New Here Too!

[Didymus20X6]

Greetings!

I am Thomas. I am known on various forums as Didymus 20X6. Didymus is a Greek variant of my name, and 20X6 is a reference to the Homestar Runner character, Stinko Man (as you might be able to tell from my custom avatar).

I am an ophidiophobe. That means I have an unnatural and often uncontrollable fear of snakes. Plus, I neither own, nor keep, nor plan to obtain any snakes anytime soon.

So why might an ophidiophobe join a forum of snake lovers? Not to be a troll, I assure you. But mostly on account of this guy:


http://i40.tinypic.com/2istwzk.jpg
http://i42.tinypic.com/2irwy08.jpg
http://i43.tinypic.com/2mplim9.jpg

He turned up in the bush outside my home a few weeks ago, along with others of varying sizes. I've seen at least 3 in the 2 to 2.5 foot range, at least three in the 1.5 foot range, and one tiny one, less than a foot long.

I'm pretty sure he's a Thamnophis sirtalis, or a variant thereof.

Anyway, despite the urgings of some of my people, and my own fears, I decided to shoot the snakes, not with a gun, but with a camera. I figure they're basically harmless, and I'd much rather have them around than some of the other common species in this area, namely copperheads and moccasins.

I even tried to catch one once. You should have seen it. I had put on a thick, heavy coat and thick leather gloves, figuring that his bite might not penetrate. But just as I was getting ready to touch him, old doubts crept in: "What if I've misidentified the species? What if this is something dangerous?"

But I've noticed that they all tend to stay out of my way - except for two that seem to like the crack between my steps and porch - I really wish they wouldn't hang out there of all places!

Anyway, in my quest for information on this particular snake, I stumbled across this forum. I noticed you had a lot of great pics here, and have even shared a couple with some friends of mine who are snake lovers. So I figured I might as well join, and if nothing else, get some good information on these critters living in my bushes.

[Stefan-A]

Welcome aboard. :)

Yes, that is indeed a T. sirtalis.

[Didymus20X6]

Thanks, Stefan.

[count dewclaw]

Welcome. Congratulations on at least partly overcoming your fear of snakes. Those are some nice shots of the garters in your yard.

[drache]

it's really cool that you don't let unreasonable fear stop you from being reasonable
welcome to our forum and thank you for bringing us those great photos

[guidofatherof5]

Nice to have you with us.
Great looking snake you have there. Sounds like you have a little snake social club going on.
The more you watch and learn the more you will be drawn to them.
It's magic and nothing wrong with it. They really are a special animal.

[Didymus20X6]

Thanks, everyone.

I've always been afraid of snakes. Not sure why.

But strangely, I've also been somewhat attracted to them. When I lived in St. Louis, my favorite place to go was the herpetorium. They had a moccasin that must have been at least 6ft. long, and pretty fat, too! Wouldn't want to run into that guy on a fishing trip! And a king cobra that must have been at least 12 ft. And plenty of other species, some dangerous, some not so, and all of them behind glass where they couldn't get me. I kinda miss the place.

But I'm really not interested in hurting something that can't hurt me. And you probably have the late Steve Erwin to thank for that.

Here's another pic. This one was taken the day I found myself surrounded by them: they were just crawling all over my bushes.

http://i44.tinypic.com/11j9pwx.jpg

The smaller one appeared to be missing part of his tail. My guess is it got snipped by the gardener's hedge trimmers.

My guess is that there is a brumination nest around here somewhere, and they were using my bushes as a motel. I think most of them are gone now, although they might have gone back into hiding with some of the recent changes in weather.

[adamanteus]

Hi Thomas, and welcome to the forum.:)
Nice pictures.

[Sid]

Welcome to the forum, Thomas and thanks for sharing the photos.

[gregmonsta]

Greetings :)

[Odie]

Hi, from Oregon, Thomas :)

[Snake lover 3-25]

welcome to the forum!:) neat finds:)

[Didymus20X6]

Thanks, everyone!

I had thought my snakes were all gone. But this afternoon, I saw one of the medium snakes basking on top of the bush. He disappeared as soon as he spotted me, though. But they're still around.

I found a rather large earthworm in my driveway, and I picked it up and dropped it in the bush, maybe to serve as a snack. I plan to do the same if I see any more worms or slugs.

As for my fear, while I don't like to get too close to them, usually I have it under control as long as I don't see a snake unexpectedly, and as long as they don't make any sudden moves. But after reading up on them, I really have become fascinated with them, and I often find myself checking the bushes to see if they're out.

This forum has been a great source of information. I'll keep you all posted on any new developments, or if I can get any cool pics.

[guidofatherof5]

I can see you've been infected. There is no antidote. Be of good cheer, you are amongst friends. We to suffer from the same problem. Your apprehension will lesson and they will pull you in. You have already started taking care of them. Remember, you dropped a worm in the bush. It starts slow and before you know it you'll have a little one in your custody. They are a marvelous animal. They are as interested in you as you are with them. I HOPE YOU MAKE A FRIEND SOON.:)

[jitami]

Welcome :) Most of us would love to live in your house. You're a lucky guy! I, too, think it's very cool that you've come here sharing pics and looking to learn, even though you're fearful. Btw, I would guess that their brumation spot is through those cracks in the porch, so you're likely to see them there again :)

[Snake lover 3-25]

o i know i sure would!!!

[Quibble]

Little garter snakes are nothing to be afraid of, they're like inquisitive little puppies with no legs! XD ...well not really but I think they're just as cute.

maybe someday youll be sitting by the bush long enough to see them hold they're little heads out and watch you watching them!
My little Gimpie and I have staring contests once and a while, she always wins...

and I have no life... D=

lol welcome to the forum!

[k2l3d4]

Little garter snakes are nothing to be afraid of, they're like inquisitive little puppies with no legs! XD ...well not really but I think they're just as cute.

maybe someday youll be sitting by the bush long enough to see them hold they're little heads out and watch you watching them!
My little Gimpie and I have staring contests once and a while, she always wins...

and I have no life... D=

lol welcome to the forum!



That was what my boyfriend said to me just last night......He was home alone with my son and my two checkered. So after he had mo son off to bed he was on the pc which is right next to their tank... When I got home later on he was like "They just kept watching me...... they were staring at me."

:p

[Didymus20X6]

After not seeing them for a week or so, I was beginning to wonder if they had all disappeared. But this morning, when I got home from church, I spotted one of the medium sized ones sitting on top of the bush. At first, he startled me, but after a few moments of staring at me, he got spooked and dove into the bush.

What kind of behavioral patterns might I expect to see from them? What time of day or temperatures am I most likely to see them out?

I'm still not sticking my hand into that bush.

Also, I underestimated their sizes. I was basing my estimate on the assumption that the bushes were about 2 or 2.5 feet across. They are close to 40 inches, meaning that the larger snakes are about 3.5 feet long.

[Didymus20X6]

I CAUGHT ONE!!

This morning, there was a veritable stampede of them over at my neighbor's house. At first I thought there were four, but it turned out that the last was just a leftover skin from shedding.

Anyway, after a lengthy conversation with my neighbors, both of whom have asked our landlady to get rid of them, I spotted one sticking his head up out of the grass. I edged closer to him, and almost ran away when I spotted a larger one in the area. Then I went inside and grabbed the Gopher and a tall trash can. When I went outside, the first one was still there, trying to blend in with the grass, I'm sure. I snagged him with the Gopher, and dropped him into the trash can. He wasn't too pleased with that, let me tell you. He almost jumped out a couple of times, and at least once, I'm sure he intended to sink his rear fangs into me.

I shredded a bit off newspaper and dropped it in the trash can, to give him something to hide under, then hauled him off to a stream way outside of town, and let him go.

I really wish I could have found my camera. He was a beautiful green color, with black speckles, and of course, the yellow stripes. He was about maybe 20-24 inches long. Too bad I couldn't find my camera. :(

Now, I'm sure most of you think, "Gopher? What are you, a wimp?" And my answer would be, "Yes." But I really wanted to catch one of those guys, if for no other reason than to keep him from being killed by one of the neighbors. And so I can talk with an Australian accent and brag about it, of course.

[snakems]

how refreshing!
maybe soon you will overcome your fear. or at least of garters anyway... :)

If it were up to me I would trade places with you seeing as I love them. :( I never seem to come across snakes when I am SEEKING them out, let alone in my bushes or when I step outside my house. Funny how it goes :rolleyes:

[Didymus20X6]

http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/general-talk/5393-toms-catch-relase-program.html