So, AGAIN, I was mindin' my own business....

[Browning'sCustomMeat]

cool pictures.....but I woulda peed a little!

 

-Jeremy-

[COOSEFAN]

Thanks guys. Truth be told, I actually like snakes and it's been a fascination of mine since I was a little kid. After getting bit I've become A LOT less interested in them, but every now and then it's cool to see them and photograph em'! I do have a knack for finding them and knowing where they will be, I can pretty much go out any day and find one if I wanted to.

 

I'll kill one if I feel it poses an immediate threat to someone or if it's one that goes out of it's way to try and bite me, Sidewinders have a tendancy to do that! If I have my dogs with me and we run into one, it'll die as fast as I can make it happen. And if I find one in camp or if we have kids around they most likely won't survive long either. Other than that I never kill them, they usually try to avoid ya and I think it's nice that they "usually" try to warn you to leave them alone, gotta give em' credit for that

 

The Mojave's are the most aggressive snake we have down here and the most potent. I didn't think they had them in the Blue range, but I know they have the Blacktails up there which are usually green like a Mojave and sometimes a bright green or yellow. Here's a couple Blacktails I found up that way, they can be just as bad if not worse than Mojaves as far as aggression!

 

 

 

[Coach]

I could very well have mistaken blackails in the Blue range for Mohave. Most of the blacktails we have around Lakeside have very dark bodies and little pattern or coloration. The snakes I've encountered around the Blue, and there have been quite a few, were quite green and very aggressive so I assumed they were Mojaves. Thanks for clearing that up.

[cramerhunts]

Dang Jim I was just about to ask you if I could tag along on one of those fishing trips.....I think I'll just keep my mouth shut instead! With your skill at finding them and my dumb luck of running into them everywhere I think it would be a bad combo. Awesome pictures man!

[Red Rabbit]

#s 4, 5, 6 are nice angles.

[Rembrant]

It is perfectly legal to kill 4 snakes a year with an AZ hunting liscense to be utilized any way you choose. Diambacks are no more "an integral part of our little chunk of land" than the Blacktails or Mohaves.

I hear what you are saying though, Coach; like Couesfan says, if they get close to homes, kids, or dogs, they die - and rightfully so. Fact is, a ton of snakes bite the bullet every year for a lot of good reasons and not so good reasons. What bugs me is when folks see one while driving and dispatch them for the rattle, leaving skin and meat to the ravens.

I think they can take a lot of harvest every year and maintain good populations. I know a rancher that claims to kill upwards of a hundred a year, and I can still find them on his turf. Yep, that's wrong - just an example of their resilliance. I think what really hurts them is loss of habitat to development and folks who over collect from dens.

I love snakes, but woke up from a nightmare just this morning; had a giant Coontail slip my tongs and come at me. I was back peddling and tripped. Next thing I knew, the serpent was staring me down from about 10 inches!!

Woke up with my heart rate pounding like I was 17 in a highschool basketball game!!!

 

Mike

[shylopolito]

Great pictures of the mojave, they are real agressive, my dad has beem chased by them before.

[Sam]

Very cool pictures - glad you saw them first.....

[Coach]

I agree with you Rembrant, if they are posing a threat, they die. I had to kill a blacktail on my property a couple years back because I didn't want to risk it with the kids and I couldn't move him without risking him getting away and becoming a threat - little sucker lived right under my office and gave one tiny rattle after I stepped right over him.

 

I guess my point was, I don't like to see them killed indiscriminately - especially the bigger, older diamondbacks that generally tend to be non aggressive. If they're in the wild, away from homes and make an effort to alert you to their presence - and move away, I prefer to give them their space and let them be.

 

[Rembrant]

And by the way, I also have pic #4 on my screen saver.

Thanks Couesfan,

 

Mike

[firstcoueswas80]

Last snake I killed was at Arivaca lake. It was s super aggressive bastard that rattled at me when I was still 15+ feet away. I stood there debating if it should meet its maker or not. But, the fact that I almost took my dog with me that day, and that it was so close to a recreational spot where kids frequent meant it got a 155 gr .40 S&W to the brain.