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Snakes and summertime
By Shani Hay Contributing Columnist
Anyone who has been raised in the Deep South knows that snakes are inevitable in the summer .
Mississippi is home to 56 varieties of snakes , but only six of these are venomous . I cringe when I hear people tell me that the only good snake is a “ dead ” snake because this is simply not true . I get many calls during the summer to identify snakes that people have killed in their yard and 9 times out of 10 , they have killed a harmless rodent eater like the grey rat snake ( aka “ chicken snake ”) or even worse , they have killed the wonderful , speckled or black king snake , a snake that eats other snakes and is completely nonvenomous .
I understand that we , as humans , have fears of potential harm to us . Some people are terrified of snakes , and I am not demeaning anyone ’ s feelings , but I would like to point out that snakes are equally as terrified of you ! Understanding that they are looking for a meal and not looking for trouble is a key to coping with their presence in our sheds and gardens .
One of the best things you can do to keep snakes from visiting your property is to remove any meal sources such as rodents . Snakes have a fantastic sense of smell , and they hunt primarily by scent . They do not smell through their noses , but with their tongues . They pick up chemical information with their tongues by flicking them in and out and track their meal . They can also sense body heat of a potential prey with special receptors . Once caught , snakes use venom , constriction , or a combination of the two to subdue and eat their prey .
Garter snakes ( aka “ garden snake ”) are primarily insect and frog eaters .
One exception to the head shape rule on snakes is with the Coral snake . Coral snakes are poisonous . No pits , rattles , or “ cat-eyes ” — the coral snake breaks the rules . Brightly banded with red , yellow , and black , the warning colors are side by side (“ red touches yellow , kill a fellow ”). In the
Hay
26 • MERIDIAN LIFE