Copperhead with 32 babies inside

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Many of you know I am a newspaper reporter. Some of you also know that I won't hesitate to go on sites where they are dead bodies, hostage situations, etc....but where I WON'T GO if I can help it, is ANY WHERE there is a snake!

Yesterday I received a call from a man in our county who had killed a copperhead on his property that was 35 inches long! Which is BIG for a copperhead here. He cut the snake open and there were 32 babies inside! YUK!

He took photos himself and they were good 35 mm so we will run it as a human interest thing in our local paper (NOT the daily I work for!)

But anyway, the photos give me the shivers!!!!

So far on our farm we've seen one long copperhead this year and my husband killed it with a hoe!

-- Suzy in Bama (slgt@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001

Answers

SUZY WHERE DO YOU LIVE??????? YUK YUK YUK

-- MAUREEN (onemaur@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001.

THATS REDICULOUS!!!! I TELL U WHAT GETS ME GOING IS SOMEONE QHO HAS THE NERVE TO KILL A SNAKE SNAKES ARE IMPORTANT TO THE ENVIREMENT. AND WERE HERE BEFORE PEOPLE AND THEREFORE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN PEOPLE ARE AND IM A SNAKE LOVER HAVING KEPT AND BRED THEM FOR A LONG TIME NOW!!!!!!!!!!!

-- D. ENDO.. (benhar@aol.com), August 02, 2001.

Mosquitos wuz here before people. Guess Dendo don't slap.

-- paul (primrose@centex.net), August 02, 2001.

I GUESS WHEN MY 6YR. DAUGHTER PICKS UP EGGS FOR HER TEACHER IN THE MORNING AND A COPPERHEAD IS LOOKING DOWN ON HER I'M SUPPOSE TO JUST TURN THE OTHER CHEEK... I DON'T THINK SOOOOOOO... I'LL KILL ANYTHING OR ANYONE WHO WILL HARM ME OR OTHERS AROUND... LATER

-- MAUREEN (onemaur@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001.

I've sold reptiles before (Burmese Pythons were our main breed), and I've gotten a lot more comfortable with them since then...but I think a good way to sum it up is, Never kill anything *unecessarily*. Snakes have their place to be certain, but venemous snakes and children definately do not mix :)

-- Brendan K Callahan (Grinnell, IA) (sleeping@iowatelecom.net), August 02, 2001.


Note to self: Decline invitations to D ENDO's roach, smake and rat infested place.

-- Gary in Indiana (gk6854@aol.com), August 02, 2001.

I guess I am stupid. I thought all snakes laid eggs...

-- grant (organicgrange@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001.

I'm with stupid ---->

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), August 02, 2001.

Grant, you were mostly right - but it was most snakes, not all. A few do live births.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), August 02, 2001.

Oh my!!!! That definately was an interesting story. I recall reading about snakes and eggs vs live births before. I believe its the non-poisnious that lay eggs and posnious that birth live. Those babies are pretty potent too. Interesting fact, folks who raise posnious snakes eventually get bit, then have to seek treatment or die. Must be a fad or something, when we lived in the east there were several stories about folks who had been bitten by poisnious snakes which they raised ILLEGALLY and were taken to the hospital for treatment, some didn't make it.

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001.


My rule if it threatens my family or animals its DEAD ! Have fun raising but don't let them go on my property.

-- Patty {NY State} (fodfarms@slic.com), August 02, 2001.

I am with the man that killed the copperhead, please do not make harsh comments on this subject, we know they were here long,long time ago as were mosquitos and a lot of good and bad things. Agreed, I wouldn't want my granddaughter picking up eggs and look up in a nest and see one looking her in the face, as for giving live birth or laying eggs I believe some non poisonous give live birth and lay eggs as well, as for copper heads I believe they give birth if my memory serves me correctly. PLEASE, everybody have a nice day.

-- Mary (marwel@microserve.net), August 02, 2001.

Must be the heat, I hear ya Mary! I guess this too shall pass.

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), August 02, 2001.

D Endo - I'm a snake lover, too! I've kept several NON-POISONOUS snakes as pets, and my daughters love them, too. HOWEVER, if I were to EVER see a poisonous snake anywhere near our farm, I would gladly kill it. No snake is worth my family getting hurt. It's just not worth the risk. I happen to think that snakes are beautiful - even the copperheads - but I wouldn't let one live on my land. It's just too dangerous.

-- Cheryl in KS (cherylmccoy@rocketmail.com), August 02, 2001.

I put my snake eating guinea fowl and chickens in a coop for the summer cause last year they were eating up my vegtable garden.2 weeks ago I saw a copperhead about 4 inches from my ankle under a basil plant while I was searching for cucumbers which I don't trelis the vines.I noticed on closer inspection as I don't own glasses and don't see well ,that it was 2 snakes wrapped around each other.The other was a king snake. I watched these snakes for over an hour.The copperhead bite the king snake 3 times on the neck,and although it looked painful to the kingsnake it continued to get a tighter grip on the copperhead,then the king snake opened it's mouth and clamped on to the copperheads head and was streaching it's neck one way and with it's tail it streached the copperheads body the opposite way.After the copperhead stopped moving,the king snake straightend it's body and the copperhead started to disappear into the king snake.I took pictures with a 35mm camera to show people around here that king snakes are good.Most people around here will kill any snake and people will drive out of their way to kill any snake they see on the road. I'm hoping my pictures will shed some light on the matter.Contrary to what I've read ,copperheads get real agressive around August and will attack and bite even when not in danger or provoked , but most of the time they rather be on there way then to start trouble .They don't mix well wth kids and pets or adults who don't see well.They carry their young inside them when traveling ,and the babies bite is more poisonous then an adult cause they can't control the amount of venom they release,the babies will release all the poisonous venom they have.If someone does kill one , there's a chance they are carrying their young and as I saw someone shoot one last year the babies were crawling all over the place and it actually created more of a danger as the little ones were hard to see in the grass and now there was about 30 little ones they had to kill and they were mad.I had a cat bit by one and it got real sick but lived, and a 14 year old I know was bit and he said the pain is so strong the morphine they gave him at the hospital diddn't even take the pain away.The skin on his thumb had turned black and died almost to the bone and he had to have skin graphs done to it.I think it can be justified to kill one if you have children and they are on your property.They also are in creeks , rivers and along river banks and are attracted to water.

-- SM (goatman@00.com), August 02, 2001.


Both king snakes and black snakes -- they are constrictors -- will kill copperheads. We have black snakes in our barn; kind of a frustration because of their love of eggs, but a real help to keep copperheads and four-legged vermin away. At one time, we had a blacksnake that lived in our old house walls -- we could hear him slithering around. That year, we had NO mice!!!! Mr. snake got them all!

-- Anita Evangelista (ale368s@smsu.edu), August 03, 2001.

Ask me how happy I am to live in a non-poisonous snake area!! I don't know how you guys and gals manage it! My hat goes off to you all! The only poisonous snakes etc that get here are usually tag alongs from something shipped into the country or they come with the tourists that cross the border via vehicles. If i were in an area of poisonous critters I too would not hesitate to kill it in order to protect me and mine. Since i don't live in such and area, all native snakes are welcomed on my property. Don't see too many though.

-- Alison in N.S. (aproteau@istar.ca), August 03, 2001.

+sigh+ y'all know 'sidewalk' people belive my, geese /guineas/v.piggies/manx cat to all be dangerous/unpredictable animals. But stick thier hand right out to the attack trained g. shepard 'nice doggie'! Familiarity breeds contempt? I have been injured by tame/domesticated horses plenty, never by 'agressive' snakes,gators,snapping turtles[ o.k. the last one i rescued from the dogs,~20#s, did try her level best to take a piece of me w/ her to the pond!],spiders,opossums. And don't tell me that big 16 hand louse/horse did not know what he was doing! If he was not already gelded... This does not mean I am going to kill any 'dangerous ' animal, rather deal w/ it as if i have the higher brain to body size ratio. Sell a horse that's not good w/ kids to an adult, do not carry a s. turtle in a bucket [they jump]-carry it by the tail, don't 'srike' at a striking snake w/ a hoe[it has more practice]- scoop up the snake on the crook of the hoe and carry it away-their instinct is to cling, let the possum bite the stick and THEN grab it by the tail to relocate it away from the cat food, call the professionals w/ the big nets for the gator! my understanding is that there have been no deaths due to coperhead bites,[misery tho!] & you have a higher chance of being struck by lightening than even being bitten by a snake.& that the 3-20 deaths per year are from exotic/illegall 'pet' snakes, that there is NO anti- venom for at the hospital! n.y. city is the capital of snake bite deaths,supposedly.[ yeah, i know as TWAIN said lies,dammedlies,& Statistics!] I I do not expect to change anyones' hoe habits here but to get you to think on your automatic response.Anyone want to see pictures of "my" mississippi critters? just drop me a line & i'll send you an invite to my online album!

-- bj pepper (pepper.pepper@excite.com), August 03, 2001.

In the old testament, the book of genisus, God put a curse on the snake and made him crawl on his belly and eat dust. And the woman will smitten his head and the snake will bruise the heel of his feet. So it is written that man and snake will always be enemies. Therefore anytime a snake comes on my property he is trespassing unenvitingly. And I will kill him before he has a chance to bite my wife or any of my little children. If I am out in the woods and come across a snake, than I am the trespassor and I will leave the snake be, unless he looks like he will make a good belt or a hat band!

-- Russell Hays (rhays@sstelco.com), August 06, 2001.

Perhaps someone could point D. Endo to the Spell Check option on his computer? That way, the next time I am forced to scroll through his inane rantings, I will be secure in the knowledge that his spelling and punctuation are correct, and intact.

-- Adrianne (trypl_x@yahoo.com), April 16, 2002.

Last I knew we didn't force anyone to read anything . You don't need or have to read or respond to anything , well heck you don't even have to agree !

-- Patty Gamble (fodfarms@hotmail.com), April 16, 2002.

Misspelling and poor punctuation is not nearly as disturbing, or as destructive to human relations, as is rudeness and disrespect.

-- Earthmama (earthmama48@yahoo.com), April 16, 2002.

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