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where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by fizzbob7 on June 6, 2005
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i am REALLY noticing a decline in variety and number of snakes that i'm seeing with each passing year in my area......places that looked like good spots and were in the past, simply aren't anymore....the prey is there, the environment is perfect, but i'm just seeing less and less and it bothers me......i've seen far more of the endangered box turtles than i have snakes....and the only kinds i have seen were garter snakes, racers and gray rat snakes (the gray i saw yesterday was just over 6.5ft long, a monster, and was 9" in circumference)....
but i'm just worried......the climate seems milder this year compared to others.....haven't seen many 90 degree days and that's unusual.....i've looked at night, daytime, early morning, etc......i've been looking for 3 months now.......either i'm getting less lucky each year or something is hindering their reproduction or they packed their bags and left........
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by earthguy on June 8, 2005
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If the prey is there, then so are the snakes (hopefully). Snakes are resiliant creatures. As long as they aren't being persecuted by people they do well. Hopefully you're just missing them. Be patient and keep looking. Best of luck.
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by fizzbob7 on June 8, 2005
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well, i honestly think the population is way down.....people hate snakes around here, the obvious motto is "the only good snake is a dead snake" and that really pisses me off......ignorance........people go out of their way to hit them, even turtles.......all my old spots that ALWAYS had snakes simply don't anymore.....they are not there......even the smaller snakes like ringnecks or blind snakes (or worm snakes, i forget), just aren't there........ants ARE on the rise and i'm wondering if this isn't all related somehow......it's been declining annually, and now i honestly have severe problems finding any at all......i spend my lunch breaks looking for them more often than not....and nothing.......i'm getting no calls from others either.....when i see one, it's always DOR and it's usually the most common snakes in those cases.....i really think numbers are down.....
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by Cro on June 8, 2005
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Ricky: Do you live in an agricultural area? The reason I ask, is that in rescent years, many areas in the South East have started growing cotton again, and these crops are being heavily, heavily, sprayed to prevent boll weevel. Often the spraying is done by crop dusting aeroplanes, and drifts by wind into other areas. I have seen a great reduction in snakes in areas where cotton has replaced soy beans, peanuts, and other crops.
I have also seen a huge die off of native plants on lands near cotton plantings.
Large snakes are on the top of the food chain, and accumulate these toxins in their fat tissue with every meal they eat of the lower animals that absorb the toxins. JohnZ
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by fizzbob7 on June 8, 2005
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didn't think about that, but yes, cotton is everywhere, followed by corn but agriculture is huge in the areas i am talking about (outside huntsville and outside florence, both are in the country).....
where i live is a great place for snakes, everything adds up but there simply aren't many at all.....there are huge cotton fields within a few miles of my house and the creek that "feeds" the area runs from the area of those fields to basically this whole region
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by Cro on June 8, 2005
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Ricky: Sounds like you might be experiencing what happened in South GA a few years back when Cotton was started growing again. From what I have heard, the pesticides / herbacides for Cotton are really toxic.
If you know anyone at a College Lab, or the State Department of Natural Resources, you might try to interest them in checking out the levels of toxins found in the fat tissues of snakes you find as road kills. Especially, top shelf predators like king snakes. I am going to bet that the toxins are in very heavy concentrations, and match those used on cotton. I am also going to bet that snakes that are on the bottom of the food chain, that eat insects, like green snakes, ribbon snakes, and garder snakes are becoming very scarce in that area. JohnZ
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by ALA_herp31 on June 9, 2005
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Hey ya’ll, I live in probably one of the biggest Cotton growing Counties in North, AL. Herpers in this County have no real problem finding Snakes. It dose seem a little strange that people in GA have problems finding Herps (or should I say Snakes). I know that the poison sprayed on Cotton is strong, but you would think it would be bad in all Cotton growing Counties. This makes me think that Cotton spraying is not as big of a factor as we think it is, who knows what tho? I average catching about 6-12 Snakes a week and the Species I catch are pretty diverse. Go figure huuu?..............Be safe ya’ll, happy herping Wally
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by fizzbob7 on June 9, 2005
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what county.....the places i frequented in the past that are now dry were in limestone/madison/lauderdale/colbert counties.........there are still snakes, but there are not as many......i spend the same amount of time looking now as i used to, but i'm coming up with a LOT less snakes.....the weather isn't as hot as it has been but that should be a positive.....maybe it just threw them off
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by ALA_herp31 on June 9, 2005
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I am in Limestone County and I still see a good population of Northern Water Snakes, Black Kings, Eastern Milks, Black Racers, Corn Snakes, Black & Gray Rat Snakes, and I also see a average of 3-5 Eastern Hogs each Year. I can tell you if your looking to find Venomous we have 2 Species here in abundance Cottonmouth & Copperhead, now if you want to find Canebrake / Timbers, go to the hilly parts of this County. I grew up in this County and have been herping here sense I was a boy (about 16 years to be exact) and I can tell you that the population has not dropped, but has increased. I see more Snakes now than I ever saw before. The Swamps in South Limestone County have a good population of Cottonmouths & Water Snakes. Guess I could be the lucky one tho, I just have very good luck in spotting Snakes of all kinds...........Be safe ya’ll, happy herping Wally
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RE: where have all the snakes gone? north alabama
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by fizzbob7 on June 9, 2005
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2 years ago, i came across 50 water snakes over 2 weeks time at this creek just below my house......they were everywhere.....and looked healthy..........i've seen NONE in the same area......i also saw a dozen or so ringneck snakes.....i've seen none......black racers were everywhere and i've only seen 3 of those this year, all DOR........i'm just off of hwy 53 and 72, in that corner (toney, harvest) and snakes are definitely harder to find......i tromped 4 hours through a swamp a few weeks back and saw NO snakes.....2 years ago in that same swamp, i saw 20 in the one day i spent there.......
something else, houses are being built in this part of the county and all over madison at an alarming rate......my step dad just bought 1.25 million in land, and should double his money on the land alone, not to mention the houses he builds on them......my point is that land is going fast and houses are going up faster.....with the imminent influx of new residents on the horizon, it will only get worse....
you must be from the athens side of limestone
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