Why Don't I See More Snakes?
Maybe I’m weird.
Wait, why are you nodding your head?
But seriously …
Anytime I go on a hike and don’t see snakes, it’s disappointing.
One afternoon in Huachuca Canyon, I was the opposite of disappointed.
I watched (and photographed) this snake for a good 10 minutes. I was 99% percent positive about the ID. None-the-less, I wasn’t tempted to pick this snake up, as we do have coral snakes here in southeast Arizona. But about the only way you will get bitten by a coral snake is if you pick it up and almost literally stick your finger in its mouth.
These King Snakes (or at least their evolutionary genetics) are also aware that we have coral snakes in Arizona. They employ a strategy called Batesian Mimicry.
Predators that would normally eat a snake avoid the King Snake because they mistake it for the lethal Coral Snake.
Although we have plenty of of western diamondback rattlesnakes (as well as the hybrid Mojave variety), I’ve rarely seen them in the wild, and as far as I can tell by searching my archive have never actually photographed one in the wild. The picture above was from the Desert Museum in Tucson.
The Blacktail Rattlesnake is one that I have personally seen (and photographed) several times. This is probably because it’s a pretty docile snake that doesn’t seem to care too much even if people are standing literally right next to it.
The whole family was with us in Ramsey Canyon when we ran into this snake one afternoon. We watched it and took pictures for a good 10 or 15 minutes. We also of course pointed it out to other people who came down the trail. I’m pretty sure the only reason we eventually left was so other people could have their turns getting more “up close and personal” with the snake.
This was probably my most fun, but also unexpected snake encounter, as it happened just down the road from my house, in our neighborhood. I was walking home from Circle K one evening when I came around the corner and this guy was just chilling in the middle of the sidewalk, near the road.
It was huge. Had to have been 6 or 7 feet long.
Naturally, the first thing I had to do was get some pictures. This wasn’t too hard, as just like the blacktail rattlesnake, this gopher snake didn’t seem terribly bothered by my presence. Did I mention that the snake was right next to the road?
Since I was 100% sure this was a harmless gopher snake, before I went on my way, I decided it would be nice if I moved him away from the road into some nearby bushes.
The snake wasn’t nearly as excited as I was about the prospect of me picking it up. But grabbing it by the tail and holding it away from my body (as I’d seen on YouTube videos) seemed to work pretty well … I mean it didn’t bite me.
In hindsight, I almost wish I’d tried to bring it all the way to my own yard. Oh well, maybe next time.
Sadly, that about sums up my recent snake encounters. But there are enough of them around here that I’m sure I’ll get more picture taking opportunities soon enough.
Til next time,
Todd
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Fun story that I'll never relay to my bride because she's terrified of snakes...alive or dead.
Those pics are terrific and that gopher snake is even a bit too big for my liking!