First of all, I live and let live. I make an exception if something is in my yard that will hurt my family. We have about 6 acres of land and if a snake is no threat then it is left alone. If it is poisonous and is within 30 feet of our house I then take care of it. I do not want my children to be bitten by a poisonous snake. We have numerous copperheads near our house. I do kill those. The black rat snake mimicked a rattler. It raised and shook it's tail and rustled the leaves making a rattler sound. I thought it was a rattler til I did a search and found out rattlers are not black. I then researched and discovered that a black rat snake mimics a rattler when threatened. Now that I now he is not a threat, we will coexist. I have numerous bluebirds that have their own nests in the bushes. ( no man made house) I am sad to say the snake has probably eaten their eggs. While I am sad he is probably eating my favorite birds, I have no issue with him unless he tries to bite one of us.

Just as a precaution, again let me say that yellow rat snakes DO bite when cornered. While they tame down really nicely (and quickly) in captivity, adult rat snakes do NOT want to be caught or cornered and will bite if threatened. Especially the larger ones, and they get VERY large. Over 8 feet in length, making them about the 2nd longest non-venomous snake in the U.S. When cornered, the first thing they will do is curl up and vibrate their tails like crazy. If they happen to be in dead leaves or grass, this will make a sound similar to a rattlesnake. They are warning you to leave them alone. If you persist and reach for them, they will strike like crazy, and having been bitten by a large one, I can tell you, it hurts. (Plus it hurts the snake, as well, since their teeth curve backwards into their mouths and often are broken or pulled right out when they bite a person.) Of course, I was only bitten because I picked a big one up incorrectly and it whipped its head around and nailed me. I should have left it alone! The best rule of thumb for MOST of us is to leave them alone. They don't want to bother you, and won't if you don't bother them. Black racers will strike repeatedly and bite, too, if cornered. But it's been my experience that, unlike the rat snake, they don't make nice pets. They don't like captivity and never seem to become docile. (I'm not saying no one has ever had a tame one, of course. This is just as a general rule.) Anyway, your rat snake is patroling your yard, and he is nothing to worry about. He may startle you from time to time, but he won't attack you if you don't try to pick him up or harm him. Nice pic of the black racer, Heather. I have a couple in this yard but no yellow rat snakes, sadly. That I've seen so far, anyway. The black racers are also doing a great job of yard patrol, and they are welcome here, too. Marcia

Marcia, Please help me find out what kind of snake I came across today. While I was at the local dog park (near Orlando) I came across a yellow with black stripes snake. It looked to be between 3.5-4 feet long and did not appear at first glance (that was all I gave it out of fear) to be shiny. I was about 3 feet from it and didn't know it until my dog almost stepped on it. She obviously didn't see it either. The snake seemed a pit peeved about the whole thing but it decided not to attack and to slowly slither towards ME to get away from my dog. Needless to say, I took off in a different direction real quick and hollered for my dog to follow. I am not like you or others on this site. I am not a fan of snakes and am extremely afraid of them. Although, I don't mind the black racers that seem to have taken up permanent residence in MY back yard and they love to procreate often (or so it seems). I have seen a lot less field rats since the racers moved in and that makes me very happy. Anyway, can you help me figure out what this snake was? I have spent hours and hours online tonight trying to find it and just can't seem to find anything that looks like it. I am guessing that it is not dangerous to me or my dogs??? I am scared to take my dogs back through those woods that they so dearly love. As soon as I told them, "No more woods until the snakes are gone again," they "told" me to find it if it was dangerous or not and if it isn't that they want to go back again. So that is mostly why I am asking you for your help. We all love the walks but I am afraid of the snakes. Please help me feel safer about going back. Thanks in advance for your help.

Corpsman - worry not about snakes. Having lived here all my 63 years I've had snakes in my backyard frequently but never been harmed. In fact, just about all of them will scatter at the first sign of humans. The only aggressive snake is a cottonmouth; they will advance on you if threatened, however, they are a diminishing species, mostly in the swampy areas. Now, if you want something really to be frightened about, I submit to you the penultimate danger in Florida, a species so scary that even grownups cringe, women recoil, babies cry; to wit, a Canadian tourist wearing bermuda shorts, sandals with black socks, sunburned from head to toe, driving a rented car while trying to read a roadmap. It make me shiver and want to curl up with a snake for safety.