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My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your stories

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 2:32 pm
by LouB747
Ok, here's my story......

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5Hv9esE18I

Lets hear yours.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 2:46 pm
by LouB747
A little background on that video. My idea was to make a new video, "In Search of the Blue Coral Snake." It was going to be about 30 minutes long like my Singapore Snakes video. Anyways, things didn't go quite as planned. First, it took me 8 months to find another blue coral snake. That's only spending 1 day a month in Singapore (I live in CA). Of those few days, really only a few hours in the early morning were spent looking. After finally finding one, well, I'll let the video do most of the talking for me. I didn't get any more video after that "event." What didn't show up on video were the 3 or 4 more runs straight at me. Would it have bit me, I don't really know. I sure didn't want to find out. But every time I was able to sorta flip it to the side, it seemed to land facing me again and was coming at me full speed again. While I wouldn't say I was scared, I was extremely focused for about 15 seconds. As I've heard the blue coral's bite is painless, I kept checking my feet for bites afterward. His head got very close and he was a total blue blur.

Anyways, lesson learned.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 3:23 pm
by muskiemagnet
ditch the flip-flops. take pictures without disturbing it. if not, have a close call, or worse, get bit. :roll: :roll: :roll:

-ben

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 3:59 pm
by LouB747
Yeah, really wanted to move it out onto the path to get better video. They seem to weave in and out of the leave litter making it hard to film them. Next time as said on the video will be in situation and with different shoes.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 8:08 pm
by dery
muskiemagnet wrote:ditch the flip-flops.

-ben
Ditch the shorts too. No need to leave the legs vulnerable to thorns, fangs, and stingers either. Atleast Lou took that step.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 2nd, 2014, 8:54 pm
by Kelly Mc
I like the Blue Coral Snake. They are really cool.

Its interesting when snakes only partially conceal themselves, exposing significant quadrants of body to open light, like the snake was in that loose complex of jungle floor.

It would be less risk and easy to option to stay under the litter.The temperature difference of a few light papery leaf curls could not be significant.

Perhaps snakes bask in a surreptitious way that is not like other reptiles basking - but is just that.


I could not help but look at that chunk of terranea in the rectangle of my monitor and want to copy it in a vivarium

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 12:34 am
by dery
The closest call with a medically-significant venomous snake was in SNF, IL while I temporally missed a placid juvi leucostoma less than 2 ' from my hand just copmletely still with mouth closed. I did have a noticeable envenomation by a thamnophis once.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 12:54 am
by Aaron
Beautiful snake. I never herp in sandals.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 1:30 am
by Kelly Mc
dery wrote:I did have a noticeable envenomation by a thamnophis once.
Me too. With a big blue garter in Florida. I had a dry stick panacuring a juvenile crote too, and my finger was stiff and bruised looking. But the thamnophis made my whole arm swell up and it was difficult convincing the doctor that i was sure it was a Garter Snake.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 6:45 am
by Chaitanya
I was once tagged by a naja naja, it was my mistake I didnt see the snake while photographing it. Luckily the thick pants saved me from a serious bite. And twice during treks to forts in Sahyadris I nearly stepped on D. russelli which was hiding under leaf littre. If they hadnt hissed I would have stepped on those and then might have been in trouble. Routes to most of the forts are through farms and the edges of farms are where Daboia and naja naja are hiding waiting for rodents.

Re: Close call with a venomous snake

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 9:46 am
by LouB747
Growing up and SoCal and surfing my whole life, sandals are my norm. I am going to change my habits and wear some sort of shoe when herping from now on.

I thought you were joking about the garter snake envenomation.

Great stories guys, let's hear some more.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 7:54 pm
by dery
No joke about the thamnophis. My envenomation however was just a few minutes of moderate light-headedness. I also have had dry bites with garter and ribbon snakes' posterior teeth too many times to count. Here is an example of the dry bites:
http://www.naherp.com/photo.php?v_id=226448

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 8:17 pm
by Kelly Mc
dery wrote:No joke about the thamnophis. My envenomation however was just a few minutes of moderate light-headedness. I also have had dry bites with garter and ribbon snakes' posterior teeth too many times to count. Here is an example of the dry bites:
http://www.naherp.com/photo.php?v_id=226448

I concur no joke. She was hanging on to my wrist like a mother. I thought it had just got infected. But then armpit got sore so i went to the doctor. Im not allergic to anything and have got stung by bees etc and - nothin. Not that its relatable but i was very surprised. I know ive been bit by other garters after that and dont recall anything notewothy.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 8:20 pm
by LouB747
Wow, good to know. Wouldn't have thought that about garters. Thanks.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 8:30 pm
by gbin
Other than bleeding quite freely from various garter and water snake bites... ;)

I once reacted to a bite on my hand from a false fer-de-lance, Xenodon rabdocephalus, in Guatemala, specifically with numbness to my elbow for some hours. I knew what it was and that it was rear-fanged when I quite cavalierly picked it up to show a park ranger that it wasn't a deadly danger to the tourists and didn't need to be dispatched with his machete. He went a little pale when he saw me pick it up and a lot pale when he saw it bite me, I suppose because he was sure he was next going to see me drop over stone-cold dead, but when I treated the bite as no big deal and subsequently set the snake down near some vegetation he decided that he could risk allowing it to live and together we watched it crawl off to safety. Even considering my reaction I'm convinced I did the right thing, but my wife feels quite differently. Indeed, though it's been almost two decades since that happened, if I were to bring up the incident again I'm rather confident she'd get mad at me for it all over again. :?

When I was much younger and stupider I put myself into a couple of foolish situations that could easily have resulted in rattlesnake bites. One was when I crawled most of the way into a western diamondback den in AZ's Sonoran Desert to get a better picture of the snakes I could see along the back wall; what I couldn't see until I was well in was that there were a couple in a pocket along the front wall, too, right next to where I'd entered. Fortunately they had other things than biting me on their minds while I backed out as smoothly as I possibly could. The other close call was when I was herp hunting (alone, of course, as I generally did back then) in the Chiricahuas in AZ. I was checking out a talus slope when I heard the ch!-ch!-ch!-ch!-ch!... of an unhappy blacktail responding to my trespass. The sound seemed to come from everywhere, there among all that loose rock, but as I stood still and cocked my head this way and that to figure out the snake's location I realized it was coming from directly below me. Sure enough, when I looked straight down I saw the snake's tongue flicking about an inch from my sport sock-covered ankle (I never wear more than my regular athletic shoes and socks, and usually just shorts, for herp hunting in the Southwest). Again fortunately, it was satisfied with expressing its displeasure by buzzing at me and offered no strike as I jumped out of range.

The lesson of that last incident finally stuck with me, and in the many years since I've maintained a very strong habit of never putting a body part where I haven't first checked to see whether a venomous snake is within reach, and this habit has done a fine job of keeping me safe around all kinds of snakes in all kinds of terrain. Of course, I also don't directly handle venomous snakes without need, either - and there's virtually never really a need, though many people tell themselves otherwise.

Gerry

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 8:43 pm
by LouB747
Great stories. I agree with moving venomous snakes, especially now. I was just trying to get that blue coral to head out towards the path in order to get better video. I ended up getting no video after that moment. Im hoping for the opportunity to see another one, and video it in situation.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 4th, 2014, 8:44 pm
by Kelly Mc
"..and a lot pale when.."

:lol:

Oh yes and gbin you are right. the other thing, my little crote stick, feeding foward a plastic catheter, was more founded in utter stupidity than Any Legitimate Need. I was young and curious for the experience and underestimated the hazard and the limberness of its apparata.

I thought because the snake wouldnt eat it had parasites. :roll:

My parents could have lost their house or savings if i hadnt been so undeservingly lucky.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 5th, 2014, 6:22 am
by BillMcGighan
was more founded in utter stupidity than Any Legitimate Need.
- on my part.

This sums up, Kelly, any and all close calls I've had over the years.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 5th, 2014, 1:34 pm
by Tim Borski
A few years ago I was walking a limestone ridge looking for our local King snakes. I was solo, it was muggy, buggy and warm. At 11:50 PM, probably 2 miles from the truck I got punched loud and hard on the right calf. I looked down and there was an adult Moc. It coiled, threw its head back and gaped that big white cotton. In a second it shot off over the low ridge. I backed up a bit to access possible damage, took my gaiter off and looked at the inside of it. Nothing. I rolled up my pant leg, looked at my calf and also found no mark. There was a tiny tuft of fabric where the snake hit the outside of my gaiter, but other than a racing heart and painful finger tips I was fine.

Tim

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 5th, 2014, 2:35 pm
by daniel
Similar to Tim's account, about 10 years ago a Mohave rattlesnake struck at my leg, but only got my pants. I was hiking in the desert alone and walking pretty fast to get back to my truck before it got dark. It was dusk and I was not paying attention, stepped on a small bush and the snake that was apparently beneath it. The instant I stepped on the bush, it seemed to explode with rattling and the snake struck at me. I could feel it hit my pants as I jumped. I was pretty freaked out and kept searching for a bite on my leg, but fortunately my pants were loose and the snake only got a mouthful of cotton :) .

It helped me to learn to slow down a bit, also not to step on the poor little bushes :)

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 6th, 2014, 4:18 pm
by LouB747
This last spring I was in the Mojave desert with a bunch of kids. Maybe 20 of them. We were walking to find a geocache hidden somewhere in the next ridge line. I decided to put out a reward for the first kid to find a snake. I did this for two reasons. First, I wanted the kids to watch where they were walking. Second, I figured the more eyes looking, the better the chances of finding something. This paid off as one of the kids found a small Mojave rattler that I'm pretty sure someone would have stepped on. I honestly never saw it, even while the kid was pointing it out to me! My first Mojave, and a 10 year old found it.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: August 6th, 2014, 6:43 pm
by dery
Geez Lou, many herpers, including me don't find a hot herp until highschool. Kudos on your public service on behalf of conservation! :thumb:

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 12th, 2018, 2:58 pm
by JuanDowe
Sorry to dig up this post but since I got my first wet bite from a thamnophis I've been tagged once more that time a slight freezing sensation around the bite for several minutes and my aunt and nanna who are nurses want to dig into rear fang neurotoxic evenomations and studying numbers of them in the same human individual over time. I told them I'd resurrect this post and do a research paper on it when I get healthy enough to go back to school at Troy.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 13th, 2018, 9:18 am
by RenoBart
I've had two close calls with oreganus up in Northern California.

First one was me being a bit overzealous in a precarious position. I a was in Sonoma county herping, and as I made my way down a fairly steep hill, I spotted a big fat snake basking next to some fallen timber. Because I was on such a steep hill with lots of tall and ticky grass, I made the decision to see if I can hook the snake and move it up to the top of the hill where there was a clearing so I could better photograph it. The snake kept slithering off the hook so ultimately I tailed it. In my right hand was the hook with the front half of the snake hanging over it, and in my left hand was the snake's tail. The big serpent was actually pretty calm. No rattling or moving abruptly as I started to carry it up the hill. Now, being that the hill was a good 50-60 degrees steep, I had to raise the snake up in front of me as I climbed. And of course, I slipped in the wet grass as I did so. In and instant as I was slipping forward, I dropped the snakes tail and lowered my hook hand to get my balance as I fell forward into the hillside. The whole snake flopped over my right thigh and onto the ground right next to me. It all happened very fast, and I immediately realized that what I was doing was really stupid. But alas, the snake was as non-aggressive as can be, and just slowly started to move away from me as I gained my footing. Now, even though I was shaking with adrenaline after the incident, I still was able to hook the snake again and then crab my way along the hillside until I found a spot where I could go up safer. Here's the snake:

Image

Second close call was not quite as dramatic. I was hiking through some more tall and ticky grass, again in Sonoma county, when just as I was stepping forward and about to plant my right foot, I spotted the pattern of a rattlesnake in the grass below me. I nearly stepped on it, and even though I was wearing sturdy hiking boots, I still don't want to know what happens when you plant your full weight and momentum onto a large rattlesnake!

Anyway, that's it! Great vid, Lou!

Bart

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 13th, 2018, 9:27 am
by JuanDowe
I hear subspecies helleri can be quite nervous. No idea about Crotalus Oreganus Oreganus

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 13th, 2018, 9:47 am
by RenoBart
JuanDowe wrote:I hear subspecies helleri can be quite nervous. No idea about Crotalus Oreganus Oreganus
Nor Pacs are usually pretty chill from my experience....

Bart

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 13th, 2018, 10:42 pm
by John Martin
Years ago while mountain biking with a friend in southern AZ (Santa Catalina Mtns. near Tucson) and a short distance in front of him , I rounded a bend which immediately dropped down a short steep section. About 20' ahead was an adult Blacktail lying right across the single track trail. Immediately beyond the snake was a small ditch, then a short steep uphill. It was too late to try and jump the snake, as I'd do a face plant in the ditch. So I locked up the brakes (silly me), which put me over the handlebars and rolling directly on top of the poor snake, which was now pinned underneath my back. I immediately rolled off as fast as I could and looked back to see a thoroughly pissed off coiled, rattling Blacktail. To make things more interesting I had rolled back over a dead section of prickly pear cactus pad and had no idea if all the stinging was from that or a snakebite. My friend now appeared on the scene and started laughing about my crash until I pointed at the snake - he went a little pale then LOL. Turns out the snake spared me and slowly uncoiled and crawled off into the undergrowth. The worst part was fracturing two ribs when I landed on one end of the handlebar and having another 4 miles of rugged terrain riding out to our car. To any people who have fractured ribs in their past, I know I have your sympathy... :D Another time I pulled a LouB747 - while walking in tall grass wearing only Teva sandals I kicked something that felt odd. When I looked down I watched a mating pair of (yes, again) Blacktails crawling off, the female dragging the still hooked up male behind her. Never a rattle, nothing. Guess they were in their own little world right then.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 14th, 2018, 2:29 pm
by mquail
17 years ago one of my daughter’s, myself and two friends were hiking in South Dakota’s Cave Hills. That day the forecast temperature was to reach 108 F so we wanted to get an early start and be back in camp before noon. I forgot to mention one of my friends was a Brit so all this was new to him. On the way out we took him through Lemmon, SD where Hugh Glass was mauled by a grizzly then made his epic trip to Ft. Kiowa, near what is Chamberlain today, crawling much of the way. We talked of the Custer Black Hills expedition and I was told some of the troops left graffiti not far from where we were. After finding a nice spot we left the truck and began our hike towards a distant line of cliffs with my friend leading the way. He’d done a masters on some local wildlife populations there years before and knows the country well. Anyway he’s leading the way, I’m following, the Brit is behind me with my daughter bringing up the rear. The 4 of us were strung out roughly 50 or more feet and walking at a leisurely pace. The guy in front of me suddenly turned around and said, “Oh no Brad!” I had no idea what he was talking about. Then I heard a buzzing, almost immediately the Brit behind me said, “Missed!” Missed? I’d stepped on or next to a prairie rattlesnake which struck but missed me. This all happened in less than 1 second or so it seemed. Seconds later we were all looking down at the snake which quickly looked right then left as if looking both ways to make sure the way was clear then dove down a convenient hole. Instead of walking with my eyes to the sky much of my attention was focused on the ground for the rest of that trip.

Re: My close call with a venomous snake (let's hear your sto

Posted: April 17th, 2018, 11:00 am
by jonathan
I feel lucky, thank God that I haven't had any strikes at all yet that I can remember.

The closest I can think of, an Australian friend of mine begged me to take him out to see his first rattlesnake. I took him to one of my favorite little herping spots in the world - it was hot and dry for most species (even though we were quite early in the season still), but I was sure there would be ruber around.

Sure enough, we found three ruber within sight of each other less than 10 minutes after stepping out of the car. They weren't anything spectacular but he was overjoyed, we got some great pictures of him pointing at the snakes with glee on his face.

I was hoping to find some more variety but like I said, it was too hot and dry for anything else. We walked around and about half an hour later, I flipped a large rock when I was startled by an immediate and passionate buzzing before I could even see the snake. I immediately jumped back, dropping the rock (which I had thankfully only lifted up a little bit), pinning the poor rattler under it. He was pretty pissed.

I had to approach the rock vveeeeeerrrrrrry gingerly to lift it up in such a manner that freed the ruber without exposing myself to risk. Felt especially crazy doing such a thing in front of a herping novice. But mission was successful, he scooted out from under the rock (still pissed off an rattling) but appeared none the worse for wear, and never struck. I don't think he ever had a direct line to me to strike either even if he had wanted to, either before or after getting pinned.

Going on a trip next month where we expect to see lots of rattlers, often a long ways from easy help. Already trying to think carefully through the precautions necessary to ensure utter care throughout the entire trip.