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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by FSB on September 18, 2008
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Observation is the very foundation of all science, and its importance cannot be underestimated. Don't let anyone tell you that time spent watching your snakes is wasted. Do keep notes, though, and mark the time of day, temperature and any other environmental conditions going on when you make a particular observation.
Many would say that captivity invalidates any behaviors observed, but I disagree. While I love observing them in the wild whenever possible, most reptiles are simply too secretive and erratic in their movements to be observed in the field over the long term, as in Jane Goodall working with chimps. Marine iguanas, maybe, but certainly not rattlesnakes!
Given the opportunity and the right set-up, reptiles will continue to display a remarkable range of behaviors in captivity, and this is really the only practical means of observing their behavior in the long term. Some behaviors will unavoidably be altered or eliminated in the captive state, but that does not render the ones that are not meaningless. Since all scientists are after all human, I cannot believe that a state of absolute objectivity can ever be attained... results are inevitably going to be processed and interpreted through someone's brain and emotions.
The old "tree in the forest" scenario is anthrocentric bs. First of all, how could there ever be a forest with "no one around" to hear it? No humans, maybe, but a forest that looks empty to us is teeming with pairs of sharp ears. Plus, a rock falling into a body of water is going to make ripples, regardless of whether anyone is there to see them, and similarly, a falling tree is going to generate sound waves in the air.
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by LadyBloodRose on September 18, 2008
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The note book I have been using to sketch set in, i am actualy going to start using as sort of a journel to document what i observe in :) espiclay since most mys ketching of him as of late has been while i have been observing his behaviours so the sketches tend to reflect what ever position he is in at the time ^_^. with any luck here before long though I am hoping to get him an his girl into a larger more comfortable cage then the 55gallon they are currently in. (don't worry the top on it was made by my dad to prevent any possibility of escapes years ago when i had to move back in with them for a lil while an had snakes in the house much to my mothers horror haha.) The 55 give sthem both plenty of room but i can't quite set it up as natural as i would like. I don't mind the amount of time an work it takes to clean out a super elaborate setup ^_^ anyone whos seen my 2yr old cottonmouths setup knows that haha that lil bugger has the life of luxury! I've observed intresting behavior even from him i'll have ta post alink to apic of his setup^_^ I would absolutely love to so domethin similar for every hot i have but i know it aint gona happen but i can leave make every effort possible or least within my means to do such. in return i hope for happy, healthier animals that act as natural as possible in their micro enviroments.
I feel the observatiosn i make could help me further down the road, just like the info i find an get from people like yall here you can never learn to much from any scource of information. no mater if its repetive or brand spankin new.
Each of us may have diffrent hots we specizlize in that we keep, or just that we have a full intrest in but we can't or don't have ameans to keep. We all at some point an time manage to catch out snakes doing something odd, an later on talking to others with similar intrest (snakes period) we discover that the behavior perhaps shows in other snakes as well.
Such as the thread ongoing in about Timber's. a group of thsoe who have posted have made observations of their snakes weither timber/cane etc. which will flatten themselves out while basking. or even as mentioned before previously in the thread about the canes shifting their weight an going right back to sleep etc.
The lil things that we never think of perhaps could be the most important.
btw heres a link to the setup for my 2yr old cotton ^_^ figured i'd throw it in here haha. this pic was taken before he was out in n the top put on ;).
http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t193/lbr1/My%20Pets/S4023621.jpg
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by agkistrodude on September 18, 2008
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Ladybloodrose, in all the hours I've spent in the woods,and all the animals I've seen, only twice have I ever been able to sit and watch a red fox.(Not counting the ones I've seen run across the road in front of my car or bolted out of my hen house, or the one the dog was chasing)Magnificent, beautiful animals. I've seen nothing more wary or cautious,not even the timber wolves I watched in Minnesota, one red fox that I watched had killed a rabbit for her young. Treasure that memory, they don't happen often. Sorry, not snake related...Marty
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by LadyBloodRose on September 18, 2008
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its ok hun :) this lil fox that i watched has a den somewherein the area, not sure if it waas male or female but usualy every year it has some sorta dog pup trailin it. i rember one year it had a begal pup chasin it, an it would getup on this huge wood pile an run aroundnanupi t n confuse the pup an sit there watchin it lol it was so cute. They are just beautiful animals.
I personaly think its sad that we do not see these animals more, but its our own fault 9humanity as a whole) that we don't :S. Its one of the reasons I love Hot snakes so much. They are killed just because they are Venomous, they are "dangerous" so people wipe them out. evently we may not ever see them again in the wild unless we are truly lucky. I am able with the snakes I have to sit down with my nephews an give them the chance to see a canbrake rattlesnake, or a cottonmouth or Copperhead. To hear that Buzz made by the segmented rattles. They may never hear it or see them again later in theirlives but its a memory they will have that they canlook back with their kids an say "our aunt had one of these" an be able to tell them about the exprence.
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by agkistrodude on September 18, 2008
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I hear ya, you know, with the exception of seeing them on the road, very seldom have I seen one "in the wild" without actually looking for them.Its like the people that are deathly afraid of them are the ones that always run into them. A lady that works with my wife is DEATHLY afraid af snakes. She went home one day, pulled her car into the garage, and pulled the garage door down. There was a big black rat snake sittting on the door that fell right on her head, neck, shoulders,etc.She ended up in the hospital on mass quantities of Zanex or something.Things like that just don't ever happen to us "normal folks." Marty
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by LadyBloodRose on September 18, 2008
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lol i hear ya there lol! this has actualy been a prety sad year for me on finding snakes. Infact i;veonly even seen 4 on teh road 2 black rat an 2 racers :S. Neigbors kids ought a black x grey rat snake that was beat up prety bad an brought her to me. I kept herlong enough to get some weight an get her healed up before she went on her merry way.
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RE: Observing my male Cane
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by FSB on September 24, 2008
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I agree, it seems like it's been a slow year for snakes. Of course, the cost of fuel kept me in a lot more, but I have to wonder how much wildlife overall benefitted from less people on the roads. A lot, I'd say. So perversely, even though I was suffering myself, it made me feel better that at least the yahoos couldn't be out running over as many rattlesnakes and copperheads as they usually would be. Every cloud has a silver lining...
I have seen lots of foxes though, including a female who regularly brought one pup down to the creek to drink rthis summer. I couldn't see them at all until I mowed a field next to the house, and then they had no choice but to cross the open space to get to the creek, which they did each evening.
Incidentally, you do realize that the red fox is an introduced species? The gray fox is our native fox.... reds were brought here by early, wealthy British colonists who wanted to fox hunt. They are better adapted to life in open fields, such as one would find around farms and plantations, while the gray fox sticks to the woods. Also, the gray fox is nocturnal, while the reds are diurnal, so they don't really compete with one another. This is one case where introducing a nonnative species seems to have had no ill effects.
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