Buzzworm Worthy of An Arrow
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If that rattle is real, that's an incredible specimen.
P.S. Please don't kill reptiles and spiders just because you're afraid of them. They are very useful predators that get rid of much worse critters than themselves.
It’s got one heck of a back strap. Not afraid at all
He should have been put to use in the tunnels.
"Please don't kill reptiles and spiders just because you're afraid of them....."
Ike, we have four species of venomous snakes in Texas, and many, many other species that eat the same rodents and birds that the venomous ones do. I never met a rattler, cottonmouth, copperhead, or coral that I liked. All others get a pass. Unfortunately, the Timber Rattler is protected here. The same love that I have for venomous snakes extends to Black Widows and the Brown Recluse also. I can't imagine the world would miss them if they were gone. A friend of mine was bitten on the ass by a BR and after almost dying, the doctor cut off about a quarter of his ass and he spent nearly three months in the hospital. I have had three near misses from cottonmouth moccasins, and one from a copperhead. Thanks, but no thanks !
Yah I’m all about snakes. Rattlers don’t get a free pass. Especially close to the house.
I sure will never give a venemous snake or spider a pass.
I had a friend that was bitten on his pecker by a brown recluse in basic training. It didn't turn out to well for his pecker. I wear tight underwear any time I'm in brown recluse country now.
I’m not too protective of spidders... the way they reproduce, we won’t run low short of chemical (bug) WMD.
Venomous snakes too close to too many people sometimes need to be permanently removed - like the 5 1/2 footer my brother shot out from under his propane tank when it buzzed at him on his way to the outhouse one night..
I’m all for live capture and relocation when you can do it safely, but sometimes you have a good use for a skin... or maybe you're just tired of chicken ;)
Away from the homestead, though... they go their way and I’ll go mine.
They grow a rattle every time they shed their skin. It doesn't equate to years of age. The pet snakes I kept as a kid would shed 2-3 times a year. I never had a rattle snake that would eat in captivity so I can't comment on the frequency.
Killed one in TX that was 63" long and had 17 rattles. That one in the pic seems suspect. Maybe not.
Lost a really good dog to a prairie rattler and I was struck twice moving a mower one night. No venomous snake gets a pass from me, ever.
Looks legit. Also looks like a reason to build the wall!
I killed one near Uvalde, Texas while javelina/hog hunting that was near 6' and I think he also sported 17 rattles with some broken off. My son and his buddy killed three more the same afternoon, not that big, but plenty damn big. Later that day I shot a sow hog in a semi-open spot and I was blood trailing the thought I had was "If she gets in that brush the coyotes can have her". Luckily, she was dead in a little dry wash just short of the brush. I was NOT going in there on my hands and knees for a hog right at dark. That rattler's head was as big as my fist.