Snakes in early April

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Snakes in early April

April 10, 2015 by Mike Powell

I am seeing more and more wildlife as we move deeper into spring and even encountered a couple of snakes this past Monday as I was walking along some of the informal trails at my local marshland park. When I say “encountered,” I mean that I almost unwittingly stepped on them and was shocked when they made sudden movements.

The smaller of the two was a cute little Eastern Garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis) a pretty common species in out area. The second, much larger snake is probably an Eastern Ratsnake (Pantherophis alleghaniensis), formerly known as the Black Ratsnake.

According to the Virginia Herpetological Society, the Eastern Ratsnake is the only snake in Virginia that can grow to a length of more than six feet (1.8 meters). This snake was not quite that long, but it was pretty big and rather fierce looking. Although I occasionally have photographed snakes with a macro lens, I was more than content to get this shot with my telephoto zoom lens extended to it maximum 600mm focal length.

Posted in Nature, Photography, Reptiles, spring, wildlife | Tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Eastern Garter Snake, Eastern Ratsnake, Huntley Meadows Park, Pantherophis alleghaniensis, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis | 8 Comments

8 Responses

on April 10, 2015 at 10:03 am | Reply Lucy

Gorgeous!! Nice pictures ❤
on April 10, 2015 at 10:23 am | Reply krikitarts

I am elated whenever I cross paths with a snake and have had a fondness for garter snakes, since boyhood. They always seem to be wearing an impish smile. One thing I’ve been very grateful for is that, in my two dozen trips to Australia, I’ve never come across any during my hikes. They have some real nasties! Did you know that there are no snakes at all in New Zealand?
on April 10, 2015 at 10:24 am | Reply Laura (PA Pict)

Great shots! I love snakes but am, of course, having to learn to be a bit cautious regarding approaching them. We have had surprisingly few snake encounters considering how many walks we go for in woodland.
on April 10, 2015 at 12:05 pm | Reply luckykaye

Wow, wonderful shots! We don’t get much in the way of snakes here, and I can honestly say I’ve only ever seen one little grass snake. I do think they’re quite beautiful though.
on April 11, 2015 at 8:42 am | Reply Lyle Krahn

Those are beauties. Such wonderful curves lend to great composition.
on April 11, 2015 at 3:46 pm | Reply Ed

WOW! Excellent pics, did you use your birding lens for them?
- on April 11, 2015 at 5:04 pm | Reply Mike Powell
  
  In fact I did, Ed. I think I shot them both at 600mm, which meant I was pretty far back.
  - on April 12, 2015 at 6:41 am Ed
    
    Thought so, even though they are harmless I would’nt want to take those pics with a macro lens.. 🙂