We have no poisonous snakes here, just garter snakes, gopher snakes and Rubber Boas. All harmless and very helpful.

We have nice big Copperheads and Black snakes here...they probably make mincemeat of all the smaller snakes, so haven't seen any.

Sure would rather see garter snakes!

Hey Lynn, do your terriers kill your snakes? Pearl "did in" I don't know how many of our black snakes. Also don't know how many times I saved their butts by distracting her for enough time to let them get to safety. How can you possibly teach them this snake is GOOD, don't kill it but THIS snake is BAD -- KILL IT!

My two RT's are allowed to hunt rodents, not snakes. They understand when I tell them to leave it, it means off limits. They are very good about it. I encourage them to hunt the rodents. : )

Pearl knows "leave it" also & it saved her one day when there a HUMONGOUS Bufo toad appeared, she had spied it & was going for it. I yelled "leave it!" & thank goodness she knows that command well because otherwise.... I don't even want to think about it. But the black snakes.... she would be out in the yard (fenced) & I wasn't there all the time so when she found one well.......

There aren't the kind of Bufo's here that there were there. BIG SIGH! Bufo season she wasn't allowed out in the yard without one of us right next to her.

I am so fortunate that we don't have to worry about things like bad frogs and snakes.

The Gopher and Rubber Boa snakes help keep the rodent population down.

Are the Rubber Boa's native or imports?

They are a native snake, rarely seen because they are nocturnal hunters. I found one under a log in my back yard a few years ago. What a beautiful creature it is. It is a true Boa and is very mild mannered.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R...

Very interesting Lynn. Thanks. I just love learning new stuff.

I loved finding that snake. Didn't know what it was until I finished playing with it and looking very closely at all it's parts. The head is very small and really can be confused with the tail. The one I found was mature and quite large. When I picked it up it slowly coiled around my arm and seems quite happy with the warmth provided.

Hi!

Really? Do you want to encourage me?! How nice of you!

So, if you want to encourage me .... How about a pond?
I would like to be there a few plants and some fishes friendly. Of course, be and a place, less deep, where I can relax in hot summer days. Of course, and a few tall plants, to have little shadow when the sun is very strong. But not too much shadow, ... you know what I mean. Well .... , to be honest, for fish, in this case, strong sun, it's good to be a place with some more shade and of course, deeper waters.
But for me, just a little.

Well, I have to ask the photographer to put, for you, some pictures to a pond in the appropriate section of forum.

I'm so glad that the garters are back in fashion. I hope I am enough long …

and you like the model

Bye!

PS Ohh...! Sssss.....cuse-me, I forget ... my name. is.....sssss Thamnophis proximus ssp.orarius. But the photographer is not very sure about my name. It's so sad, to be unsure of your own name …
But I promise if the pond will be nice, I will not care about it ... and you can call me Snake Western Ribbon, or simply "Gartner snake" .


EDIT: Photographer note's. I'm sorry. I left the computer open, and this little guy, slipped here. I hope he will not bored or bothered you too much.
I will fulfill his desire and I will upload pictures required. But remember, real snakes are wild animals. In any case they are not toys. Nor decorations. Some are very dangerous. Maybe some are not. But do not take the risk. Keep your distance and don't try to play you with them.

I saw somewhere a picture with a rattlesnake in the position of warning. Picture seemed to be taken of very close distance. And from ground level!
Someone commented: How close! How brave you are!
Photographer answer: I am frisky, maybe. But I am not crazy! I had a very good camera and an very good tele-lens. And good light. Between me and snake, were many yards!

Justin I love your photos of the Garter snake, they are great.

Justin, awesome. What an clever garter snake you have there.
I have seen mine sometimes swimming or basking in our creek. Such wonderful photos, thank you so much for posting them.

Thank you Justin

Thanks, Justin... so maybe when I finish my yard (sometime in this millennium, I hope), the garter snakes will find a home here

That would be awesome Mary. Where do you live?

valleylynn said: That would be awesome Mary. Where do you live?

GA... I have hope for a water feature, but not the budget for it, at this point. But the idea is the water will come off the roof via the downspout and into the rainbarrel, and the overflow will flow through an as -yet-nonexistent pipe under the as-yet-nonexistent small retaining wall into an as-yet-nonexistent bog pond for filtering, and from there into an as-yet-nonexistent small (25-40ft long, 2-3ft wide) stream that meanders alongside one of the tree-beds, with ditch-fish in it, and whatever.

I haven't talked to my pond guy neighbor yet about how much this idea will cost, becuase there are other things that are higher priority for my budget, right now.

You have lovely Thamnophis sirtalis in GA.
Your project sounds wonderful. I can see it in my imagination. Hopefully it will all happen soon.

Justin - Many kudos for a job well done!

I love the close up that looks like the snake is looking right into the camera.