NEWS-JOURNAL (Daytona Beach, Florida) 10 September 07 Wildlife responder reports increase in calls about snakes (Jacque Estes)

Palm Coast: There was one thing separating the Halcomb family of Palm Coast from taking a dip in their pool -- a 5-foot-long diamondback rattlesnake.

"My wife and daughter were getting ready to go in the swimming pool when my wife looked out and saw the snake," said James Halcomb.

The family's first thought was daughter Tracy's dachshund, Chappin, who was waiting for them in the backyard.

"We just thought it was a big snake," Halcomb said, admitting that although his wife and daughter walked outside for a better look, he stayed indoors and watched through the window. The snake was slithering along a privacy fence.

The Halcomb family has lived in Palm Coast for nearly eight years, but Halcomb said Labor Day marked their first encounter with a rattlesnake. "We lived in Louisiana for seven or eight years and I never saw one snake there," he said.

But just because you don't see them doesn't mean snakes aren't out there. And some unfortunate people get more than just a look.

In July, a water moccasin bit 37-year-old Kimberley Mooers in the hand as she pulled weeds from her garden in Osteen. She recovered from the poisonous snake bite after a three-day stay at a hospital.

Also in July, a 53-year-old man said he was bitten twice by a rattlesnake near Highway 100 and Interstate 95, according to Flagler County records. He was taken to Florida Hospital Flagler. Citing confidentiality rules, the county declined to release the man's name and no other information was available.

Snake bites in Florida are rare, and most snakes are not poisonous but beneficial. But that can't be said about the serpent found in the Halcombs' backyard.

It wasn't until Rick Kinard, co-owner of Wildlife Management, responded that the Halcombs realized it was a rattlesnake.

"He had the snake trapped in five minutes," Halcomb said. Kinard planned to release it in an unpopulated area.

Darlene Kinard, co-owner of Wildlife Management, said they had received an increase in calls from The Woodlands area where the Halcombs live, which is north of Graham Swamp, but that this typically is not their busiest time for snake complaints.

"Our busiest time for snakes is in the winter," Darlene Kinard said. "They don't hibernate here and when it is cold, in the 50s during the day, they will come out and lay in a low spot and warm in the sun."

She said the increase in snake reports may be due, in part, to the construction of the Town Center and housing developments along Old Kings Road.

The Flagler County Sheriff's Office also received a call about a rattlesnake in Palm Coast last Monday, this one in a garage.

Capt. John West of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said it was most likely trying to get out of the heat. "The snake was trying to cool off," he said.

According to West, snake activity varies throughout the year. "July to September is mating season for certain snakes, and they will be more active," West said. "Now you've got a lot of young hatchlings that are going to be out there."

It also comes down to the food chain. "Snakes depend on their food source," West said. "We have several different species of venomous snakes in Florida -- water moccasins, for example -- and if their pond dries up so does their food source in the area and they go in search for someplace else."

Darlene Kinard said deterring snakes is as simple as keeping the garage door closed, checking door seals and tears in screens and changing outdoor light bulbs.

"The white lights attract the bugs that attract the frogs and lizards and they attract the snakes," Darlene Kinard said. "Just changing an outside light to a yellow bug light will reduce the number of bugs and can make a difference."

While Florida does have several species of venomous snakes, people are more likely to see black racers and other non-venomous snakes. And while the racer will periscope its body up to look around, it will generally not strike unless it feels threatened.

Halcomb said the family will be on the lookout for snakes.

"We will look around the yard, especially in the evening to make sure it is clear before we let the dog out," he said.
Wildlife responder reports increase in calls about snakes

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