not a coral snake and all other venomous snakes in the U. S. have elliptical pupils. ( I'm not sure about coral snakes.) Next, look at the scales between the "vent" (a**hole) and near the tip of the tail. The scales of poisonous snakes continue in that area with a single belly scale while poisonous ones have a split belly scale there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bojack34 2 Posted April 10, 2008 Share Posted April 10, 2008 In my world all snakes are evil and must be destroyed!!! I will admit that I am terrified of snakes. I found a chicken snake crawling around on my kitchen counter last year and had to get a neighbor come over and kill it for me. My first instinct was to get the shotgun but my neighbor quickly reminded me that was not a good idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 Being that aggressive sounds like a Moccassin. Ditto, exactly what I was thinking too. If it was only about as big around as a quarter it would be awfully small for a moccasin. They're usually recognized for being big around for their length. Agreed. Very unlikely to be poisonous. Poisonous snakes usually are stocky and fat. They don't have to work as hard for prey. They just bite and boom, done, dinner. Looking at the triangular head isn't very reliable either. Hognose snakes will hiss, strike and have a triangular dark head. A three foot hognose would be big though. Also, people tend to overexagerate snake lengths. I've seen 18 inch snakes called three footers. It's kinda like recall after a car wreck. Ask 8 different witnesses and you'll get 8 different stories. I can't stand the "all snakes are bad snakes" philosophy. I have family members that have it and it drives me up the wall. I have a fairly large, ~4 foot snake living under my house of unknown species.based on the skins I've found. But I also live next to several large fields and have absolutely no rodent problems. Kinda like bats. People hate bats, but they are one of the best mosquito controls money can buy. Certain animals just get a bad rep based on stereotypes. My guess on species would be king snake. Most snakes if cornered will coil and strike. I've seen some with a dark head. But there is so much variation in skins its hard to tell. If you still had the carcass you could look at the belly scales and also the head for pits or for long fangs. Even with a book by your side, its not always that easy to identify a snake. I worked for the herpetology lab in Auburn and even with all those resources we had some unidentified species. One such unidentified species later recognized was someone's pet cobra that had died and been dropped off as a "meuseum specimen" but nobody bothered to write down the fact that it was a cobra. I had someone mention a king snake today. As for the length, I wear a 11.5 shoe. I laid the snake out and stood next to it with my feet end-to-end and it was approximately another "foot" longer. Because my wife had the heebies so bad, I had to hurry and get rid of it. So there wasn't a whole lot of studying. I really wanted to once it was dead but as you can see by the time of my post it waas getting late and the wife was freaked out. I don't think she slept at all. It's in the Helena landfill as we speak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukeduke 8 Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 I'm no expert, but like the others I would think rat or king snake. Both breeds have a wide variety of colors that look a lot like other snakes. Unless there is water nearby, you can probably rule out a moccasin, but just in case, did you notice if the mouth was white? If it is aggressive and you can see white all inside of its mouth, it is typically a moccasin. I don't kill snakes generally unless they are a threat to me, my family or animals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 I'm no expert, but like the others I would think rat or king snake. Both breeds have a wide variety of colors that look a lot like other snakes. Unless there is water nearby, you can probably rule out a moccasin, but just in case, did you notice if the mouth was white? If it is aggressive and you can see white all inside of its mouth, it is typically a moccasin. I don't kill snakes generally unless they are a threat to me, my family or animals. I knew it wasn't a moccasin. We see those down at the hunting camp quite a bit. The inside of it's mouth was pink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lukeduke 8 Posted April 11, 2008 Share Posted April 11, 2008 When you decided to kill it...did you say "I'm tired of these m$&%& f&*&$ing snakes on this g&* d*(*& patio"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDM4AU 337 Posted April 11, 2008 Author Share Posted April 11, 2008 It was probably more like the scene from Office Space when they "whack" the printer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigermike 3,661 Posted April 12, 2008 Share Posted April 12, 2008 Check out this site. Snakes in Alabama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthLink02 8 Posted April 13, 2008 Share Posted April 13, 2008 I would probably have run off screaming like a girl I hate snakes. I absolutely hate them. I have a deep paranoia (right word?) of them I just....no, no snakes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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