Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ambushing prey from a Hide, while protecting yourself from predators is the common “modus operandi” of many snakes:
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Emory’s
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Everglades
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Texans
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Traditional Corn
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But even hiders come out to eat, though these guys naturally prefer after dark.
In the day, this cage looks empty, but rustle a mouse through the aspen and the hunters appear!!

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Some prefer to hide in plain view.
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Baird’s
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Yellow Rat – Deckert’s variant
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Yellow Rat – Gulfhammock variant
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Very cool. Nice snakes and nice shots.

Thanks, Mike.
I'd like to see more pics by others, like yourself.
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Excellent pictures! Thanks for an entertaining post!

Thanks... Very kind...
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Those are very nice photo's and repesentations of the different forms!

~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"

my website -serpentinespecialties.webs.com

Thanks, Doug....
Of course, there are more animals, but those were fully using cage decor.
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Nice shots! Baird's always hide in plain site, that's why they are my favorite Ratsnake! LOL

Matthew

Baird's seem to fit the bill for one of the best captive animals, Matthew.
Size, color, hardiness, demeanor, etc.
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Quite so! My favorite pet snake, by far. They are outgoing & curious, not flighty or nippy. Eat well, subtle but beautiful colors. what more can you ask for?

Matthew

WOWOWOWOW. Great mix there Bill. Especially love that T-Rat. What a smoker! thanks for posting
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See all my snakes at SerpenTrack.com

Thanks, Brad.
In many areas of their range, you have to wade through many that are "not so nicely marked".
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Nice shots of nice snakes, Bill!

Speaking of snakes hunting - it is still exciting, for me, to see them hunting and feeding in the wild. I watched a meahllmorum (southern emoryi) clean out the enclosed gutters of a patio a while back. It put away all of the baby birds of two swallow nests! Unfortunately, I did not have a camera handy - and the shots would probably not have come out well, since the snake was completely protected, and mostly hidden from view.
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-Toby Brock
Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research

" I watched a meahllmorum (southern emoryi) clean out the enclosed gutters of a patio a while back. It put away all of the baby birds of two swallow nests!"
That is so cool, Toby.
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Whenever I talk with the general public about these animals, I play up rodent control, and play down bird eating......
However, stomach content studies of Rat Snakes, usually have a good percentage of avian prey...
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Regards, Bill McGighan

>>" I watched a meahllmorum (southern emoryi) clean out the enclosed gutters of a patio a while back. It put away all of the baby birds of two swallow nests!"
>>That is so cool, Toby.
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>>Whenever I talk with the general public about these animals, I play up rodent control, and play down bird eating......
>>However, stomach content studies of Rat Snakes, usually have a good percentage of avian prey...
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>>Regards, Bill McGighan

I do the same, Bill - but the owner of the patio was not upset about the snake eating the baby birds. The birds make a mess of the patio - and the adult birds will be back again next season to make more any way. I have found the great majority of that subspecies on the ground, and have found them killing rodents more often than birds.
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-Toby Brock
Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research

Beautiful animals and nice pics! Do you by any chance breed those colorful Texans? Jeff

Thanks, Jeff.
I breed them for my own personal use only....
It's complicated... email me if you want the whole story.
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Bill Hi, great post! Wish I could afford all those vision cages, it really is they way to do it. Maybe someday. I like your use of things like the old watering can for hides. Creative.
By the way the fox babies are doing very well.

"Beautiful animals and nice pics! Do you by any chance breed those colorful Texans? Jeff"

Jeff don't know where you live but I have a female hi-orange Tex rat that looks just like the one in the watering can that Bill has and she had a clutch of babies earlier this year. The male is hi-blue/gray with dabs of orange also so the potential for color is there. Don't know where abouts you are but the baby tex rats I have arn't really a hot comodity where I am in the north east. I have two with kinks that are otherwise healthy and i'd give them away to anyone close by that would want to raise them. They are about 5 months old now. If you have any interest give me an e-mail.
Mike.

Thanks Mike; … So glad the Eastern Foxes are doing well.
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"I like your use of things like the old watering can for hides. Creative."
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I've been trying to keep the cages simple for cleaning, but like to put a few safe, simple pieces of decor that imply habitat, or places I've observed, or even caught, the wild ones:
e.g.
West TX Emorys – Rock pile
(One of these Emory’s was coaxed from a rock grevice with the tip of a 5 wt flyrod!)
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Everglades – A Swamp Fern, sometimes called a Toothed Mid-sorus Fern - A common everglades’ plant where this large male was found.
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Texans - The water can and a broken spade, implying they’re in a barn.
The father of these Texans was under AC next to an east Texas barn.
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Corns – just an old gnarly stump
(Common in the pines of the panhandle of Florida where this variation of corn was found)
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Trans-pecos Rats – Mostly limestone rocks from west Texas, and a lava hide (I don’t like it black, but I couldn’t find a better color with similar functionality.)
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Baird’s – Rock Ledge and dead tree
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Deckert’s – pseudo Cyprus branches
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Gulf Hammocks – synthetic palmetto or cabbage palm with a touch of synthetic Spanish Moss
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And this old Yellow Rat pic with Palmetto.
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PS
I find that chain craft stores are carrying more and more synthetic native plants.

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Regards, Bill McGighan

Very nice shots of some very nice snakes.

Thank you, sir... Very kind...
About 1/2 my collection of NA Rats....
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Neat line-up...love the variation and seeing all in one post. I agree...the texas is BEAUTIFUL, and so is your Bairds!
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Carl

Thank you, Sir.
I can only remember 2 or 3 Baird's that were ugly!!!
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Regards, Bill McGighan

Nice collection, Bill. As you know, I especially like the Emory's rats. That first pic was very cool. I'm working with some Colorado montane rats, as well as your West TX Emory's now. This species is extremely variable and great to work with.

Later...Terry
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