Southern Copperhead, Susie F., South Austin, TX 102108

The photo at right was sent by Susie F., in South Austin, Texas. I don't know if she took the photo or copied it from another source. She wrote: "We have a creek in our backyard and two pretty big dogs that don't care for snakes. I helped a pretty copperhead back to the creek about an hour ago and thought I'd write and let you know Onion Creek seems a good habitat for local wildlife. We have had (western cottonmouths) before but this is our first copperhead. I grew up in far western Bexar county, and Mother was 'skilled' at handling the rattlesnakes we had in abundance. Her forte was killing them (to protect her 'precocious' kid). I'm not unhappy to have snakes, even venomous ones, but the dogs do mind and I couldn't save the cottonmouths. I coaxed Ms. Pretty Copperhead into a bucket with a hoe (same instrument Mother used, but with a different object in mind), and she is now happily hunting birds and mice where she belongs. Do you have any suggestions about how to keep snakes out of the yard? ." Several snake repellents are available on the consumer market--some sold at local retail outlets and others over the Internet--and all of them probably work well at keeping snakes out of yards if label directions are followed. This species (Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix) is described in some detail by Werler & Dixon (2000), pp. 345-350 (recommended reading). The genus Agkistrodon derives from Greek root meaning "fishook", a reference to its recurved fangs; the species, contortrix, derives from the Latin contortus, meaning "twisted, pinched," a reference to the form of its dorsal markings. 

* TERMITE ENCOUNTERS  *  SNAKE ENCOUNTERS * SNAKE BITE FIRST AID * SNAKE EXCLUSION * SPIDER ENCOUNTERS FOR 2008 *  SPIDER ENCOUNTERS FOR 2007 * SPIDER BITE FIRST AID * SPIDER EXTERMINATION * PUSS CATERPILLAR ENCOUNTERS * PUSS CATERPILLAR FIRST AID * PUSS CATERPILLAR EXTERMINATION *  Assembled & Edited by Jerry Cates. Questions? Corrections? Comments? BUG ME RIGHT NOW! ---- Ph: 512-331-1111 ---- E-Mail ---- Privacy ----BugsInTheNews * --0a0s--