Catherine, I'm sure it was a bird of some kind, and it realized it "bit" off more than it could chew with your snake. Even though the snake would live under/near the deck, they do venture out for snacks. Found a small, expired racer the other morning with a missing chunk and puncture wounds. And I haven't even seen any (live) snakes in my yard yet this year. Brenda

Sammy, Snakes seem to go wherever they choose. Given a choice, they'll stay in taller grass or undergrowth as opposed to shorter grass. However, they sure aren't shy about crossing bare ground or roadways or gravel driveways or anything. I see snakes everywhere here, but it varies a bit depending on the snakes. At our place (and the same may not be true everywhere), copperheads like to stay in the woods or just on the edge where the grassy open areas meet the wooded areas. They blend in very well with autumn leaves on the ground, mulch and shadows in dappled shade areas. The diamondback rattlesnakes here stay more along the creek banks and often are seen lying on the rocks. I usually only see Timber Rattlers in the woods, or in the shade of our pecan tree. Occasionally we see them crossing the road from our woodland to the pasture across the road. I've only had one right close to the house in the front yard once, and it was in the shade of the pecan tree. Water moccasins are more often in the big ponds (now dry) or the creeks, and in the smaller ponds we tend to just see some sort of harmless brown water snake. The non-venomous racers favor the shadey edges where woodland meets grassland, but they do like to come into the garden (as do the copperheads and rattlesnakes). The rough green snakes often perch in our tall shrubs and trees. I actually like them...I think they are pretty, and I DO NOT like snakes. I have made it a habit to ALWAYS look at the ground ahead of me/around me as we walk because we have tons of venomous snakes. I never pick up ANYTHING that is lying flat on the ground without using a garden tool to lift it up first to ensure a snake isn't under it. I don't stick my hands under mulch and I watch for snakes in plants (yes, they'll climb up into tall vigorous tomato or okra plants) when I pick tomatoes, peppers, okra, etc. I also don't stir my compost or turn it over between March and November when snakes are active here. Y'all may not have to worry about snakes as much as we do, but we are snake central here. Twice since we bought this property, an individual has been bitten by a copperhead on the property right next door to us and having seen what that was like...a very hard recovery....I don't ever want to experience it first-hand. Suzie, I love Possum Kingdom Lake, but it sure does have some really rugged areas around it. My heart sure does go out to this family. I cannot imagine the pain and grief they are feeling. And, you know, no matter how very, very careful you are, things happen. Dawn

Anything that a rabbit can or will get through a snake can go through too. The only way to live in the high desert and not have snakes is to move out of the high desert.

Lucky dog. It's been a bad year for me and snakes... (I don't count the black racers in my parents yard... they're just landscape features.) The only snakes I've seen have all been dead on the road ~all year !! My fiancee, however, has been making all kinds of sightings at work... eastern coachwhips, indigos, rough green snakes, yellow and red rats... not nearly in the numbers you're talking about, but at least he's seeing them. Of course with two little ones it's kinda hard to get out and go looking for any... one of these days...