Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Snake in the Yard - I'm Moving to Alaska [UPDATED: with photo




We found a snake in our backyard today. Small, but never-the-less, snake. Fortunately, it was dead. Well, the head was dead. The body was still coiling off and on. And fortunately, I assume it to be a pet snake due to the bright orange color mixed with white, and therefore probably harmless -- especially, since it was dead. Dead snakes are harmless. Orange definitely doesn't blend in with the natural surroundings, supporting my hunch that it was an escaped pet. It had been smacked in the head, probably after startling someone. I think it may be a amelanistic motley banded corn snake. You can see what you think once Glen adds the photo. He ran out with his camera. I know I'm often accused of such behavior. The muerto snake is still giving me shivers. Not a big snake fan. I believe Alaska has no snakes. The dogs seemed clueless.

2 comments:

  1. Looks like a corn snake to me...yuck, and I mean a BIG YUCK!!! Brings back memories of the large (GIGANTIC!), Western Pacific rattlesnake, (according to my information, "These rattlesnakes are distinguished by their triangular shaped head, dark brown bands, and rattles at the tip of the tail." Yeah, that rattle at the tip of the tail was a dead giveaway;-), found in my garage on a weekend NO ONE I knew was home, including my kids. Eventually, Ken Hayman came over and killed it. The headless carcass he put in a bucket thrashed around for HOURS!! When Rob got home he cut off the rattle for me...10 "buttons," as the lingo goes. The rattle can still be viewed (by appointment only) in the shadow box in my dining room. I wouldn't even touch the bucket. The kids had to move it when they came home. Snakes? No problem for me...I'm over it:-)

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  2. Oh, Beth. I remember this and shivered just the same reading this account. I was very happy there was no rattle or sign of this being a rattler. I appreciated the part about the carcass continuing to move -- though that is gross -- it verified what I witnessed.

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