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Thread: Snakes in the Greenhouse

  1. #1
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    Snakes in the Greenhouse

    Though these are actually welcome because they eat bugs:

    Snakes in the Greenhouse.jpg

    When first seen, one of these slithered off. After walking to the house for my camera, the one on the left wasn't noticed until it moved. It may be the one that slithered away.

    So far the only snakes seen up here have been garter snakes. When ever one is found inside a pot or otherwise can't escape capture, it is usually brought into the greenhouse and let go.

    We often see one of these slither off when entering the greenhouse.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  2. #2
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    We don't use our small green house which is attached to the back of the house, but yesterday, I was cleaning out some stuff and found two garter snakes under some of it. The found their own way in and also out as they aren't there today.
    Lee Schierer
    USNA '71
    Go Navy!

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  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Though these are actually welcome because they eat bugs...
    We mostly see black snakes. Big black snakes.
    If they just ate bugs that would be great. But they eat chicken and guinea eggs and try to eat peafowl eggs. By chasing the nesting peahens away black snakes here have killed eggs potentially worth several thousand $$. So they get relocated to a snake-friendly environment with no nesting farm birds.
    This one today was inside a nest box in the chicken house. About 5' long.

    snake_chicken_house.jpg

    JKJ

  4. #4
    Now relocation I can support.

    Barely but, that’s logical and a compromise.

    Sure beats systematic eradication or issuing hunting permits in the name of keeping the so called population in control of our human needs.

    I’d love some peacocks, those gunei that are like rainbow colored maybe not Guinean forgive the spelling I’m not gonna go look it up. But I would also be inclined to do something if other animals were getting to them.

    Had a wealthy eccentric client years ago into birds. He had a beautiful stone and wood house made for them, I know there’s a name for that he used it when he referred to it. I think maybe raccoons I’m not sure some animal would get in and attack them, even I’d be beside myself. But beside myself like if I’m gonna cage a animal so it has no place to go affectively trapping it so another animal to attack it I had best do everything in my power to make sure no other animal can get to it vrs just eradicate those other animals.

    Beautiful birds this guy had. The first thing I’ll do after I move to the country and my shop is put together is find a bird mentor and get to work..
    Last edited by Patrick Walsh; 07-05-2020 at 9:55 AM.

  5. #5
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    Maybe folks should carefully count their bananas:

    Banana Snake?.jpg

    A friend posted this on Facebook.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Maybe folks should carefully count their bananas:

    Banana Snake?.jpg

    A friend posted this on Facebook.

    jtk
    Lol, too me a second Jim.

    Once we we're at a pet store with my kids just browsing the snakes. They had what I assume was a huge yellow Python in one of the enclosures. My boys and I were talking about how big it was,etc etc. The store employees walks up to us and asks me "would you like to hold it?" Before I have a chance to answer my wife says "yea he loves snakes" ( I don't mind garter snakes or small snakes, nor do I really like them. Just like catching them for my boys) anyways the lady brings this snake out. I'm assuming it was around 60lbs or so, puts it on my shoulders. Like I mentioned above, I'm not really afraid of snakes, but that snake slithered around my neck and turned it's face dead on to look me directly in the eyes and face. I am not going to lie, looking directly into the eyes of a snake that has a head like a baseball and wrapped around my neck made me nervous for a minute.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Patrick Walsh View Post
    ... if I’m gonna cage a animal so it has no place to go affectively trapping it so another animal to attack it I had best do everything in my power to make sure no other animal can get to it ....
    I agree.

    That's what I did in the peacock house. After a skunk dug under the wall and killed and ate a young peahen I dug down reinforced the base of the walls with a collar of concrete. I added an additional two layers of wire mesh and closed every gap so no animals big enough to kill and eat birds can get in.

    In a building that used to be a corn crib I boarded up gaps from floor to ceiling after finding a raccoon inside, then covered all the walls with fine mesh chicken wire after finding two young possums inside. I planned the new peacock house to be snake proof with no concrete floor, no gap over 1/2", and a tight-fitting welded frame steel door - I just need to finish it....

    The fences around the field have multiple electric conductors and barbed wire at ground level which has discouraged things that can't fly over or are small enough to get through the 4" woven wire fence grid.

    Cages housing smaller fowl are inside of this fencing where they have some protection from marauders and attacks from the air. If a dog, fox, or coyote got over the fence the llamas inside the fenced field are known for their ferocious guard tendencies and will chase or eliminate. The tiny newly hatched are raised in indoor brooders until large enough to move outside.

    Unlike possums, raccoons, hawaks, and foxes, I don't worry too much about snakes since they can't kill and eat birds larger than baby chicks so I don't worry too much about it. The chicken house would be hard to secure against snakes so I just inspect lot and remove snakes as I find them. A couple of years ago I pulled this egg out of the snake's mouth and missed my chance to get my first photograph of a snake with an egg in the process of being swallowed.

    snake_eggs_IMG_20140823_133052_513.jpg

    JKJ

  8. #8
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    My wife shot this picture last week on our patio. Just a bull snake.IMG_1081.jpg

  9. #9
    Let me say how glad I am to see so many folks letting these snakes move on in peace (ex-biology student in college and snake fan, if you could not guess).

    Erik
    Ex-SCM and Felder rep

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    Maybe folks should carefully count their bananas:

    Banana Snake?.jpg

    A friend posted this on Facebook.

    jtk
    Now that would be an underwear-changing moment!
    Brian

    "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger or more complicated...it takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." - E.F. Schumacher

  11. #11
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    More Snakes Today

    Three of these are likely the same snakes as before.

    While turning off the water and putting some things away there were three snakes noticed all curled up in the same plastic pot.

    By the time it took to walk to the shop to get the camera and walk back one of them moved into another pot:

    Three Snakes.jpg

    It wasn't until after the first close up was taken of the three snakes that the fourth snake was noticed.

    Four Snakes.jpg

    As much as these are seen together, it won't surprise me if a lot more show up.

    Yesterday there was even a blue belly lizard joining in on the congregation.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  12. #12
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    1FD0DB67-C46D-4D1C-9076-C88313731369.jpg

    This guy (about 5’) was in my front yard. Last year a neighbor and saw one fall out of a tree with a baby squirrel while she walked by with her dog. The year before another neighbor found one crawling on the brick above her back door.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Erik Loza View Post
    Let me say how glad I am to see so many folks letting these snakes move on in peace (ex-biology student in college and snake fan, if you could not guess).

    Erik
    I found a perfect place happy to adopt a large black snake. The local farmer's cooperative was excited to get the one I caught last week. Their location backs up against a wooded area right on the river. Their warehouse is full of livestock and poultry feed that unfortunately attracts rodents. Fortunately, big black snakes are happy to help control the rodent population!

    And most of the staff are animal people and snake lovers. Except for one guy who is terrified of snakes. He shrieked and said "I'll kill it!". The college-age daughter of one of the managers works there and I heard her yell back at him "If you kill that snake Mama will FIRE you!".

    JKJ

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