Snake Safety; Important tips for your family
By: Robert N. Brewer, Jr. Extension Service Agent UGA

(Above) The Coral snake is very similar to the popular non poisonous king snake, (r) the head of the king snake is red where the head of the coral is black.

As our long hot summer approaches we receive more snake related calls.

Of course we all want to avoid snakes.

If you have a large amount of snakes you need to determine if you have ideal conditions for a snake to have a reason to stay around. Is your house surrounded by natural countryside with rock piles, streams and swamps nearby? Is your property providing good snake habitat? Like all animals, snakes are looking for a good place to hunt and live. Look at the surroundings as if you were a snake. Are there rodents or other sources of food?

I have always heard the best snake is a dead snake. That is just not true.

Snakes feed on a wide variety of small creatures and are very particular about what they eat. Some Atlanta species eat only rodents and birds. Others may eat only amphibians. Large land-dwelling snakes are likely to feed on rodents, lizards, other snakes, toads and frogs. Aquatic snakes may feed on fish and amphibians. Many of the creatures snakes eat are considered pests, for this reason non-venomous snakes should not be destroyed and can be a great asset.

Snakes inside homes can create an intense fear for some people, these snakes should not be harmed, and may be there because of an unknown rodent problem. Homes with snakes present should be checked for the presents of rodents.

About 45,000 people are bitten by snakes every year in the United States. Of those, 7,000 involve poisonous snakes, and of those treated, only about 15 die. More than half of the poisonous snakebites involve children, and most occur between April and October. Of the poisonous bites in the United States, 55 percent are from rattlesnakes, 34 percent from copperheads, 10 percent from water moccasins, and one percent from coral snakes.

Characteristics of pit viper snakes:Large fangs; nonpoisonous snakes have small teeth.

The two fangs of a poisonous snake are hollow and work like a hypodermic needle.

Of the 7,000 poisonous snake bites in the United States each year, 34 percent are from the Copperhead. Here you can see the design of the copperhead and above you can see it's unique head. You can also see the pit between the eye and the mouth. The fangs work like a hypodermic needle, injecting poison.

Pupils resemble vertical slits.

Presence of a pit. Pit vipers have a telltale pit between the eye and the mouth. The pit, a heat-sensing organ, makes it possible for the snake to accurately strike a warm-blooded victim, even if the snake cannot see the victim.

A triangular or arrowhead shaped head.

The rattlesnake often shakes its rattles as a warning. BUT NOT ALWAYS!!

One snake that is not a pit viper snake but is poisonous is the coral snake. The coral snake is highly poisonous and resembles a number of nonpoisonous snakes. It does not have fangs and has round pupils. Because its mouth is so small and its teeth are short, most coral snakes inflict bites on the toes and fingers. They have to chew the skin a while to inject venom. Coral snakes are small and ringed with red, yellow and black. The chances for recovery of a snakebite are great if the patient receives care within two hours of the bite.

It is best to modify snake pleasing habitats, which will make your property less attractive to snakes. Examples: Removal of wood and rock piles, ivy, reduce food (typically rodents) sources.