View Full Version : Snake Identification Book.....suggestions?



Vegan
08-14-2010, 05:44 PM
I've found quite a few different looking baby snakes in my yard while weeding. I managed to catch one and later identify it as a ringneck. I returned to the yard. One that I did NOT manage to catch was rather colorful. I don't want to rely only on my memory because I saw it briefly, but there is a chance it was a copperhead.

Anyway, I'd like to get a book that would teach me how to quickly identify snakes in my yard so that I know which ones are friendly neighbors and which ones need to be relocated. (will not kill them) It'd be cool to also learn how best to capture them. It was danged hard getting the baby snake in the jar this morning--it was so little I was afraid that I'd hurt it by picking it up at the throat/head area (don't want to take chances on getting bitten when I don't know if it's venomous or not).

I'd also like a book to identify the various lizards I've run across. (Well, I think one looked like a salamander, but don't see how it could be alive what with the intense heat and lack of rain we've been having.)

Any suggestions??

positano
08-14-2010, 06:25 PM
I'm sorry I don't recall the site specifically, but there's a website that's run by a "snake guy" in Oklahoma that is really good. He has pics and info on all of the snakes found in the state, their habitats, etc. I caught a small snake once and sent him a pic and he sent me a message identifying it pretty quickly. I think if you do a search of Oklahoma snakes you'll run across the site. Don't know of any books in particular, but the site had great info.

Thunder
08-14-2010, 06:29 PM
Where do you live?

jstanthrnme
08-14-2010, 07:54 PM
My go to ID book is "A Field Guide to Oklahoma's Amphibians and Reptiles" I take it on all of my hikes here in state.

And if you're in Edmond the chances of you encountering a venomous snake are minimal. Don't bother relocating them either, they are an important part of your garden.

Check out http://www.oksnakes.org/

Vegan
08-14-2010, 08:19 PM
positano, thanks~ I'll keep an eye out for the site.

thunder, I'm in Edmond. My backyard faces a greenbelt that has 2nd street on the other side.

jstanthrnme, thank you for the tip on the book and the link. "Don't bother relocating them either, they are an important part of your garden." That really made me laugh! :P I don't know of anyone who is okay with venomous snakes living in his/her backyard. If I find one, it is going to be relocated. If it is one of the many non-venomous species, it's very welcome to stay. I like snakes so long as I don't have to worry about them killing me or my dogs.

Thunder
08-14-2010, 10:41 PM
Edmond... That's quite scary considering you're only a few miles away. You're seeing abundance snakes?

Vegan
08-15-2010, 05:14 AM
Thunder, yeah, there are quite a few, but they are babies. I'm assuming that there had been a nest nearby and that as they grow up, they'll scatter. My backyard certainly isn't big enough to support a lot of snakes. I think snakes in the yard is a good thing (so long as they aren't venomous of course). When a top predator is around, it shows that the environment is healthy. That's what I've heard anyway.

Thunder
08-15-2010, 09:13 AM
You do realize that I am double-watching my surroundings right now. :-(

kevinpate
08-15-2010, 09:50 AM
But are you watching above you too? After all, what's scarier .... snakes, or the swooping critters which feed on the snakes.

Enjoy the yard, and the (allegedly) clear skies.

muwhahahahahahahaha

Jesseda
08-15-2010, 11:02 AM
I live in moore, Back a few years ago at my moms house which is in moore, she had a problem like yours, she must have seen 2 dozen baby snakes back i would say summer of 03, her neighbors noticed the same, for the following 3 years they saw less and less but they got bigger, the biggest one i saw at her place the snake had a frog in its mouth.. creepy i know, but they lived along a creek area backed up to a wooded park area, but still houses all around, I hear getting cats help with the baby snake problem, but i just cant see getting cats to take care of them if they are piosonious, hopefully for your sake the snakes move on and are not venomous.. you might look into the cat thing if you see more, or somekind of snake be gone chemical, i seen something at lowes in the bug-pest killing area for snake

Debzkidz
08-15-2010, 11:35 AM
I'm in Edmond also, off Danforth, and twice in the last year we've found a nest of baby snakes in the same flowerbed. Once in the early fall and again in the spring. Also, I've nearly stepped on a snake, more than once just in our grass. I don't know if they are poisonous are not. I usually just freak out so badly when I see them, that if I have a garden tool nearby, I just start swinging. If I don't, I quickly get away, and by the time i come back, they are long gone. I know they're suppose to be good for the garden, but to, the only good snake, is a dead snake!

PennyQuilts
08-15-2010, 01:29 PM
My go to ID book is "A Field Guide to Oklahoma's Amphibians and Reptiles" I take it on all of my hikes here in state.

And if you're in Edmond the chances of you encountering a venomous snake are minimal. Don't bother relocating them either, they are an important part of your garden.

Check out http://www.oksnakes.org/

Exactly the one I was going to suggest. You can usually find one at a visitor's center at state or federal parks. It even tells the counties most of the critters reside, which helps in identification.