Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Earlier this evening I was walking into the kitchen and spotted what initially appeared to be an earthworm on the floor... Closer inspection revealed it to be a little Sharp-Tailed Snake. I have a hard enough time finding these guys when I'm actually out looking for them, so finding one in the middle of the kitchen floor was pleasantly shocking! Good thing the lights were on, otherwise I probably wouldn't have seen him and he might have gotten trampled by me, someone else, or the dog.

I need some help deciding where to release him... I'm going to be out of town most of tomorrow, so it'll probably happen Monday. What would be a good type of location to release him in? I'm in a open oak woodland, and it just rained a few days ago so there shouldn't really be any moisture issues. What type of cover do they prefer? Would the snake do better released in a grassy area, dense forest, or something in between? This appears to be the long-tailed species, if that changes anything (habitat, diet, temperature range, etc).

-----
- Natalie
(San Francisco Bay Area)

How about releasing it in the back yard? I figure there must be a population very close to your house if it ended up in your kitchen, and even with all the hazards of living near people, that would still probably be better than the shock of relocation.

Billy

-
Phillyherping

Thanks for the response. I was considering releasing it into the yard, but there are so many cats, raccoons, crows, and other predatory animals around that don't think it would last too long. My house is mostly surrounded by open space so I was going to release it somewhere near the house but not so close that the cats will get it.

I think tomorrow I'll just go out and release it wherever I see a lot of slugs (that seems to be their main prey).
-----
- Natalie
(San Francisco Bay Area)

I think the yard release is the best option. Yes, you may have predators in your yard, but predators are likely to be anywhere you release the snake. In addition, you have "genetic polution" when you release a snake into a population that it didn't come from.

Tim

Here's a little Sharptail that I found in Big Basin in April:

Third Eye