Do lily ponds attract snakes?
Thanks
This message was edited Mar 31, 2008 7:55 PM
Lily ponds - Black snakes
I suggest you take a look at this web site. Since "black snake" is the common name and there are several snakes in VA with the descriptor as black, it's hard to get specific information.
Up north here we get two types of snakes at our pond - both harmless to humans. We are thrilled to have them. Nature has to be somewhere and I'm proud to supply habitat that supports them.
http://fwie.fw.vt.edu/VHS/snakes_of_virginia.htm
Please post the latin name of the snake you have questions about.
It has been my experience that ponds attract different kinds of wildlife which is on aspect of ponding that I really enjoy. Something to be aware of with snakes is that you probably have had them all along and they may be more visible with a pond simply because they usually like damp, cool places. I would expect that if you have scaly residents you will seldom see them as they will usually hear you and leave before you catch sight of them.
When we first moved into our house we were surrounded by corn fields. Our yard was over run by prarie garter snakes. They were bold too, laying in the front bushes and on our steps. I don't mind snakes if I see them coming but if they startle me or I step on one I get a bit freaked out.
We found out quickly our Scottish Terrier is a natural born snake hunter. Her instinct is amazing to watch, she looks like a mongoose. She has killed more then a few and thankfully the snakes have either vacated to our new surrounding neighborhood or smartened up (you still see them occasionally but they hide much quicker).
Water definately brings nature out but I think snakes won't be too much of a problem.
Check out enature.com You can enter your zip code and they will tell you what kind of critters can be found in your area. Good luck!
I have seen snakes swallow fish . They dislocate there jaw and can eat a pretty big sized fish. If it's a small snake that is no problem. They will keep the baby fish thined out. I don't bother them and they don't bother me. I had one that lived in my stream last year. It was a comon water snake. Not poison. Linda
I got my fish out of the jaws of a watersnake last year.
I was so mad I told the thing off. It never tried to eat my fish again.
Of course, me chasing it with the shovel did't have anything to do with it's change of heart... LOL
So far no 'bad ones' have showed up but yea, ponds attract ALL snakes. Just be careful working in/around and keep your eye out.
Snakes can eat things much larger than their heads so big ish really isnt a problem for a small snake.
I have lost many of my favorite fish to water snakes. I got tired of buying them to be eaten. I finally put deer netting on my pond to keep the snakes out.
Yow! Ain't wildlife wonderful!? The snakes we get don't eat fish. But they give live birth. Which can be interesting if you are weeding and one does it right at your feet. Mom and youngun' don't bond. Each immediately slithers off in a different direction.
I can sympathise with the deer netting. A feathered nuisance called a heron fishes our ponds each summer. The only 100% effective method to keep your koi pond from becoming a heron buffet is bird netting. A heron is a Federally protected species, so we accord them the proper respect. However in my view they are about as welcome as a flying rat.
We also get heron and I have lost fish for that reason also. Another reason my pond is netted.
From Snakes to herrons... I can attest to ponds drawing animals.. I get raccoons comming up to my little pond.. do they eat fish... Iguess they do if they can be caught.. they do like to wash their food I hear ..so A pond is a draw just for that.. My pond is in Brooklyn.. uoonwhat wouldbe the 5th floor level .. so they come up the fire escape to visit my pond..they don't stop there though.. but come down the circular stairway intothehouse also.. and have been known to take a few packs of ramen noodles from the cabinet back up to the roof with them.. the cat goes a bit ballastic when they come down. on one of their home invasions... usually late at night... but sometimes in the day also
Flying rats..now there's an immage.. we get the bushey tailed rats visiting the pond/garden also...OH...that's...squirrels here.. everything is in raised containers..so they bring nuts they find ( acorns ) and ones that people geive them ( roasted peanuts ) up to save for later ..buried in my planters..they know my planters Thaw out and warm up earlier than the ground in the spring..so they start their late winter meals here... from their container buried cache.. I must get a pound of nuts out of my planters every spring..as I process the soil for growing.. not to mention the container grown oak trees.. but the pond is the big mealtime draw... I believe
Gordon
Squirrels are tree rats. Herons are flying rats.
And your description of your fire escape climbing, house raiding and ramen noodle stealing, 5th floor racoons takes the cake.
I got pictures.. now where are they stored is the question..
OK...I found them...here...here's my home invader.. the cat was throwing a fit one evening... talking about this and that...about 2 am..It told her to get over it ..anddidn'tthink anything of it.. the next night it was the samebit... so I looked around and came upon this...
Gordon
This message was edited Apr 7, 2008 11:55 AM
Gordon, OMG, how does he get in?? and I don't blame your cat...........a good thing she didn't try to confront it............the claws on those guys can rip furbabies apart........better reinforce your door..
OH>>> Sorry for themultiple posts.. my machine was getting hug up..and I thought I'd opted out before starting again.. but it remembered now and continued..
Oh... hejust walks in... I leave the door to the roof open ... the cat likes to go in and out.. and the air is lovely... plenty of exotic smells.. and the dozens of blooming brugmansias.. jasmine..and honeysuckle at night are well worrth the price of admission.. so my raccoon buddy.. just walked in.. it was the next day..duringdaylight hours that he went into the kitchen for his noodles..after visiting the cat food..no wonder she was upset with him..
yes they can open up a cat or dog..withtheir claws..no doubt..
There is an old southern sport...called coon on a log.. I think it's mostly for dog trainning.. to get them really after the coons... they take a raccoon and give him a collar.. and chain it to a log.. they float the log out onto a pond.. and set the pack of dogs out to him... ... now a pack of dogs are more than a match for a raccoon... but they are at a great disadvantage being in the water swimming about... and the raccoon has the upper hand... being above the dogs and with these claws.. after a bout of this. humilation.. the dogs out hunting for coon... will pick up a scent and follow it with great fever... I don't believe they are able to get the coon in this game..
Gordon
lol, raccoons will drown a dog.
Hubby has saved his dogs a couple times from that.
His friends have lost dogs when the raccoon holds their heads under water and kills them.
Rascally creatures, lol.
Can't say I'm fond of the coon on log game, even though I've no great fondness for pond raiding racoons. Too cruel for me.
I will say that the office here where I am (supposed to be) working has been crowding around the computer looking at your shot of the house invader. Thanks for sharing. It gave everybody something to smile about.