Today's Snake Casualty Thread

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On the Net today, in news reports:

Man dead in Missouri after foolishly picking up a copperhead some 20 inches long. State officials say this is the 3rd (RECORDED) death there from a copperhead bite. So much for the common theory that copperhead bites aren't lethal. Note that that is the third death from a copperhead in MO alone. Not just three deaths in all. Other states have incurred some, too.

Man dead in (I think) the same state after being bitten on both legs while wading, believed to be by a water moccasin/cottonmouth. Did not seek treatment after the bites.

Man dead in some far eastern country where the names look like it might be in Burma/Myanmar Republic or nearby. Story did not state nation; just gave several names of those involved. Kept snakes. Hit on elbow by mamba, exact species not stated. Mambas not native to Asia. Man was a snake handler and showman.

These are all the snakebite deaths I saw today. Did I miss any that you know of? Did I miss any bear-man events?
 
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2 of those deaths have some Darwin award possibilities. Picking up and handling poisonous snakes is not a great idea. With a Black Mamba it's a really really bad idea.

Snake bites kill appox 6 people a year in the US. Many of them because they handled the snake. For comparison spiders average 7 fatalities, dogs 21, bees/wasps 53 and lightning 54, cars aprox 37600. Rather than shoot every snake we see I propose we shoot all the cars.
 
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No problem with snakes here. There is a widow woman down the road that wakes up bitin at herself though. Sometimes she'll try to take a chunk outta others too. Jeez. I think she is kin to that "lady" that emasculated the pit bull yesterday.
 
Neighbor four doors down lives on a creek and has two "snake motels". He caught two in each trap a couple years ago.

Be safe out there.
 
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steelslaver said:
2 of those deaths have some Darwin award possibilities. Picking up and handling poisonous snakes is not a great idea. With a Black Mamba it's a really really bad idea.

Snake bites kill appox 6 people a year in the US. Many of them because they handled the snake. For comparison spiders average 7 fatalities, dogs 21, bees/wasps 53 and lightning 54, cars aprox 37600. Rather than shoot every snake we see I propose we shoot all the cars.
Click to expand...

But its not the car - it's the moron behind the wheel!

Pete
 
SC_Mike said:
Neighbor four doors down lives on a creek and has two "snake motels". He caught two in each trap a couple years ago.

Be safe out there.

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Click to expand...


What is a snake motel, and where can I get one (or maybe a dozen)?
 
ATF said:
Leave the snakes alone and they won't bother you as long as you don't tread on them :)
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Not true. I had one come out from a rock I was sitting on while reeling in a turtle that bit my line. I took my rod tip and through him in the water twice after he came back again. The third time he veered up and opened its mouth at me. I lost it I threw it up on shore and hit it with a rock. Lots of little kids fish this spot. My older son never seen me lose it.
 
Reminds me of the thread here a few weeks ago about that doo-dah from Florida named Austin Hatfield who got bitten while attempting to kiss a Cottonmouth. Heard that officials were planning on bringing charges against that goof for illegally keeping a venomous reptile without a permit, but have never heard the outcome on if that ever happened or not.
PHOTOS Florida man Austin Hatfield bitten by cottonmouth while kissing it - starcasm.net

Like my daddy used to tell me, "Common sense is the least common of all the senses.":)
 
All the flooding and heavy rain in Texas combined with warmer weather have snakes of all kinds moving up to higher ground. I have seen more snakes this year already than I typically see in two years. Other varmints also are moving out of the low lands. I have had a plague of armadillos, and small rodents come up out of the lower lands due mostly to the rising water.
 
finesse_r said:
All the flooding and heavy rain in Texas combined with warmer weather have snakes of all kinds moving up to higher ground. I have seen more snakes this year already than I typically see in two years. Other varmints also are moving out of the low lands. I have had a plague of armadillos, and small rodents come up out of the lower lands due mostly to the rising water.
Click to expand...

Any hipsters sighted? :O
 
Saw a picture today of a shark swimming in downtown Houston because of the flooding. It doesn't trump the pit bull lady but it is unusual. I bet the shark would be easier to catch than the pit without the twins!
 
Just read more about the man who died of the cottonmouth bites. Victim was 37. He refused to seek treatment. His girlfriend woke up next to him the next morning and he was dead. Must have been a heck of a shock for her.

Some snakes are very aggressive. I met a cottonmouth that I wanted desperately to shoot as it was after my fish on a stringer and was very aggressive. But a couple of local boys from the lake were just across the water and I was concerned that a ricochet might hit them. The snake eventually left, but I'm still mad that those danged kids showed when they did. That moccasin may well have later bitten someone. It was very bold. Needless to say, I didn't eat those fish, some of whom were probably bitten.

Mambas have a reputation of often being aggressive, especially the black one. BTW, they aren't black; the name applies to the interior of the mouth. The snake overall is sort of charcoal or olive-colored, depending on the individual.

King Cobras (hamadryads) are also known to be aggressive, especially during mating season. But any snake can be startled or feel threatened or just be in a bad mood and strike, even if you haven't seen it. You may be near a mommy snake's nest.

Be careful out there. I might once have stepped on a coral snake, if it hadn't been so brightly colored. I hope it couldn't have bitten through my boots.
 
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finesse_r said:
All the flooding and heavy rain in Texas combined with warmer weather have snakes of all kinds moving up to higher ground. I have seen more snakes this year already than I typically see in two years. Other varmints also are moving out of the low lands. I have had a plague of armadillos, and small rodents come up out of the lower lands due mostly to the rising water.
Click to expand...

TV news has shown several bobcats and coyotes in cities. The news announcers urge people to avoid them. (Good idea...) Most of the media people know absolute zip about wildlife and are often a little horrified to learn that these and even alligators live so close to them. It's sort of funny, but I keep getting disgusted about how little of the world and history these talking heads know.
 
Several of the glue boards say they are for mice, rats and snakes. Best trap I have seen for creeks and water is the old cylindrical minnow traps. I guess you could use them on dry ground if it was baited with a mouse, etc. Used to run a couple of the traps on the creek to get sucker minnows for bass fishing and about once a month there would be a fat cotton mouth in there. If it wiggled, throw it back in. Most would be dead from drowning and I would just open the trap and dump them. Back in the '60s I bought a Crossman pellet pistol to keep in the car, cause the best trap for a big rattler is a nice warm back road in the evening. Got several that way. Larry
 
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