Snakes of any sort don’t survive long around here if they venture onto a road. Some people make a special effort to run over them. That was the case for this relatively young copperhead the dogs and I found a few days ago right at the bottom of our driveway.
It was recently deceased.
A few days later the dogs started acting a little strange on our walk down Fouche Gap Road. Zeke had crossed the shallow ditch and was meandering along when he stopped. At first I couldn’t figure out why, but then I noticed this rattlesnake in the ditch.
The head is at the lower, central part of the image, next to a leaf. Immediately below the head you can see the rattles. I count around 12, which does not, however, indicate its age in years, only that it has shed its skin 12 times. As far as I can tell, this is a timber or canebrake rattler. I didn’t see any obvious wounds, but it was almost certainly hit by a car.
The dogs were curious about the copperhead, but they gave it a wide berth. They didn’t want to get anywhere near the rattler. I don’t know whether they have any instinctive fear of snakes. I do know that they are usually wary of anything out of the ordinary, so that alone might account for their apparent fear.
As we walked back up the driveway after seeing the copperhead, I passed right over a green snake about a foot and a half long. I must have assumed it was one of the many weed seed fronds I pull up and throw onto the driveway. I don’t think the dogs noticed it, either. Then Zeke nosed it and it began to twist and writhe its way off the driveway into the tall grass, where it promptly disappeared.
I have seen a fair number of snakes on the mountain, from nice, long black snakes to garter snakes, but never a live venomous snake. Our little community is isolated among miles of forest. Except for the immediate community up here on the mountain, our nearest neighbor is around a mile away on one side and two or three miles away on the other side. I am certain that there are many, many rattlers and copperheads in our woods, but they must be shy, because they do not show themselves.
On the other hand, I might simply have missed them in my rambles in the woods. I snagged the dead copperhead with a stick to toss it into the woods for a proper resting place. The first try put it at the side of the road, among the leaf litter, sparse grass, pinestraw, bare dirt and vines. It disappeared. I knew it had to be there, but I couldn’t see it. I eventually found it. It was not covered, it simply blended so well with the background that it was very difficult to see.
So maybe I have stepped right next to a rattlesnake or a copperhead and never knew it.
I’m surprised at how few snakes I see in my woods. I’m sure they’re there, and maybe they are wary enuf of me to slip away. Or maybe I’m just not observant enuf. I did see a live copperhead once (on Rock Turning Day) and it was within striking distance of my face but chose not to. I’ve seen one or two black snakes, a green snake once, and a hognose snake once. I’ve seen more armadillos than snakes in my woods.
We hardly ever see big snakes here in our little town. I’m sure there’s plenty up in the coastal range and inland. I did see a very little snake slithering in our garden the other day. It was small enough to hide under a little flowering bush. It always bums me out when I read the people purposefully run over wild life. It happens all the time everywhere. People are so stupid and cruel.
Paul — I’m sure your woods must be full of snakes, too. I’m not sure whether I see more armadillos than snakes, but I think I probably do. When I was in Atlanta, my landlady got a snake bite on her calf. I don’t remember whether it was a cottonmouth or a copperhead. It made a very nasty wound. I can think of a couple of places that would be worse for snake bites, and the face is certainly one.
Robin — I simply can’t understand why people do things like that. I suppose there is some natural fear of venomous snakes, but why run over them when they’re on a road miles from your own house? Stupid and cruel is right.