Last spring, while hiking, birding and herping, we had the pleasure of observing an extremely large dusky pygmy rattlesnake basking just under the edge of a cement slab.
Now, this in and of itself isn’t exactly an unusual observation, because dusky pygmy rattlesnakes are extremely common in the area. What amazed us is that the animal had chosen a nice sunny spot where literally dozens of people were constantly walking right past, and yet the animal remained unbothered by all of the human activity and seemed to be completely unnoticed by everyone else but us.
The dusky pygmy rattlesnake, Sistrurus miliarius barbouri, known as the “ground rattler” by some Southerners, can be found in most habitat types in north Florida, from pine flat woods to hammocks to swamp margins and sandhills and even neighborhoods. It feeds on lizards, amphibians, small mice and even centipedes and other invertebrates.
These small rattlesnakes can be irascible when disturbed and will not hesitate to defend themselves if provoked. They also have a fairly potent venom, so caution is advised!
As we prepared to take a few photographs of our find, an elderly woman with a strong Irish accent decided to take a break from her birding and sat down near the slab about eight feet from the hidden rattlesnake. She asked us what we were taking pictures of. We hesitantly explained to her that we were taking pictures of a rattlesnake. Her reply was simply, “Oh how interesting, I’ll be sure not to disturb it.” …read more
Read more here: King Snake
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Until recently, snake rescue culture grew slowly in India. Today, one can find snake rescuers in every part of India. However, you will rarely come across a full-time snake rescuer as there is little scope for herpetology and for most population it’s inaccessible. 