I live in the Houston area and actually saw a 3ft snake this week in my garden. I would recommend investing in a good snake ID book to refer to. I have been brushing up on my snake ID skills since my latest encounter!!
Most snakes aren't aggressive; however those are the ones you need to know about before your next encounter. We have 5 poisonous snakes in my area...... lucky me.
Good luck!

Hey Katie I was sitting in my chair looking out my back window and saw about 10 birds just having a fit. They were diving to the ground and bouncing all over the place. I went to the back door to see what was going on and on the back porch there was a snake about 3' long backed into a corner. I usually get about one snake a year on the porch and this was the first one this year. I was thinking maybe the last one. Then I went into the outdoor shed and found a small snake stuck in the sticky mouse trap I put in there. So that makes two this year. Not a good sign I think. I don't know about the things you ask about but....watch the birds....DT

I don't know of anything that really deters them. We don't have brush piles and the wood is stacked on a rack.
I see rat snakes and yellow belly racers at least a few times a week and smaller ribbon and racers and garters

I never bother those but the copperheads I see too many as far as I am concerned.

I totally agree with everyone getting a TX snake book and learn the venomous ones

Our neighbor kills rat snakes all of the time, maybe if they would leave them be, they wouldn't have as many voles, moles and gophers

Get rid of the food (rats ,mice) and you'll get rid of the snakes. Personally I'm more afraid of what the rats and mice do. Rodents chew and destroy stuff and can start fires that way. Rodents carry deadly diseases and parasites that carry deadly diseases as well. PJ

Get a dog or a couple of outdoor cats. As long as we've kept animals outside, we've never had a problem with snakes. I've also heard guineas work well for this, but those are some obnoxious yard birds.

The idea about not keeping their food around also helps. If you have bird feeders, keep them in the front yard (assuming your back yard is fenced). Birds eating at bird feeders can attract snakes. The other option for the back yard is to put a 2-3' tall border around the yard that's solid. If a snake can't easily cross over something, they usually won't try. They don't like to be caught out in the open like they would be going over a small fence.

Snakes don't like to be exposed so keeping your grass cut short and any plantings you may have trimmed up off the ground will help. You've probably had small snakes in your yard that you never even saw. Little ribbon snakes, garden snakes and young rat snakes eat rodents and actually are good to have.

Snakes don't like to be around animals that prey on them, like cats. I have one tom cat who goes out at night and kills rodents and spreads his scent around the place. Any snake thats large enough to not be intimidated by a cat is big enough for you to see him long before you step on him. But if you see a large snake, and preferably before you start screaming, take a good look at him and I think you will notice that the poor guy is panicking at the sight of you and if he had vocal cords would probably be screaming too.

Also be aware that many large snakes can climb up a sheer surface to a height of about 4' so don't stick your hand into an empty barrel or planter before makeing sure somethings not looking back at you. Small venomous snakes can have a more potent venom than the older ones so don't try to pick them up with your bare hands. I use a long-handled kitchen tongs when I have to remove a snake. I don't remove venomous snakes though, I back up from them until I'm out of range.

Go on the internet and research snakes in your area, that's where you'll find the most current data and some really good pictures of snakes. Learn to identify the different kinds of snakes in your area on sight so you don't have to guess if they are dangerous while you are screaming.

Cheryl

katypink is your yard really only 10 feet wide or is that a typo?

I agree about keeping grass short. You can keep the areas around your doors bare or plants or things too so they have nothing to hide behind.

Thanks for all the replies.

I have lots of squirrels, haven't noticed any other rodents. I didn't have anything planted back there last year though, this year a started a raised asparagus bed and some strawberries. We have had a visiting feral cat which has been very welcome but I am afraid if I set out food it will attract vermin. I also have a got some worm composting going will that attract vermin?

Our back fence is the black aluminum variety. I was thinking about attaching some small gauge mesh and dig it in the ground.....I know some snakes can climb, do copperheads climb? UT Arlington has a nice website but it is missing alot of pictures.

Thanks again

Thanks again.

Well it's probably really 15-20ft, but it's long and narrow. We are actually on 0.75 acre, but most of it is on the side of the house or the other side of a "wild ditch". Can't fill in the wild ditch because it offers flood protection. This wild ditch extends unfenced down the street and through a neighborhood ending in a urban nature preserve. We have all kinds of critters in there. Opossums, racoons, armadillos, I have even seen a coyote and I swear a bobcat. Its really really cool except for my snake fear. I live smack dab in the suburbs of Tarrant county.

No offense to anyone but we have had up to nine outside(drop off) cats and still had snakes and I have NEVER seen a rat or mouse here and I am out and around from daylight to dark

You just need to learn the snakes in your area and be careful

frankly--I kill poisonous snakes--I hate them...and I do think they are agressive because usually by the time we see them, they have been aware of us and probably tried to get away and are cornered for some reason...

we live in Tarrant county too--our first house in a subdivision that was built were a tree farm was backed up to native creek used for storm runoff--it had some low flow even in late summer...

there were snakes swimming in it from time to time but we never really had problem with any poisonous ones in the 20+ years we lived there...had a cat and a dog both all during those years that spent lot of time outside...

we are now in new house about 3 mi away and there is part of city park behind our rear fence that is basically left natural--and behind it some commercial land that is not developed...it has lot of trees--willows/oaks--and brushy growth--could well have snakes-- there is watershed creek running through it as well

no snakes so far except couple of grass snakes our cat has killed...small ones... but that is the cat--he has also brought in 3 young bunnies and some birds and mice...
I hope that he would be smart enough to know when NOT to fight with a snake...
Snakes can climb anything they can get a purchase on--which means they can climb some things that are high and sort of sloped or with edges--rattlesnakes can climb trees if they want to--they usually choose not to--

found this info about a fence to discourage snake entry on posting site--it is refering to snakes in CA but seems applicable anywhere really--note what it says about having the cloth tip OUTWARD:

You state your location to be Northern California. I can relate, I spent some time in Sonoma County and the rattlesnakes are common.
Rattlesnakes can climb trees but it is not often. Rattlesnake diet is mostly rodents but they will eat birds as well, and baby birds are a delacacy.

You mention a 3 foot tall fence (this may not be effective) for keeping rattlesnakes out of an area.
The Northern Pacific Rattlesnake (that is common to the area) can reach a length of slightly over 4 feet long (sometimes longer).

If you do decide to build a fence, make it out of 1/4 inch hardware cloth to a height of 4 feet (be sure to bury some of it in the ground and have it tip away slightly from the area that you are wanting to protect) and DO NOT make any 90* angle corners (snakes can climb). Also pay close attention to the gate, a gap can allow a snake entry into the fenced area.

Hey flying wahini, Since we only have four species of venomous snakes in the U.S., (rattle snake, cotton mouth, copper head, & coral) i'm curious what that fifth kind you have in the Houston area may be. Like most people on this thread, I don't like snakes, but I do appreciate them. I've killed a lot of copperheads and a few cotton mouth snakes in my life. All but the coral snake are pit vipers with heads shaped like an arrow head. The coral is not a pit viper, but it is the prettiest snake I have ever seen. Just remember that if the red and yellow stripes are against each other without a black stripe seperating them, it is a coral snake. Leave it alone and it will leave you alone.

I always attempt to avoid killing snakes unless it is a venomous snake on my property. I recognize the fact that they have a right to exist, but not on my property. The risk is to high. The last guy I talked with after a copperhead bite (they rarely kill people), was out about $25,000.00 after the anti venom treatment and minor surgery.

I killed a really large cotton mouth on my property last week. I was riding my lawn mower near the house. We have three dogs outside, but they fortunately were not near me. I spotted the snake about ten feet from the mower and he saw me and stopped moving. I killed the mower and started yelling for the wife to bring my gun. She never heard me, so I had to go in the house for the gun. When I returned, the snake was gone. I determined he must be hiding under the mower. I climbed back on the mower, started the engine, and put the mower blades in gear. We had instant snake sushi. It really sliced and diced him. I should have thought to have the wife standing at the mower exhaust with a large ziplock bag over the exhaust. I could have zipped the bag and stuck it in the freezer for later dining.

I probably could have made a TV commercial starting with "Hi I'm Vince and I want to show you the greatest snake slicer, dicer in the world".

Ted

Tedin asked, "Hey flying wahini, Since we only have four species of venomous snakes in the U.S., (rattle snake, cotton mouth, copper head, & coral) i'm curious what that fifth kind you have in the Houston area may be."

I think some people consider Water Moccasin separate from the cotton mouth. I only recently discovered they were the same. Not to mention these things scare the crud out of me. I had one come up out of a pond and chase me across the grass when I was a kid (me being a kid at the time, there could be some exaggeration in the memory banks).

niget2002,

You are probably right about the cotton mouth / water moccasin confusion. You are also right about them chasing you. I was a non believer in the "cotton mouth will chase you" myth until I met the snake mentioned in my story. Since I couldn't get my wifes attention to bring my gun. I got off the mower to get it myself. That snake chased me halfway to the house. He was pretty fast. When he couldn't catch me, he decided the shade under the mower looked like a good place to hide. He simply didn't realize I know how to make snake sushi. His bad. (I so hate to use the phrase "my bad / his bad" instead of my mistake / his mistake) I apologize for using it.

Ted

EEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!

your memory is probably correct! water moccasins are very aggressive. years ago, my dad and a couple of other guys were fishing on a local river in a small boat. a water moccasin was determined to get in the boat with them. they didn't have a gun and they had to beat him off with the oars. they fought him for a long time until they finally killed him.

In response to the original poster there is unfortunately no product that will effectively deter snakes. If there was the inventor would be very rich (and in fact many people get rich selling placebos like Snake-a-way).

The main semi-deterrent is to reduce habitat immediately near the home as others have suggested.

Since the original poster has indicated a snakephobia and since surely other readers of this thread also fear snakes, I would like to provide some comfort that snakes do not have the aggressive motives and intent that we humans attribute to them.

We often interpret snake behavior through the lens of human motives, human intelligence, human intent and human senses, when in fact snakes have very different senses (extremely poor vision, no hearing) and lack aggressive intent (we as a species often motivated by aggression interpret their behavior as such).

Cottonmouths (water moccasins) are intimidating looking snakes and certainly deserving of our caution, but they are not especially aggressive. They sometimes move toward people to escape to cover or to attempt to confuse "the predator" but because of their menacing appearance this is often interpreted as a highly aggressive act. But cottonmouths are actually fairly difficult to agitate to strike (often, but not always, first to warn in a very defensive and cowering gaped mouth posture, then attempting to flee or bluff and confuse, vibrating their tails and emitting musk and doing all manner of things to escape being cornered and to indicate their fear and agitation). Most people who get bitten by cottonmouths have consistently agitated them for a prolonged period of time (an activity greatly enhanced by alcohol and testosterone).

If it is any comfort, I spend a good deal of time observing cottonmouths, and have never had one strike at me or behave aggressively toward me (though I think many would interpret gape mouthed displays as aggressive rather than the cowering posture that they are..so this is somewhat subjective).

I say this not to advise others on what they should or should not do with snakes in their yard, but to provide comfort that snakes are not nearly as aggressive as we as a culture make them out to be.

Since heart attacks are a common cause of human death, I don't want anyone to get a heart attack just because they see a venomous snake.

wayne_mo. I'll agree with everything you say... unless the cotton mouth is near her nest. Then I'd disagree.

A female cotton mouth protecting her nest will go after any animal that comes near it... including humans. If you've ever accidentally dropped anchor over one or walked by one on the sand near it, you'd experience it first hand.

All other snake encounters I've had, all I had to do was step back a few feet and wait and the snake would wander off to the brush. The water moccasin that chased me came out of the bushes at the water's edge that I was nearly 10 feet from.

I've also had friends at church describe the scenario lizzieshome mentions, where the moccasin was trying to come up in the boat.

Out of all the snakes in Texas, the moccasin is the only one I turn tail and run when I see it. It's the only one I don't trust to leave me alone if I leave it alone.

"All other snake encounters I've had, all I had to do was step back a few feet and wait and the snake would wander off to the brush."

This is a great strategy for snake encounters. With cottonmouths (and also copperheads to some degree) I find that they will often continue to stand their ground until they think you have left the area. This is easily solved by simply continuing to back away (paying some attention to see that there aren't other snakes around as you are backing). Most species I move off roads..I can just chase off the road, but with cottonmouths I will gently tap them on the tail with a stick and then back away. They leave once they think I am gone but they usually won't flee until they think the threat is gone.

"A female cotton mouth protecting her nest will go after any animal that comes near it... including humans. If you've ever accidentally dropped anchor over one or walked by one on the sand near it, you'd experience it first hand."

Cottonmouths give live birth to a litter of anywhere from 1 to 16 young in August, September or sometimes early October (the average litter is 6 to 7). They typically give birth in upland areas and do not have nests in the sense that birds or some mammals do.

"Out of all the snakes in Texas, the moccasin is the only one I turn tail and run when I see it."

Moving away from the snake is, indeed, a good idea. The most common recommended advice is to back away slowly rather than sprint away. The primary reason is that you can pay better attention to your surroundings if you are moving slowly. Once you've seen a venomous snake and are more than 1/2 its body length away..the snakes you don't see are a bigger danger than the one you can see. Since cottonmouths are locally abundant in places, running away quickly can lead to running so fast that you step on another cottonmouth 15 feet away (this probably matters more in a wilderness area than in a yard where chances are the one you see is the only one around). I don't know of any cases of this happening with cottonmouths, but I do know of an unfortunate case where someone saw a rattlesnake a good distance away and freaked out and took off running so fast that they ran smack dab full steam onto a different rattlesnake that reacted instantly to being trampled on and tagged them. Of course the odds of this are still pretty low, so there probably isn't really much practical difference between turning tail and running and backing away.

Wayne, it's cool you've responded to our site.

One time I saw a mess o' snakes in a pretty shallow part of a creek all roiled up together. They were the long black snakes - are they rat snakes? I watched them a long time and they just kept wrapping around each other in the water, slithering around. I guess they were mating? Does anyone know? Why were they doing it in the water, when I've normally seen them on land?

Thanks Wayne... learned something new today. I didn't realize cottonmouths live berthed. Does the mother provide for them for a while after the birth, or do they all go their separate ways?

"I didn't realize cottonmouths live berthed. Does the mother provide for them for a while after the birth, or do they all go their separate ways?"

Good question. The snakes are pretty much on their own once they are born (and about 1 to 2 will make it to adulthood..most being consumed by predators..the young ones have many more predators than the adults) and they pretty much go their separate ways fairly quickly. There seems to be some variability here. Some young (and their mothers) will leave almost immediately, others will stick around for hours and sometimes you can even find some juveniles and the mother nearby even a few days later.

Snakes and how they have babies are confusing to keep track of because many are egg laying (rat snakes, racers, corn snakes, coral snakes) and others are live bearing (cottonmouths, copperheads, rattlesnakes, garter snakes, harmless water snakes).

"One time I saw a mess o' snakes in a pretty shallow part of a creek all roiled up together. They were the long black snakes - are they rat snakes? I watched them a long time and they just kept wrapping around each other in the water, slithering around. I guess they were mating? Does anyone know? Why were they doing it in the water, when I've normally seen them on land?"

Large water snakes often are dark and have no pattern so my guess by the habitat and abundance is that they were adult Blotched Water Snakes (a poor name for a species that often has no blotches, esp. in older adults). It does sound very similar to what several males attempting to mate with a female looks like on land (sometimes called a "mating ball"). The water is an odd place even for water snakes to attempt mating but what you're describing does sound like that may have been what was happening.

Wayne,

Like you, I enjoy watching snakes. I believe they are a valuable asset in our environment. I will never harm a snake unless it is in the environment I inhabit and its venomous. I don't really mind having even the venomous snakes around. I am however married and my wife and I don't agree on the value of snakes. As the husband, it is my job to kill the bad ones. Shes lets me tell her which are bad and which are good. The good ones get to live.

We lived for many years way out in the piney woods of East Texas. We had all the bad snakes including the coral snake. The first year in our home, I noticed we had a large number of copper head snakes in our yard. I started going out at night with a .22 pistol and a flashlight. The first summer, I killed 51 copper heads in our yard. I hated to kill them, but it was that or a divorce.

Now for some questions.

In my research I could only find one variety of copper head listed in my area, but I kept seeing two different color varieties. One was a very pale or creamy background color with dark hour glass markings. The other was a dark tan background with even darker hour glass markings. Both were beautiful with a mother of pearl iridescence on their bellies. I don't think either color was the result of the other color moulting. Can you tell me the difference?

We also had only the Western Cotton Mouth listed as being present in east and north Texas. I have seen four color variations and two body shapes in the cotton mouths in Texas. The colors ranged from almost black to a mottled brown with greenish tones. The body shapes were short, thick through the middle, with a very tapered tail. The other body shape was pretty thick the entire length of it's body with a slightly tapered tail. Whats going on with the cotton mouth varieties?

Ted

Ted,

Good question. What you are seeing in the copperheads and cottonmouths is individual variation within a subspecies. While fieldguides tend to show typical examples of a subspecies there is actually a fair range of variability not only between subspecies, but also within a subspecies.

Western Cottonmouths, for instance, are generally darker than other subspecies and some are virtually all black while others have the mottled brown with greenish tones that you discuss. This also varies some by age..but the individual variation in adults is there even if you control for age.

Sometimes with copperheads you will not only see variation in their coloration..but sometimes you can find individual copperheads that are missing an hourglass (or what I like to call a hershey kiss) or have some hourglasses/hershey kiss markings that are irregular.

Thanks Wayne! I could only guess they were mating since they did not appear to be killing one another.