Coral Snake: This
colorful snake is extremely deadly and a bite from it can stop your
breathing within less than 1 hour without the antivenin. Unfortunately it is
mimicked by the Scarlet or Banded King snake which is a favorites amongst
collectors. Collecting the wrong one could be deadly. Fortunately the mouth
of the Coral snake and the the fangs are small and cannot penetrate a
leather boot, but if you pick it up and it can grab some open skin then say
your prayers. : Saying
to distinguish between the deadly Coral Snake and the harmless Banded King
Snake is "Red on Yellow kill a fellow - Red on black, friend of Jack", refer
to the picture above.
Vipers
Many snakes fall under this category and are most
easily distinguished by the Diamond shape of their head when viewed from
over head. This shape is partially due to the venom sack on the sides of
their jaws.
Rattle snakes - Cotton Mouths and
Copperheads -
Rattle Snakes
These frightful creatures come in many varieties, sizes
and degrees of deadliness. All have the characteristic rattle on the the
tail that is used as a warning to let you know when you are getting to
close. However you will not always get a warning as they may be sleeping as
you approach only to have them awake startled and strike, or they may be
lodged in a crevice that you may want to use as a hand hold, or you may just
step over an obstacle and then right onto then or so close that they feel
threatened and decide to strike.
That bring us to striking. How close can you get to a
rattler and still be safe? Not close at all, but if you need to then
remember they can strike lightning quick at an object within the range of
4/5 fifths of the length of it's body. That is to say, if it is a 5 foot
rattler, it can leap at least 4 feet, or a big guy 7 1/2 feet long can
strike 6 feet. There are stories of then striking so hard that they
become airborne and traveling even greater distances but this is a subject
for the "Myth Busters".
Rattlesnake is an excellent survival food and is best
caught with a strong forked stick with short prongs. To do this you will
want a 6 foot handle, and get the snake scared enough that it is fleeing. In
this stretched out position their strike zone is very limited. Use the
prongs to pin him down to the ground by pressing down on it just behind the
head. If you pin it further back it will whip around and possibly get you.
It is best to have a second person with whom you have discussed the
procedure, to get a second grip on it with another pronged stick. We don't
advise picking it up but those that do grip it directly behind the jaws and
don't let go no matter what the rest of the body is doing. (there is a
viper in Africa whose fangs come out sideways and protrude aft and will
poison anyone holding it like this). You need to cut off the head, while
watching out for the fangs. Even fang of a dead snake can harm you.
We do not recommend any part of the catching or handling of any
poisonous snake with the exception of the eating of it. Rattler really
does taste kinda like chicken. Crazy thing is that it keeps on wriggling
even without a head on until after the sun goes down or is cooked, so it is
a little freaky trying to cut it up and having to hold it or chase it down.
Some people prefer to step on the tail and stretch it before skinning and
cleaning it. this is to help align the rib bones so they run in one
direction. Either way it is normally cut into lengths about 4 " long and
fried or roasted until it looks like cooked fish all the way through. Now
you know why they rattle. The are quaking in their skin because of people
like us who will eat them and turn their hides into hat bands or belts.
Diamond Back Rattler:
This mess of Rattlers were discovered by a power line
crew.
Several varieties of this deadly snake can be found through out the USA,
Canada, Mexico nearly every dry area in the Americas. The Eastern Diamond
Back is the largest of the Rattlesnakes but even the small Pigmy Rattler
can kill someone who is stranded in a distressed condition and unable to get
medical attention. These are good eating but catching them will be covered
in our "Meat Procurement" section.
Cotton Mouth
or Water Moccasin:
An adult Cottonmouth and the region in which they are found
The Venom is highly toxic and will cause severe
tissue destruction and can be deadly but if nothing else at least
disfiguring and sometimes crippling in children. Color dull dark and nearly
black, especially in adult of the species. Their young are born alive and
are poisonous from birth. |
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