I remember when I was fifteen, my father was bitten by a venomous snake. We thought it was just a bull snake, but it turned out to be a rattlesnake, and it might have turned out differently if we had known how to spot the baby rattlers that are common in Utah, where I grew up. Still, baby snakes are difficult to detect.
Sometimes it is difficult to I.D. which type of snake you have encountered, especially if you haven’t learned about the common ones, or studied their identifying features. Whether you’re bugging out or just on a hike when you discover a snake, or he discovers you, there’s no telling what may happen next if you don’t have a little bit of knowledge.
Most snakes are not venomous, but the one that bit my dad happened to be. Wouldn’t you rather be safe than sorry and be confident you know which snake you are dealing with, just in case?
Certainly, venom can mean trouble, but even a bit from a non-venomous snake can present a threat. The largest threat to someone bitten by a snake is usually that the wound may become infected with the bacteria from the snake’s mouth. In other words, once get bit that bacteria is now on your skin and in the wound. With a venomous snake, even a small bite can cause the area around the wound to swell up a lot, and of course the venom can cause much more severe problems, so treat any snake with caution and respect.
On the next page learn how to identify the first snake on our list, the copperhead snake. You’ll learn where you may see this venomous snake slithering, too.
Then continue to learn about more venomous snakes. Doing so you may just save a life, possibly your own:
Yes dead
TIM GOT EVERY ONE OF THEM CORRECT GOOD JOB
copperhead
You’re right on all except the third, it’s a prairie rattler. Have caught many of them. I googled them just to be sure and they aren’t that much different. But I’m an old man and don’t see as clearly as I used to. There is a chance that I may be mistaken.
Yes
Yep, where’s the other 2?
I looked it up …I believe your eyes haven’t failed you…I’ve never seen one before in SC
PS…I think they said it was kin to a pigmy rattler
My conclusion as well!!! Great thinking
… identifying what’s left after the 12 gauge has spoken has always been problematic …