Snake Question

PancoastDrifter

Explorer
Dec 7, 2008
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56
www.flickr.com
I saw some snakes yesterday. Below is pictured a Pine Snake. Later in the day I thought I saw another Pine Snake slither into a thicket, but then I heard a very distinct rattle. I was in shorts and barefoot and got kinda spooked. Is there another snake that has a rattle besides the Eastern Timber Rattler? Just curious as this was next to a very heavily traveled area in Stafford Forge.

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jburd641

Explorer
Jan 16, 2008
410
22
Port Charlotte, Fl.
A lot of snakes will rattle their tail like a rattler. I'm no expert but my guess would be that they do it to distract from their heads. If the end was in some dry leaves or something similar, it could have sounded like a rattler. You did the right thing, especially considering you were barefoot.
 

dragoncjo

Piney
Aug 12, 2005
1,526
240
42
camden county
Pancoast nothing else here has a rattle besides the timber rattlesnake. While on the crawl a rattlesnakes tail will shake very slightly as it goes over objects. But it would be very hard to pick up this noise as it isn't loud at all or consistent. When one actually feels threatened it will rattle extremely loud to the point that you could hear it 100 feet away. Rattlesnakes often do not rattle unless you are really really close or walking in a way to cause significant vibration. Often times they will sit there with little movement as to not let you know of there presence. If the snake you saw moved due to your prescence that would really represent atypical rattlesnake behavior. They are a big thick heavy bodied animal that is slow and poor at getting away, they rely on ambush and sitting still when disturbance is not so near, when its within strike distance they will usually rattle though. Most other snakes will vibrate there tail when someone gets close or they feel threatened it but it doesn't really sound like a rattle.
 

woodjin

Piney
Nov 8, 2004
4,341
327
Near Mt. Misery
I heard a pine snake do a very conviencing rattle against some leaves once, made me second guess it. I have also heard a rattlesnake rattle, so I have some comparison. Not the same of course but enough to make you hesitate.
 
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