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I saw this photo for the first time today and wonder if there has been any actual documentation on it.
The claim is that it was recently found near Fitch, TX in the northern panhandle. It was said to be 9'1", 95 lbs.

Since he is holding it away from his body it is hard go judge the length. Since he doesn't seem to be straining, I wonder about the 95 lbs.
The time stamp is 13 08:43AM - no telling what month or year.

That pic has been around for awhile. Our local paper actually used that pic as an example of an internet hoax.
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Tim Cole
www.Designeratrox.com/
www.AustinReptileService.net
www.AustinReptileExpo.com/
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Conservation through Education

Does anyone here have a pair of tongs like this one? If so, could you measure and post the width of the bottom jaw (as accurately as you can)?

I have a pair of 30" Whitney tongs. The ones in the photo could be 24", 30", 36", probably not 40 "

John,

I've had that image sent to me no less than 3 dozen times over the last 18 months. There seems to be three different versions of the story that goes with it. The one that seems to be most popular claims that it was taken from the Turkey Creek Gas Plant up in the Texas Panhandle. Some clainm that it was taken from a gas company facility down in South Texas. Another claims that it was taken in the Poteet/Jourdanton, Texas area. This photo actually appeard in one of the small town weekly papers down in South Texas somewhere a year of so ago with a claim that it was taken there locally.

Obviously, it is a doctored photo. I do not doubt that it was a "large" rattlesnake but not nearly nine feet and even if it had been nine feet, I don't believe that it would have weighed in at anywhere near 95 lbs. The wonders of modern technology and PhotoShop, etc. seem to make the old saying about "one picture is worth a thousand words" not ring so true these days.
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Gerald Keown
The Venomous Snakes of Texas

I do not believe that picture is photoshopped...but that the attached attributes are obviously garbage.

Worth2000.com is a photoshop contest site and it is fabulous to check out. It is likely the source of most of the high quality photoshopped things (like the shark jumping into the air to grab the diver hanging from the helicopter etc etc etc) on the internet.

Lots of legitimate photos are mis-labeled by idiots or as jokes and then get blindly passed around for years and years.

This photo has been shoved around all over the place and each time with different specs on the snake itself. Granted, it is quite a large specimen, however, not near 9ft. Nor is it even remotely possible to be 95lbs. As you stated, the individual doesn't appear to be straining, nor would any average human being be able to balance 95lbs that easily out in front of them. That kind of weight would require to be held underneath. I would believe that to be around 6ft.

chris

>>I saw this photo for the first time today and wonder if there has been any actual documentation on it.
>>The claim is that it was recently found near Fitch, TX in the northern panhandle. It was said to be 9'1", 95 lbs.
>>
>>Since he is holding it away from his body it is hard go judge the length. Since he doesn't seem to be straining, I wonder about the 95 lbs.
>>The time stamp is 13 08:43AM - no telling what month or year.
>>
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My Website
www.herpfanatic.com

its definately around 8 feet plus... just say the guy is an average of 5'8" to 5'11" ...
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THERES NO BEAUTY LIKE THE BEAUTY OF A TRUE REDTAIL

OK, I think I finally have a real answer on this one.

The guy in the photo seems to be holding the snake with a pair of Whitney tongs. With a little net scrounging, I find that the lower jaw of these tongs is exactly 1 inch wide (probably machined from 1" aluminum stock).

I found a higher resolution version of the photo here:
http://outdoorsbest.zeroforum.com/zerothread?id=425014

Plugging the photo into my handy-dandy measuring program, I find that the snake is approximately 6'1", not counting the rattle (it's cut off in all versions of the photo), give or take a couple inches because even at this resolution one pixel difference in the width of the tongs is significant.

As for weight, I work with a 6 foot mexican rattlesnake that weighed 16 pounds the last time I weighed him, and the snake in this photo is nowhere NEAR as thick...

And yes, that's still a good size atrox...

I would love to see a "biggest snake" contest (with non-venomous). Contestants submit photos and specs using all the tricks. The winner is the one with the highest claim:actual snake length ratio with the fewest challenges.

The following link show "how to" make a giant snake photo. I am not encouraging you to do so however.
http://www.venomousreptiles.org/libraries/showfilepage/5329?offset=166
Link

Maybe we should have a contest to see who could "catch" (ie make) the longest Dekays snake. Since brown snakes seem to be the number one snake identified on the "Snake-what kind" forum, we could alway refer them to a picture of a 10 ft Storeria dekayi.

I have no clue what you are talking about. But if it would be fun I have no clue why we aren't doing it.

If you are checking out the Gabby thread above, somebody mentioned using a snowshovel to move a heavy snake. I was inspired to create this quick creation. I sloppily cut and pasted in "Paint", no Photoshop expertise. Actually, this might be a good idea!

I looked this one up on snopes.com - link below. Snopes.com is an excellent place to check up on Urban Legends, Internet Hoaxes, and Scams.
Their conclusion is that it is a real photo, with exaggerated info. They also point out that the snake is much closer to the camera, making it appear much larger.

Also, are we sure that's an atrox and not adamanteus?

JPD
9 ft Texas Rattler

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I am so not lesdysxic!

0.1 Creamsicle Cornsake "Yolanda"
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake "Steely Dan"
0.1 Desert Kingsnake "FATTY"
0.1 Black Rat (WV Rescue) "Roberta"

Here's another Giant Rattler Internet Hoax - this time an atrox is standing in for a Timber.

Again, this is from snopes.com.

JPD
Atrox Called Horridus

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I am so not lesdysxic!

0.1 Creamsicle Cornsake "Yolanda"
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake "Steely Dan"
0.1 Desert Kingsnake "FATTY"
0.1 Black Rat (WV Rescue) "Roberta"

>>Also, are we sure that's an atrox and not adamanteus?

Nope, the tail is not even close to adamanteus. It just looks like an unusually well marked atrox.

>>>>Also, are we sure that's an atrox and not adamanteus?
>>
>>Nope, the tail is not even close to adamanteus. It just looks like an unusually well marked atrox.

Yeah, I see what you mean.
Thanks,
JPD
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I am so not lesdysxic!

0.1 Creamsicle Cornsake "Yolanda"
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake "Steely Dan"
0.1 Desert Kingsnake "FATTY"
0.1 Black Rat (WV Rescue) "Roberta"