Herps--reptiles and amphibians

Tim Harrell somewhere in the Fakahatchee Strand or Everglades films cottonmouth, red shouldered Hawk, and barred owl. The cottonmouth is in a tiny pool of water and seems uninterested in the fish. The hawk is eating something unidentified and watching out for the cottonmouth.

Tim Harrell in the Everglades: cottonmouth and ghost orchids--not in bloom.

Some animals of the fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park in Southwest Florida: alligator, barred owl, black bear, red-shouldered Hawk, white-crowned night heron, cottonmouth.

Eastern King Snake Walking Stick

"I carved this King Snake and White Oak branch with it’s leaves all out of a single piece of wood. It was a real challenge to bring all the leaves and stems together onto one branch."

Mike Stinnett

That guy is a hell of a good carver.

He's done a number of snakes, but so far the eastern kingsnake is my favorite. White oak leaves are done well. He burns the scales in one by one.

Black and white Argentine Tegu, Salvator marianae, as a pet.

I don't especially agree with this guy's choice of the five best reptiles for beginners, but this guy is very knowledgeable and pretty cool.

garter snake

Taming a pet tegu lizard:

Komodo Venom and its effects.

This is a bit off subject, but I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that birds are classed as Reptilia by many scientists. This is what was being pushed in my wife's university biology class this past semester. Wikipedia still shows reptiles and birds in different classes, Reptilia and Aves, respectively.

I've never seen or heard that birds and reptiles we're being placed in the same class. I don't understand that at all. I know that with DNA testing there is a lot of reclassification of species, genera, and even families, but classes? I don't understand that. I mean, one is cold-blooded and the other is warm blooded. Some dinosaurs and birds are placed together, but it's believed that some dinosaurs were warm-blooded.

I'll have to do some research on that idea. At any rate, thanks for bringing this up.

A reply to the increasingly status-filled and money-making hobby of keeping and breeding more and more decorative morphs of ball pythons e.g.:

We have to remember that snakes are symbolic of nature, the physical, and the feminine. As such they are our spiritual connection to Nature, our recognition of the physical basis of our nature and the reverence of the goddess, which is always incarnate. We have to think of of the snake not so much in terms of decoration but in terms of spirituality. These are living creatures that share their lives with us, and their importance is beyond the decorative and the status of possession especially since their natural habitats and all natural habitats are victims of cumulative assault.

Snakes and People

People have various attitudes about snakes, often negative, but what do snakes think of people?

Racers are slender and move swiftly in esses like the waves of a whip. They are among the smartest of snakes and have assiduously studied human behavior concluding that we're nothing but shits to be avoided. They are alert and they are fast, and it's very difficult for people to get close to them if there's any kind of cover at all.

Coachwhips and whipsnakes are even more slender than racers and have a habit of raising the front part of their body high off the ground to get a better perspective on things when hunting lizards or avoiding dangerous creatures. They have about as high a regard for people as racers do.

Pit Vipers, such as rattlesnakes and copperheads, are heavy-bodied and cannot crawl very fast. They tend to stay in a coil when ambushing prey or just relaxing because they feel safer that way. If they have to make an emergency escape, they do it very clumsily with a series of flops. They're not very smart, but they are smart enough to see that people are very dangerous, so they avoid them when possible.

Gartersnakes and ribbonsnakes are slender fish and frog eaters. They are attractive small snakes that attract the attention of people trying to catch them and keep them as pets. They, therefore, would risk escaping into a pond full of voracious snapping turtles over keeping the company of people. If handled too roughly or held tightly, they'll often respond by bitting and emitting musk.

Watersnakes are fisheaters like gartersnakes but larger and much more prone to bite and emit prodigious quantities of musk when handled. They are usually not kept as pets because of this behavior, which the watersnakes consider to be a victory. They generally have a lower opinion of people than even the gartersnakes and racers, mostly gained by experience.

Kingsnakes and ratsnakes are constrictors, that is they kill their prey by constricting them. Consequently, when in a tree or bush or being held, they wrap part of their body around the branch or hand to keep from falling. This behavior has been misinterpreted by keepers to mean that the snake likes being handled. The snake, however, is simply mistaking the handler for a tree, which it greatly prefers over people, agreeing with the racers that people generally are shits to be avoided.

Coral snakes are red like stop signs to advertise danger so people and other animals will leave them alone. Animals other than people usually heed the warning. To avoid people they will crawl away fairly rapidly, but if caught they will demonstrate their lack of fondness for people with a venomous bite.

For the most part, snakes have a great distaste for people and avoid them, one of the few exceptions having been Grace Olive Wiley, and she eventually was killed by a cobra.


Black racer


Whipsnake


Grace Olive Wiley handling a pet rattlesnake.

Yes, rattlesnakes and other venomous snakes are dangerous, and one must use caution when hiking in the wild. I always advise people to constantly look down when walking in an area with venomous snakes. If you want to look at the scenery, stop and look.

The personalities of all snakes vary with species but also with individuals, and they are hardly ever aggressive, only defensive. They are trying to survive in a world populated with people who hugely outweigh them and outnumber them and often are very aggressive towards them.

With the rapid development of wildlands, there are frequent encounters between people and snakes. In Florida, what was once totally wild land inhabited by snakes for a millennia, may be transformed in mere weeks or months into a residential area. Therefore, encounters between snakes are to be expected. This frequent interaction and almost total collective ignorance and cultural prejudices against snakes does not make for a healthy situation.

Natural history education is left up to the individual. There is none in public schools. People must make an effort to educate themselves about snakes, and natural history institutions, such as museums and zoos, should stress the identification of native snakes

Snakes and People

People have various attitudes towards snakes, often negative, but what do snakes think of people?

Racers are slender and move swiftly in esses like the waves of a whip. They are among the smartest of snakes and have assiduously studied human behavior concluding that we're nothing but shits to be avoided. They are alert and they are fast, and it's very difficult for people to get close to them if there's any kind of cover at all.

Coachwhips and whipsnakes are even more slender than racers and have a habit of raising the front part of their body high off the ground to get a better perspective on things when hunting lizards or avoiding dangerous creatures. They have about as high a regard for people as racers do.

Pit Vipers, such as rattlesnakes and copperheads, are heavy-bodied and cannot crawl very fast. They tend to stay in a coil when ambushing prey or just relaxing because they feel safer that way. If they have to make an emergency escape, they do it very clumsily with a series of flops. They're not very smart, but they are smart enough to see that people are very dangerous, so they avoid them when possible.

Gartersnakes and ribbonsnakes are slender fish and frog eaters. They are attractive small snakes that attract the attention of people trying to catch them and keep them as pets. They, therefore, would risk escaping into a pond full of voracious snapping turtles over keeping the company of people. If handled too roughly or held tightly, they'll often respond by bitting and emitting musk.

Watersnakes are fisheaters like gartersnakes but larger and much more prone to bite and emit prodigious quantities of musk when handled. They are usually not kept as pets because of this behavior, which the watersnakes consider to be a victory. They generally have a lower opinion of people than even the gartersnakes and racers, mostly gained by experience.

Kingsnakes and ratsnakes are constrictors, that is they kill their prey by constricting them. Consequently, when in a tree or bush or being held, they wrap part of their body around the branch or hand to keep from falling. This behavior has been misinterpreted by keepers to mean that the snake likes being handled. The snake, however, is simply mistaking the handler for a tree, which it greatly prefers over people, agreeing with the racers that people generally are shits to be avoided.

Coral snakes are red like stop signs to advertise danger so people and other animals will leave them alone. Animals other than people usually heed the warning. To avoid people they will crawl away fairly rapidly, but if caught they will express their complete lack of fondness for people with a venomous bite.