Snakes within Northern Virginia (Alexandria, Woodbridge: living, fence, food)

[Bigfoot424]

I've been in NOVA since 73 and have never had a snake in my house. I even lived on Bull Run Mountain for several years back in the 70's and never had one in the house and there are probably more snakes up there than anywhere around here.

[124c41]

Working for the County in Texas, we had a powder called, if memeory serves me, " Snake Away" that the equipment operators could sprinkle around their machines after they shut down to go home. It worked good, because we had trouble, especially in the cooler months, with the snakes crawling up the machinery to get under our seats to warm themselves from the residule heat from the motor. It was a rude awakening to be sometimes an hour into driving your machine, then looking down, and seeing a big, black, mocassin entertwined around your foot, or a copperhead slithering across your boot. I have seen men turn the machinery off, then jump off before it quits moving, and run away from their equipment, shaking in their boots after that happening to them. It happened to me only once, then I learned to look under my seat every morning. In another instance, the snake would wedge itself under the seat so that when the operator sat down, it would injure the snake, and then it would die in the course of a day, or two. I know of one such incident that I saw, personally, that happened on a bull dozer, and when we came back after a long holiday, you could hardly get within 10 feet of the dozer without gagging. The seat was history, and the area underneath had to be repeatedly scrubbed with disenfectant by the poor guy in mask and gloves. I was curious what was in the powder, and after reading the label, and talking to old-timers that lived around me, I discovered that a fairly effective repelent for snakes, and even chiggers, ticks, and the such was sulfur powder. The old-timers told me to sprinkle some around where I wanted to keep them away, and it would repel them. So, at the time, I was working in an area by a train track, and there was a big pile of sulfur, that I was told was the remains of from when a train car overturned years ago.I took some home, pulverized it, sprinkled it around the house, and it worked pretty good for me. I even kept a chunk on my tractor that I ran, and when I would have to walk through high weeds to get to a fence, or work on equipment, I would rub some across the top of my work boots to keep the crawlys off of me. It seemed to work, at least for me. I also collected old bottles as a hobby, for awhile, and was fascinated to find out that the small, cobalt blue, poison bottles I found contained either arsenic, or strychnine, bought at the local drugstore that folks back in the days used for keeping rats and snakes out of the house. I was told that the area around the house, sometimes out in a 10, or 12 ft. radius, was kept clean of any vegetation by spraying with the poison. The poison had a dual purpose in discouraging any rodents or snakes, since the bare ground became no-man's land for the critters, and, since power equipment wasn't that widely available back then, no one had to worry about mowing or weed-eating the yard. I would rather keep with my weed-eater, and mower. The frightening thing about the poison was that even though some kept it in the barn, or other out building, some folks kept it in their medicine cabinet, and since electric lighting in the house was at most times sparse, or sometimes didn't exist, and they had to rely on kerosene lanterns, the poison bottles had a distinguishing mark on the bottle that a person could identify as deadly, simply by feel, or poor lighting, if need be. I learned, too, that with different medicines there wasn't much difference in design between an aspirin bottle, say, and a poison bottle. Too risky for me.

[Back to NE]

Originally Posted by rbro980

I am really afraid of snakes...I know that they exist everywhere even in CT where I currently live...However, I've never had to really worry about a snake getting into my home.

But I've heard a number of times that it’s very common for snakes in Northern VA to be found in homes very frequently.

There is a small lake in Bethel, Connecticut teeming with water moccasins (cottonmouths), big, thick, healthy ones too!

Nothing like that down here though, I've seen one copperhead in 20 years. I've seen a few green tree snakes which are very gentle and a few black water snakes which can get quite large.

Snakes just want to be left alone, I can't understand why people fear them or think they are gross.

Now, if you move to NOVA, your house will probably get camel/spider crickets... those are nasty. I'd worry about them first

[ChristineVA]

Originally Posted by Back to NE

There is a small lake in Bethel, Connecticut teeming with water moccasins (cottonmouths), big, thick, healthy ones too!

Nothing like that down here though, I've seen one copperhead in 20 years. I've seen a few green tree snakes which are very gentle and a few black water snakes which can get quite large.

Snakes just want to be left alone, I can't understand why people fear them or think they are gross.

Now, if you move to NOVA, your house will probably get camel/spider crickets... those are nasty. I'd worry about them first

It's a phobia and it's not rational.

I would say that I don't like snakes. I'm not "afraid" of them nor do I think they are "gross" but they just skeeve me out in such a way that it has altered my behavior. I do NOT like to walk around in my backyard and I'm very wary walking down my driveway in the morning when it's dark out (I've had several big black snakes on my driveway).

I don't know when it happened but I remember being in second grade and having some nature person come visit our classroom with snakes and I was holding them, playing with them, and not a problem. It happened at some point after that.

Otherwise, nothing bother me. Spiders, flies, bugs, mice don't faze me but I've seen people practically wet there pants over spiders.

[bornindc]

Originally Posted by Back to NE

There is a small lake in Bethel, Connecticut teeming with water moccasins (cottonmouths), big, thick, healthy ones too!

Not to say this is impossible but it's pretty close. Cottonmouths typically aren't found any further north than Dismal Swamp on the East Coast, their range doesn't even extend into Maryland. I'm sure you have some other black/brown water snakes up in Connecticut, but I can pretty much guarantee they aren't cottonmouths.

Snakes just aren't much to worry about in Virginia, Connecticut or anywhere in between. As Back to NE stated, they generally just want to be left alone.

[RamblingMan]

I agree with everyone who has stated how rare it would be to have a snake in your house.

That said, a workman just told me a couple of days ago that he saw a black snake behind my boiler in the basement. I told him to leave the snake alone. If he's living in the basement, he must be eating mice, and I'd rather have a snake than mice. Also, my wife now reports moles or gophers in the yard, and maybe the snakes will help with that as well.

Neighbors tell me that a nutria was living under a deck in the lower part of my yard, although I have not seen it. I have seen foxes and what I am pretty sure was a coyote, and the neighbors report that a bobcat is occasionally seen. I figure my local ecosystem is out of whack enough already. I don't need to make it worse by killing the snake. Strangely, I have never seen a squirrel in the yard, so maybe the snake(s) are doing their job.

To the OP: Don't panic! I live across the Potomac in Maryland.

BTW, I seriously doubt snakes in houes would be a problem in most of NoVa. I'm sure those ever-vigilant HOA's would never allow it...

[sullyguy]

Originally Posted by RamblingMan

I figure my local ecosystem is out of whack enough already

A few years ago, one year, we had an AMAZING number of chipmunks - they were EVERYWHERE in our patch of the neighborhood (we had, I think, three living under a 20 foot stretch of our front sidewalk).

Then a neighborhood pure white domestic (not feral) cat took action. I personally saw it catch numerous chipmunks, even simply sitting outside a neighbor's hole-in-the-ground patiently waiting, then pouncing high in the air onto the strangely-unsuspecting chipmunk; I have no idea why the chipmunks - over and over again - had no clue that big bright white cat wasn't something to be around. I'm fairly certain the owner had numerous partial remains to clean up...

We don't have a chipmunk problem right now.

BTW - more than a few times we've had a falcon sitting about 6 feet off the ground in one of our trees over the years - I think I finally figured out why. We have a large tree root coming off that tree with a smaller tree root flowing perpendicular over it. From WAY up in the sky even a sharp-eyed hawk might think that smaller root is a snake.

So predators sometimes have predators, too.

.

[Back to NE]

Originally Posted by bornindc

Not to say this is impossible but it's pretty close. Cottonmouths typically aren't found any further north than Dismal Swamp on the East Coast, their range doesn't even extend into Maryland. I'm sure you have some other black/brown water snakes up in Connecticut, but I can pretty much guarantee they aren't cottonmouths.

Well I'll be, I was fooled by the relatively large heads of the Northern Water Snakes... surely that is what they were. Apparently Timber Rattlers and Copperheads are the only native poisonous snakes in CT.

[rbro980]

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

It's a phobia and it's not rational.

I would say that I don't like snakes. I'm not "afraid" of them nor do I think they are "gross" but they just skeeve me out in such a way that it has altered my behavior. I do NOT like to walk around in my backyard and I'm very wary walking down my driveway in the morning when it's dark out (I've had several big black snakes on my driveway).

I don't know when it happened but I remember being in second grade and having some nature person come visit our classroom with snakes and I was holding them, playing with them, and not a problem. It happened at some point after that.

Otherwise, nothing bother me. Spiders, flies, bugs, mice don't faze me but I've seen people practically wet there pants over spiders.

Do you live in NOVA?...If so ...what town or city if you don't mind me asking?
Thank you...

[rbro980]

Thanks for the new replies to my question...

I was feeling alittle more at ease but now I'm back on the fence from some of the recent replies...I would hate not to be able to enjoy or utilize my backyard because I'll be too afriad of seeing a snake...

I guess that best method is keep your grass cut low....Keep brushes trimmed up ...leave no food out ...keep doors closed...plug up any holes/cracks around the house....and hope for the best...don't know which is worse the snakes or mices...bother I don't like at all....