Annnnd how would you like to find this on a tree in your yard?

[Are_grits_groceries]

(looks like Nikki escaped from the SC Governor's Mansion)


<snip>
Heathwood resident Andrew Philson snapped photos of what to him appeared to be a 15-foot python hanging in a tree behind his Devereaux Road home Monday. Officials with the state Department of Natural Resources say the critter is not the monster it appears to be in photos and is really a 6-foot-long black rat snake.
Regardless of the serpent’s size, the snake has been a hot topic in Columbia the past few days.
<snip>
http://www.thestate.com/2012/05/24/2287973/heathwood-snake-slithers-to-stardom.html

15 feet, 6 feet, or whatever. That is a big snake.
I have seen a 12 foot rat snake that an uncle found in a barn. He held it up on a pitchfork, and its tail and head were dragging on the ground as it lay across the tines.

It could end up anywhere, and that includes inside houses. This is not out in the middle of a farm. It's apparently visiting its kin because Riverbanks Zoo is near there.

It has 2 Twitter accounts. @midlandsMamba @SlitherSnake
It is more media savvy than most of the state legislature.


Skaterchick is moving on fast.......

[NV Whino]

1. Well, they won't have any rodents

Black snakes are good guys.

[woo me with science]

3. Or small dogs or children.

(just kidding....I know nothing about snakes)

[Are_grits_groceries]

4. True.

It should slither over to the Capitol and clean out the place.
There's a lot for him but it has too much fat. In addition, too much of what is available is old, tough and white.



Skaterchick's still moving on down the road....

[malaise]

9. Well it is a RAT snake

so it could devour the plutocrats, aristocrats, bureaucrats, etc., but what about the Fat CATS?

[Are_grits_groceries]

10. Only the 2 legged ones in suits.

Plenty of those too.

[FSogol]

6. Yeah, you can just pick up black rat snakes and move them.

Drop them into a pillow case and relocate them to a sunny place in the woods. They mostly eat mice and rats.

[sharp_stick]

2. On the plus side

I'll bet there aren't any rats, or yappy little teacup poodles, within 2 miles of that house.

[MineralMan]

5. I'd love to have it in my yard.

Snakes are fascinating critters. That snake is completely harmless to humans, but will keep that yard free of moles, mice, rats, and even the odd squirrel. You notice that the children aren't running and screaming. They're just looking at it. If I happened to be there, I'd go get the snake, let it calm down as I held it (couple of minutes) and then show it to the neighborhood kids and tell them about it. If experience is a teacher, most of them would want to touch the snake, which would be fine.

Then, I'd release it again where I found it and let it get on with its snakely business.

[Are_grits_groceries]

7. Wouldn't bother me, but my Mama

would practically have recreated Sherman's March in our yard.
Burning down the house would have been on the table.

[MineralMan]

13. I understand. I was lucky as a kid.

My mother was completely unflappable I carried an array of snakes and lizards into the house as a boy to show her. She'd always say something like, "That's nice, Dick. When you've finished looking at it, be sure to turn it loose in a safe place." That was the extent of her alarm.

I've always liked snakes, and I can't count the number of times I've picked one up and had the chance to give an impromptu science lesson on snakes to a bunch of kids in the neighborhood. It's one of my minor missions in life, I guess. Kids are apprehensive about snakes, but once you tell them something about them and let them have a close look and actually touch or handle the animal, that goes away very quickly.

[Are_grits_groceries]

15. My cousins and I never

paid attention to any warnings. We had to learn the hard way if we learned anything.
We weren't afraid of snakes. Respectful but not afraid.

My Mama and aunts were pretty tolerant of a lot of nature that we got into. Snakes never made that list.

[MineralMan]

17. Yeah. My father taught me to recognize rattlesnakes

at a very early age. I left them alone. The rest were fair game. In this part of Minnesota, the only snakes anyone encounters are non-venomous. There are a few timber rattlers in very southern part of the state, but around Saint Paul, where I live, about the only snakes anyone ever sees are garter snakes and the odd rat snake or two. This state's not all that snake friendly, climate-wise.

The South is trickier, with more venomous species around.

[Are_grits_groceries]

19. We have many types of rattlenakes.

We also have Copperheads and Water Moccasins. Then there are Coral snakes which are the most poisonous.
Copperheads and Water Moccasins are mean and aggressive. One kept trying to get in a boat my cousin and I were fishing from. One fished while the other kept watch to beat it back with a paddle.




Skaterchick will return after snake talk is over.

[MineralMan]

21. Yup. Lots of dangerous snakes where you are.

Different place entirely. I grew up in California, in a rural area. Plenty of rattlers around.

[Arkana]

8. Sweet zombie Jesus.

Well, I suppose after shitting my pants, I'd run inside and crawl under the covers until Animal Control got there to get it the hell away from me.

I hate snakes. Hate them.

[sinkingfeeling]

11. So, the DNR says the snake is 6 foot. That makes the garage about 5 foot high!

[Are_grits_groceries]

12. They say it's an optical illusion.

It's on par with the ones that show the SC government working.

[RT Atlanta]

18. Sidebar: what about Haley apparently campaigning for Walker?

Is that true? Crazy...

All the best (my family has deep ties to the midlands & I visit frequently).

That snake would've spooked the hell outta me.....

[Are_grits_groceries]

20. Probably true.

She gets out of SC as much as possible. She's reaching William T proportions of dislike. SC knew what he was going to do. Haley is sneaky and vindictive.

[RT Atlanta]

22. interesting

I keep hoping the state's political scene will hit "rock bottom" with leaders like Haley & Demint, etc. so that it can eventually emerge into a more moderate state. Id like to see folks like Rob Miller have the opportunity to represent the state at a national level.

I do give the republicans/tea baggers credit for the amazing job of messaging in SC - how they can convince so many South Carolinians to (as I see it) vote against their own interests amazes me (you just need a little racism, homophobia, and bowing to the almighty $ to do so).

[Are_grits_groceries]

23. The last election actually

turned more on the false allegations of infidelity against Haley. BTW they may not be false, but nobody could offer any real proof.
Haley hates the GOP establishment and the feeling is mutual. Lately they have been engaged in trying to take each other out. The House speaker wants to reopen an ethics investigation on her. She in turn is threatening to reveal WMD level info that would hurt them.
I wish they would start and bring down the whole lot of them.

[MineralMan]

14. Yah, that rat snake is longer than 6 feet.

It's a beautiful one, too.

[obamanut2012]

16. I have been spooked by these many a time running

They like to hang out on single-track trails, sunning themselves and giggling as they make runners scream.

They are HUGE, and as big around as a doughnut.

[Aerows]

24. That thing is big

When I was a small child, we lived in Tuscon, AZ. My mother had this Boston fern that she watered every morning, and as usual, she watered the thing on the porch and then went back inside. My uncle was visiting, and was looking out the window and pointed out to my father "Hey, look at that!" he exclaimed.

Five minutes after my mother had walked away from watering that fern, a six foot rattlesnake came from around it. I don't know if it lurked there to get "watered" every morning or if it was a coincidence, but that was its last day on earth. That was a little too close for my family's comfort!

[yellowcanine]

25. Those girls seem ok with it though. Respectful distance but not freaking out.....

Good for them. Snakes should be respected but not irrationally feared. Too many snakes get killed just because to some people every snake is a bad thing.