My choice for bird netting would be black woven polypropylene shade cloth. It is very tough, lasts longer than almost anything else, and is smooth so it doesn't snag on plants. The weave is about 20 threads per inch so snakes won't try to pass through and I don't see them getting snagged. It is light enough that I lay it right on top of many trees and bushes for bird, hail, and coon protection.

Cost is about $0.12 per sq ft plus extra for edging and grommets.

I've used some of mine off and on for 30 years with only minor tears and holes.

I should have pointed out mine is the 30% shade version. You might want 47% if you want shade plus bird control.

Any good links for where to purchase from?

It's sold by nearly any supplier of shade cloth. One make is listed below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pak shade cloth

Thanks, fruitnut. I considered it before, but my berries already get a lot of shade -- more than optimal, but they are doing well. Any thoughts on too much shade during berry ripening, provided the plants have a chance to store up energy the rest of the year?

The 30% material doesn't throw much shade. It's hardly noticeable outdoors. For berries I don't think it will be a problem.

I'm sorry, but I am having a hard visualizing your problem. I'm thinking, flying snakes?
When I use bird netting, I tie it off around the trunk. Are you saying you are pegging it into the ground? How exactly are the snakes getting caught in such a way that they are dying?

Carla in Sac

Carla, I think alabamanicole is having problems with netted berries, which you can't conveniently tie off above ground, so the snakes run into the netting on the ground. The snakes become tangled in the netting because their heads are small enough to fit through the holes but their bodies are too large and they become stuck, unable to move forward or back out.

I had that problem too when I covered my strawberries last year to keep the squirrels, birds and, mostly, the damned deer from mowing them down. It was a death trap for lizards, as two or three died before I could cut them out and the remaining lizards ended up as dinner for the only snake that managed to get caught in the netting, a bull snake that my 14 year old cut free and decided to keep for a pet.

posturedoc is correct. I have netting in two places. Once covers some blueberries with underplanted strawberries up next to my house (which I took out today.) The other, which trapped the snakes, drapes up a chainlink fence and then over some blueberries and blackberries. It has to go all the way to the ground. That area is up against some untouched woods where I probably have many snakes.

The other bird netting is coming down this weekend. Next year I'll try the shade cloth and see what happens.

Bird netting is a pain to deal with anyway.

The death toll rises. Frantic robin calls outside alerted me to a fledgling trapped inside the netting. I managed to free the bird and found a 3rd beneficial snake trapped. Death trap indeed.

Ironically, I so hastily removed the netting over the strawberries since I knew he was about to fledge and the nest was right above it.

Death trap indeed. Ugh.