Saturday the Park Naturalist found an Eastern warming on the asphalt road in the park. I think it was a female due to it's "granddaddy of a Hognose" size. She was a biggin'!

Sunday I wasn't allowed to play with it until after the snake presentation at 11:00. Dave wanted her as unused to people as possible so she'd puffup and play dead.

Well, things didn't work out that way even with me leaving her alone! During the presentation she *did* puff up, play 'Cobra,' and hiss like a banshee but she would NOT play dead. We did everything we could think of to frighten her and she wouldn't do it. No sir. We yelled, gently poked, played with her tail, made scary faces, banged the table, picked her up, Dave even got his face with an inch of hers and she still refused to play dead. It was neat though to be able to show people how hognose don't use biting as a defense. I call them the Gentle Giants.

After the presentation I had an Eastern Hognose for a day. She fell asleep in my lap at one point. I was able to finally get her to play dead and was able to look at her tongue, feel her teeth (SO SMALL!!!) and get an up close and very personal look at her mouth. Very cool.

By the end o'the day I was covered from head to toe in Hoggy crap. Is it usual for them to pooh in defense like a garter? Folks gave me a wide berth but I'd become innured to the stentch. I didn't give a ratz ass. Snakes poop. Fact o'life.

Had a great day with her. At the end o'the day I had to let her go - they're a Species of Concern in MN. I took her back where she was found and as soon as she was on the leaves she started side winder slithering away. She didn't go far, not far enough from the road to make *me* happy so I walked up to her and she was all Cobra, puffed up and HISSING! I ignored her and picked her up. In seconds I had a 'dead' snake in my hand! I find it fascinating that something with a brain as small as my little finger nail is so quick - even able! - to differentiate between being captive and not needing instictive behaviors to immediately upon feeling leaves, smelling the forest reverts in SECONDS to defensive behaviors that truly do go back to the reptilian part of its brain.

I sat down to wait out her Oscar winning performance. But she was better'un me. They really play dead a long time! After about five minutes - being eaten alive by misquetoes the entire time - I could see her head was right-side-up and I could see her tongue flicking. But she still wasn't about to right herself.

I couldn't take the misquetoes a second longer so I picked her up, she went 'dead' again, and I carried her further into the woods away from the road where I felt she'd be safer.

What a cool snake. What a great day. She was really special. Yup. She was.

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• Just an Eastern Hognose Story - green56belair, Mon Jun 2 09:39:32 2008