Rattlesnake & cobras in Houston suburbs? (Sugar Land, The Woodlands: new home, living, garden)

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

If you have a bunch of cobras in your yard like I do then they will scare away the gators.

My kryptonite cross with DEET keeps cobras, gators, mosquitoes, Dracula and Superman away.

[glorplaxy]

Cobras? Where do you think we are? India?

Rattlesnakes? No. As far as I know there are no rattlesnakes in this area at all. I believe they make their homes in the desert areas of Texas, not the subtropical area we are in.

There are two types of poisonous snakes that can be found around Houston and they are water moccasins and copperheads. Water moccasins ARE aggressive and may actively try to bite. Copperheads will only bite if they feel threatened. Neither of these are extremely dangerous, though.

[jimboburnsy]

Originally Posted by chris_ut

If you have a bunch of cobras in your yard like I do then they will scare away the gators.

I'm literally crying. That's hilarious.

No cobras anywhere in the Americas. There are definitely rattlesnakes across Texas and along the Gulf Coast, but the fact that Texans have killed rattlesnakes on sight for well over 150 years and that there just isn't much habitat for them rules that out as a major concern. Depending on where you live you may see some snakes of different character but moving anywhere in and around Houston isn't like moving way out into the woods. Its more like moving to the 4th largest city in the nation.

Greatwood has some resident gators on the golf course, any still water of adequate size will have alligator snapping turtles, there are snakes (this is Texas), I'm sure someone will tell you he or she has seen a bear or a mountain lion, etc. etc. Large predatory fauna and venomous snakes are not something you should worry about here. You're in more danger from yellowjackets and paper wasps.

[Topaz]

Originally Posted by njmomto2

Is there really such a thing as snake away? We are all allergic to cats unfortunately!
I'm glad to hear that they aren't as common as some of the realtors led me to believe. One mentioned that gators are quite common too - anywhere there is water? I just don't want to be afraid to let my kids play in the yard.

Yes, the product is actually called "Snake Away," sometimes spelled "Snake-A-Way."

It gave me a shock to go to Oyster Creek in Sugar Land and see warning signs to stay away from the alligators in the water. I didn't see any that day but it does seem that you have to supervise your children carefully if they are playing somewhere like that. Shouldn't be a problem in yards not adjacent to water, although I did read (broken link) that one adventurous alligator made it all the way to a Walmart parking lot in Missouri City.

[chicagomama]

I'm laughing so hard I am crying (or I'm crying out of sheer terror?). Do the snakes at least eat the flying cockroaches??

[Wysiwyg]

Originally Posted by chicagomama

I'm laughing so hard I am crying (or I'm crying out of sheer terror?). Do the snakes at least eat the flying cockroaches??

snakes eat the frogs - which is about the size of a dime up to a muffin. i sure hope they dont have an appetite for cockroaches or else snakes will be drawn inside your house

[Supermac34]

Venemous snake bites aren't really something to worry about. Just be careful working around areas where snakes like to be.

The snake you have to watch out for most are Copperheads.

There are also Water Mocassins and Rattlesnakes, although Rattlesnakes are pretty rare.

Both Water Mocassins and Rattlesnakes prefer to warn and avoid. Copperheads are more prone to strike.

All that being said, in the almost 30 years I've lived in Houston, I've had to dispose of one copperhead and it was in a brush pile in 1984.

I've never seen a rattlesnake in Houston, and the only water mocassins I've seen have been swimming in the lakes at the golf course and not really anywhere near me.

[BoydS]

njmomto2 ... several folks (realtor not included) have given you some very acturate info regarding the venomous snakes in the Houston area. Although they have not encountered as many in their yards as I have, the reason being is that I live outside city limits on some acreage. Since the time I have lived on this property (20 years) I have encountered numerous copperheads, a few cotton mouths and only one coral snake. The number of non-venomous snakes are much more common to see than the venomous ones. Rattlesnakes in the surrounding area are more often encountered in the sand dunes along the coastal areas.

I also am only a few hundred yards from Oyster Creek and have not ever had a gator on my property (that I have witnessed). Many other critters however have been encountered. The most recent to my surprise was a bobcat ... very rare.

You need to educate yourself and your family about snakes. You would be surprised at the ones you never see, but they are present in your yard. Please visit the sites I have linked below for additional info on venomous and the non-venomous snakes that are in this area. Around Houston the biggest pest I see is the wasp and mosquito.

THE VENOMOUS SNAKES OF TEXAS - An Online Herepetological Resource Since 1997 - Species Index

Houston Audubon Society

[Poltracker]

Originally Posted by chicagomama

I'm laughing so hard I am crying (or I'm crying out of sheer terror?). Do the snakes at least eat the flying cockroaches??

I have encountered 5 snakes (different ones?) in the last couple of months while I have been gardening and removing old wood ties. They were Texas brown snakes and one grass snake. Both non-venomous. The Texas Browns only get about 10 inches long and I like them becuase they do eat slugs and random bugs including the roaches as well as frogs. I just relocate them while I garden. Grass snakes are also beneficial critters and I just tend to work around them as they tend to frighten off alot more easily. I suppose if I ran into a venomous snake in the yard (unlikely) I would be obligated to do away with it, but I like the discrete pest control the rest of them provide. You really do not run into them unless you are rooting around their favorite haunts which are not out in the open.

[Indianspringsguy]

In Texas, snakes are an issue. Mostly Copperheads though. ON the most part in the city, the snakes that do exist should exist and not be killed. If you want rats, then kill the snakes. Here in The Woodlands, someone recently found a Rat Snake and thankfully asked what it was before going bezirk and killing it.