Watching out for Timbers
from
James Van Dyke
on
January 15, 2002
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A few years back I when I was in high school, I was really into fishing. Before I could drive, I'd drag my dad around looking for new places to fish, even in sub-freezing temperatures. I'm from the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia, so there were plenty of bass ponds and trout streams to choose from. There's one in particular that I remember.
Way out in the George Washington National Forest, there is a native trout stream called Ramsey's Draft. Most of the year it's only a trickle and the trout are rarely longer than 10 inches (good for flies!), but I've since found another reason to go there.
The first time I went, I was very disappointed because the fishing was very very bad. We hiked about 4 miles up the trail just looking for good water. Most of the time, we were looking out into the water, not really paying much attention to where we were stepping. The last 2 miles of the trail were sort of overgrown anyway.
At one point I remember hearing a little ch-ch sound. It wasn't anything I had heard before so I stopped and looked around. I also looked down at the trail and found a 2.5 foot Timber Rattler less than a foot from my boot. It wasn't coiled, just stretched lazily across the trail. I held very still and just watched it crawl away, totally unconcerned. What a moment!
 Photo by James VanDyke (c)2002
I wasn't really into reptiles that much at that time. I'd always loved snakes, but fishing had sort of passed everything else by as a passtime.
I am now a sophomore in college studying biology and planning to become a herpetologist. Last summer I went back with my dad to Ramsey's Draft to see if I could find another of these rare eastern rattlers. I wasn't disappointed.
The stream was really low this time so there was a lot of open streambed and literally a field of round stones. Floods had toppled old trees in some places, which opened up the forest and put nice snake cover down. Under one of these trees we found a 3-4 foot rattler. It was half basking and half in cover, but it sure let me know when I was close. It let loose a buzz that I will never forget, sounding like a billion bees. The buzz was so loud that at first I wasn't quite sure what it was, but it turned out to be the beautiful snake pictured.
I have since started working in a snake lab helping do research on infrared imaging. We work mostly with pythons, but we also have a few rattlers, including pigmies, western diamondbacks, eastern diamondbacks, and a canebrake, but I have never heard a rattler as loud as that one.
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Watching out for Timbers
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by Van on January 15, 2002
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Sorry I couldn't get a picture up of that snake. I just couldn't get the picture posting to work. If you want to see it, go here:
http://community.webshots.com/album/26038931OwxGUaffeO
Check out the rattler pix. I also have some other pictures here including ones from Reptile World in St. Cloud, FL, some pictures of Mardi Snipe's animals, and some of the vipers and pit vipers we work with.
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RE: Watching out for Timbers
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by monardous on April 27, 2002
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Hello there James? What part of the Valley are you from? I'm from Winchester, but have been living in North Carolina for the last few years. I'm also an undergraduate like yourself majoring in biology. It is good to see someone on here from where I'm native.
I never found Timbers back in the Valley. I looked for them for years in the surrounding mountains, but without any luck. I was able to find some other interesting snakes there. There was one site where I could consistently find Worm and Northern Ringneck snakes. Some of the Ringnecks exhibited patterns found in Southern Ringneck populations. On one occasion at this particular site, I found an Earth Snake. The soil and vegatation apparently suits all three species. What snake species- venomous or nonvenomous- have you found in the part of the Valley were you live? Also, where are you attending school? How do you like your coursework?
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by knutter1 on May 10, 2002
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I live in NC also, however my intrest in snakes is only that I live in a very wooded area that supports a large snake population. I have several snakes ranging from timber rattlers, copperheads as well as black snakes. I have a question about the black snacks ability to mate with other breeds of snakes. Reason being I have seen black snakes with a slight pattern and triangular heads with the elliptical eye shape and I am unable to find any snake that has the same features. I am aware of a nest of timber rattlers on my land and I was wondering if the black snake can mate with them. Also can black snakes intermingle in the same nest with copperheads? I have been told they can exsist with rattlers.
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Anonymous post on June 7, 2002
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blacksnakes and copperheads can not mate because one gives birth to live young while the other lays eggs
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by Rebelfine on July 16, 2002
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This is a late response to you, knutter. I'm also from North Carolina--not too far from Virginia line. There are rattlers in our area, in fact, at Hanging Rock State Park there are rattlers with radio transmitters to keep track of their whereabouts and to study them, I suppose. A neighbor several years back killed a rattler in her driveway--it had 7 rattles and button (can you tell age from that?). My husband had a confrontation with a rattler last summer in our barn, just under bale of hay and next to horse's stall. Luckily, it had a mouse in its mouth, which gave my husband time to almost kill himself trying to get away. We also have run up on a number of black snakes, most close to this same area, so it is curious like you say that black snakes and rattlers seem to come to same area. I know there are copperheads in our area though haven't run up on any on our land. What part of North Carolina are you from? We're in Stokes county.
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Anonymous post on December 11, 2002
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rebelfine I don't know if anyone answered your question about rattlers and age. You can not tell age by rattlers for 2 reasons 1 being rattlers can break off and 2 being rattlers can shed up to about 4 times a year. Everytime they shed they gain another rattler. Sorry to bother if already answered, I'm getting ready to start a life history and relocation study.
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by toxicbite on December 29, 2002
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Reply to knutter1:
It is not uncommon to see blacksnakes with a slight pattern (ussually red diamonds on their sides) and a triangular shapped head. At least where I live in KC.MO
Thanx, TOXIC-BITE..........
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by rooftop on September 5, 2003
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I live in southeast texas and not really a venomous enthusiest. ive been interested in colubrids from the beginning,but my brother found a DOR canebreak and i was wondering if it is at all possible to purchase a canebreak or timber legally in the state of texas.
thank you
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RE: Watching out for Timbers
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by rattlesnakeremover on September 8, 2003
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I live in TN and go to texas to remove rattlers from ranches. To my best knowledge timbers and canebreaks are protected in tx you can not legally catch buy or sell either of these snakes. captive born snakes from someone who has a permitt maybe a different story.
Rattlesnake Remover
Mike
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RE: Watching out for Timbers
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by rattlesnakeremover on September 8, 2003
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to double check you might want to contact bob in weatherford, TX he could probably help. e-mail me mjjones@xo.com and I'll give you his # or you could e-mail him at snake@wf.net .
rattlesnake remover
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