"Snake in the Grass"

wild4flowers · Post by **wild4flowers** » May 07, 2006 5:42 pm

This is totally cool.
My grandson found this in the yard today. After he found it, he was terrified. After that it was a good way to educate. And he could stand up on the deck and look down, so he wasn't so close.
But how often do we get to see, up close, good stuff like this. This is an Eastern Hognose Snake. It is in the process of eatting/swallowing a toad.
Therefore I knew it wasn't going to lunge at me while I was taking pictures. He was too busy trying to finish his meal.

CHAR

oldcoot · Post by **oldcoot** » May 07, 2006 6:21 pm

Glad you took time to explain it to him...OC

caliloo · Post by **caliloo** » May 07, 2006 6:55 pm

OMG!!!!

Get the axe out! I would MUCH rather have the toad than the snake!

OMG.... Yes I am a snake hater!

Alexa

wild4flowers · Post by **wild4flowers** » May 07, 2006 7:09 pm

actually, I don't like snakes either, but this one was safe to be around. CHAR

Nathalie23 · Post by **Nathalie23** » May 07, 2006 8:29 pm

I don't like snakes either... Here, I only have rat snake ( 1 or 2 feet long) and I get scared!!!

PeggyC · Post by **PeggyC** » May 07, 2006 9:56 pm

I guess I'm the only one that's going to say COOL!!

wild4flowers · Post by **wild4flowers** » May 07, 2006 11:11 pm

http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/ehognos.htm

CHAR

wishiwere · Post by **wishiwere** » May 08, 2006 7:10 am

Oh my!

How big was this thing! We have gardeners <sp?> only,thank heavens!

One was not happy when I started digging through compost yesterday. Guess he better learn to share! LOL My dogs to love to chase them, but TH, don't pick them up!

patsue53 · Post by **patsue53** » May 08, 2006 9:14 am

poor toad

that is some snake. Happy for ya. (shudder)

Cool pictures though.

Annie · Post by **Annie** » May 08, 2006 9:35 am

Looks like a hognose snake. They are kinda scarce. And ya gotta have snakes that eat mice and such, even toads.
If the snakes weren't around there would be to many toads, mice, and rats and such.
Anyway I like em.
Most hognose snakes only threaten ya, and even if they strike most of the time they won't bite! It's really funny to see one play dead LOL. We use to play with them when we were kids.
But any way.......COOL PIC

Annie · Post by **Annie** » May 08, 2006 9:48 am

Oh I didn't see the link LOL.
They are really cool snakes

LucyGoose · Post by **LucyGoose** » May 08, 2006 11:31 am

Wow!! Good that you explained to the GS.....I remember a couple summers ago we had one eating a toad on the patio....

I was really kinda gross, though and the poor toad was still alive.....It still makes me feel icky thinking about it.......

But thanks anyway for sharing nature!!

petal*pusher · Post by **petal*pusher** » May 08, 2006 10:02 pm

Whew! Great pics! Such a good way to teach the "food chain" to your grandson....and the rest of us too!....p

Old earth dog · Post by **Old earth dog** » May 08, 2006 10:53 pm

Very

! The hognose is a really fantastic snake. Sometimes called a puff adder because of all the hissing they do during their threat display. They are quite harmless. When they strike at you in defence, they do it with their mouth closed. If that doesn't work, they play dead like in the pics.
My son had one in the basement a number of years ago. It was always getting out, but never hard to find because it would start hissing as soon as you hit the bottom step. DW would just throw a towel over it and toss it back in the cage.

Ginger · Post by **Ginger** » May 10, 2006 3:00 pm

I really like snakes, and will not kill one unless I have to, and it has to be a snake that can hurt me, IE, rattler or cottonmouth. They are good varmit hunters and I think we may still have a big ole black snake (rat snake) that lives under our house. He can stay there and eat mice etc as long as he wants

As a kid, my grandfather kept a pet rattlesnake. He fed it mice etc and one time a baby bird that fell from its nest. I was very unhappy about that, and when my grandfather found me trying to get the bird out of the cage, he was pretty upset too!

Ginger

Hallson Gardens

"Snake in the Grass"

"Snake in the Grass"

That is something else