Reptile & Amphibian Forums

In response to rtdunhams post below about different species and same species found together and bonding.

It has been my experience that in the spring if two of the same speices are found together, they are likely a mating pair.Its always interesting to test this theory and try to determine the gender of the pair.Two males are less likely to be found together then two females but a breeding pair is the most likely.
On a road cut or a hillside one or two rocks maybe far better then the few dozen other rocks close by so it stands to reason that snakes of different species may share those few rocks.

I have seen milk snakes with ringnecks a few time but I have never seen milks with earth snakes,worm snakes,lined snakes or tantilla.These are all favorite meals of milks so its not hard to understand why.Also I have never seen kings or milks with lizards together under the same rock.

Breeding pairs may not be under the same rocks but are sometimes not to far away.

Not sure about the bonding part that may just be a great example of anthropomorphism but its an interesting idea.Certainly dogs bond (pack instinct).
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I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman, "Where's the self-help section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin

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Doug L

I don't ever see any rocks here just sand, lol. The only thing we can flip is old boards and carpet that's been dumped.
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

What, you got like 20 species of snakes, including a member of every species that are rodent feeders. You have hurrican garbage everywhere, easy stuff to flip...but you dont HAVE to flip because you can just drive around at night and get out of the car to catch snakes. All in sarcasm! Totally jealous of you FL guys!

How about the mosquitos? Yeah we got it tuff.... I wish they would have left some hurricane debris around here. They spent millions cleaning up after Charlie and his two sisters. I'm just glad I still have a house, lol.
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

I caught this guy on the way to work yesterday. well, day before yesterday. Good thing I always carry snake bags. It comes as standard equiptment in the glove box

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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

Up here in the tundra of Mass. we have E. milks but not much else. Our ugly Black ratsnakes are protected. You have:
Yellow rats
Corns
Mole kings
South FL mole kings
FL kings
East. kings
Goini kings
Scarlet kings
Pines
s.hogs
Keys rats
Rosy rat
Those are just some of the rodent feeders!!
About 17 species of water/garter snakes
Lets not forget about escapees!
We dont even have a single lizard up here! If we want to do any kind of "real" snake hunting we have to drive hundreds of miles past New Jersey(!!!) Oh ya, besides mosquitoes(admittedly not as big as yours)we have black flies and green head horse flies! Rules up the bum, serious discrimination(PETCO wont sell feeders!), and a ball python public.
That walking to school in the snow up hill both ways...not exactly from Florida either! Bikinis? Takes an act of god! Great place to send your kids to school...puritan morals and all.
Other than that its about the same, LMAO!

wow....that blows.....pine barrens are an 45 minutes....delaware.va carolinas within a day....used to be quicker with beer....but i didn't remarry i'd be west fla or sw texas....but i needed medical!!!!

I thought Maine was the only state in the continental U.S. with no lizards... doesn't MA have five-lined skinks? We've got even fewer species of snake... Eastern milk, garter, ribbon, water, black racer, red-bellied, ringneck, brown... maybe half a dozen species of turtle, half of which are ultra-rare/protected/limited range... like five and a half species of salamander (some of them are hybrids, how scandalous!)

One kind of toad and a handful of species of frogs... did I miss anything? And hey, if you're disappointed about what you can find in the wild, just wait until you see the short list of unrestricted species you can keep in captivity without a permit (although, that list got significantly longer/saner this year). And to top it off, it's so cold that even the hardiest of captive-bred milksnakes have to huddle together for warmth until midsummer:

See, by comparison, doesn't seem so bad down in the Old Commonwealth, now does it?

Nate

But wait....what about the Canadians? Just kidding, I love the blue hairs.....really! .......I am actually kidding, I've enjoyed this post. Florida isn't so bad huh?
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King Snakes! Who can make a better mouse trap?
J Sierra

Isnt it true that in Maine when you divorce your wife she is still your sister?? Seriously, there is no Berlin wall, make a break for it!

Jeez, why'd you have to go and take a perfectly good West Virginia joke, and ruin it by substituting Maine in for it? I'll never understand flatlander humor! I actually escaped from Massachusetts several years ago (four years of college in Worcester) and can't say I'm eager to return. Besides, I'd have to cross through New Hampshire, where the men are men, and the sheep are nervous!

Oh, sorry to disrupt this chucklefest with facts, but you're absolutely right, no lizards in MA, but I could have sworn my dad's old Audubon Field Guide told a different story. Looks like there are a few isolated populations of skinks in western Connecticut, but that's about it for New England. Oh well, salamanders are pretty cool...

Have a nice weekend,
Nate

If you want to keep snakes Florida is the ideal place right? Been to W.Va lately? Not much difference between there and Maine! And the saying is in NH where the men are men and the ball pythons are nervous! LMAO! Most state laws are beyond foolish, I know the guys in Mass. permitting department get at least 1 call EVERY DAY from someone wanting to keep a Lion, Tiger, Monkey or some such foolish thing. THAT is who the laws are written for, not our fun little hobby.

np

why would it be?

if I was a snake and I went under a slab and found 2 more snakes, then when I leave and come back I keep finding the snake or two there again plus other snakes...?...doesn't it seem fair to think the snake would feel secure enough to know, that if other snakes frequent that rock, wood,car door...it must be a safe place to hang out?.....

true story...black ratsnake at Nixon Park ,York Co PA finds and remembers the bird houses around the ranger station...visits one hous ea day and is seen going from one to another...over and over again...living in them and feeding on the birds...memmory....(they removed said snake--even though they like snakes,they have to protect some birds at times also)...

...memmory.....not far from forethought?.....

....till some kid with a stick finds that car door and rips all the snakes off and sells them to Bubba J and his pet shoppe....
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......JY

I don't know about all species (example: sidewinders are kind of nomadic), but certain ones do bond.

I've seen it with Cal kings. One female chooses one male out of a few, and they stay together all Winter and mate in Spring (or Winter too). It is a form of bonding.
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Mark

Flipped these two (both large adults in the blue) yesterday late afternoon at one of my spots.

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Joe

interesting find since I think racers eat milks
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"He's down in the basement staring at his snakes " My Wife

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Doug L