All Snakes are Deadly

By: Beverly Warnke

          Do you ever really think of what animals are capable of, or what they can do to anyone if they feel threatened? People might yell at you saying, “Get away, that snake is poisonous/deadly” when it’s not.

          The Garter snake  (see picture) is an inoffensive snake that wants to mind its own business. The Garter snake is one of the most typical snakes in North America, with a large span from Canada to Florida; a lot of people even keep them as house companions. Garter snakes are very docile and can be handled very easily, but please wash your hands after touching because they have glands on the underside of their body that release a malodorous scent. Also, Garter snakes can be aggressive, so if it doesn’t want to be bothered, then don’t bother it. “Some species of Garter snakes do produce a mild neurotoxic venom, but it does not affect humans,” says LiveScience. Garter snakes vary in color with the species and the region the snake lives in, and they usually have three stripes; one runs down its back and one on each side. For most species, the stripes are a yellowish-green, but this varies with some snakes.

The next snake is the Corn snake. The Corn snake is found in the South-Eastern parts of the U.S. They inhabit fields, meadows, forests, and rural areas that provide enough food (abandoned homes/barns). Many Corn snakes can be found in the wild, but many can be found in homes living good, happy lives as pets. Main threats for the thriving of Corn snakes are habitat destruction and mistaken murder. Corn snakes are not venomous, and unfortunately people often kill Corn snakes because they share similarities in appearance with poisonous snake known as the Copperhead. Corn snakes are usually orange or dark yellow in color, and they also have red blotches and stripes on the back and lateral sides of the body. Their belly is covered with black and white markings. The color variety of the body depends on the habitat (it provides camouflage). A type of Corn snake is the Snowflake Corn snake, and this beautiful snake is not quite albino, but not quite corn Snake, which is why it’s called the Snowflake Corn snake.

The last snake is the Ball Python. Ball Pythons are named after their natural defensive behaviors because when threatened they tend to curl up into a ball and avoid socializing, but with proper socialization they can be easily handled and are very docile. They are also called the Royal Python because ancient royalty wore them as jewelry, such as arm bands or the most popular one, a necklace.  Like all other pythons, it is a non-venomous constrictor. This is the smallest of the African Pythons and is most popular in the pet trade. Most Ball Pythons (or pythons in general) are mistaken for deadly, so their bite may need some time to recover from, but they are still non-threatening to society.

          The three different types of non venomous snakes that you can keep as pets are the Garter snake, Corn snake, and the Ball Python. Remember, don’t have an irrational fear of harmless snakes, only fear the deadly ones.