Snakes in North Carolina? (Charlotte, Raleigh: apartment complex, camping, estimates)

[NCis4me]

Originally Posted by mm34b

Nope, never heard that story, but some folk collect non-native "pets" and release them in the wild. Some NC folks swear that large cats like the Eastern Cougar exists here, but the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has been unable to document a single sighting in the wild in decades.

Here's one for you. Both of these snakes are found in some parts of the state. Which is the poisonous one?

Snake #1



Snake #2

I wouldn't know, but my Dad would have. He knew the poisonous from the non on sight after decades of hunting in NC and VA woods. I have heard of panther sightings in the NC mountains, and that the official statement is that they don't exist in our area. It's possible we have panthers in the hills, but until one is shot and drug out and shown to state officials, it's not likely most will believe it. A while back I saw a wolf in our area. I contacted a local wildlife expert and was told, no they couldn't have made it this far, though they had been released in Germanton. Just because the officials aren't tracking properly every type of wild animal doesn't mean the animals stay in their designated areas and can't appear wherever civilization drives them to.

[mm34b]

Originally Posted by NCis4me

I wouldn't know, but my Dad would have. He knew the poisonous from the non on sight after decades of hunting in NC and VA woods. I have heard of panther sightings in the NC mountains, and that the official statement is that they don't exist in our area. It's possible we have panthers in the hills, but until one is shot and drug out and shown to state officials, it's not likely most will believe it. A while back I saw a wolf in our area. I contacted a local wildlife expert and was told, no they couldn't have made it this far, though they had been released in Germanton. Just because the officials aren't tracking properly every type of wild animal doesn't mean the animals stay in their designated areas and can't appear wherever civilization drives them to.

USF&WS doesn't require Cougar/Panther/Mountain Lion capture to verify, but they do require more than just someone personal recollection, such as preservation of tracks, still and video photography or DNA evidence. Apparently, no one has produced evidence since the 1950s. They have found abandoned ones in the wild that were once someone's exotic pet. I remember reading about one that was hit and killed by a car in the Eastern NC. After examination, it was found to have had some previous dental work done.

I don't know about wolves other than then I read they're trying to re-populate the Red Wolf species in Eastern and Western NC.

[NCis4me]

Originally Posted by mm34b

USF&WS doesn't require Cougar/Panther/Mountain Lion capture to verify, but they do require more than just someone personal recollection, such as preservation of tracks, still and video photography or DNA evidence. Apparently, no one has produced evidence since the 1950s. They have found abandoned ones in the wild that were once someone's exotic pet. I remember reading about one that was hit and killed by a car in the Eastern NC. After examination, it was found to have had some previous dental work done.

I don't know about wolves other than then I read they're trying to re-populate the Red Wolf species in Eastern and Western NC.

There was a show on TV the other day that showed a NC panther in the wild on video. It was very grainy, but obvious from the form it was no housecat, bobcat, etc. Most people who run into a panther are not going to stick around to get video or a still photo. This guy did because he wanted to see what had killed his dog IIRC.

Yes, it was a red wolf I saw. It was alone, and I saw it only once. We have a large wildlife population that could easily feed a few red wolves in our county. We are in the same county where the red wolves were released, but the officials were sure they had not gotten as far as our road.

[mm34b]

Each red wolf that is captured or released is outfitted with a radio transmitter that emits pulse signals or “beeps” that biologists can read with a radio receiver. These signals enable the biologists to locate the wolves. The frequency of locations varies from once or twice daily to once a week, depending on specific circumstances. Most of the telemetry is done from fixed wing aircraft because the wolves range over such a large area.

[NCis4me]

Yes, the wolves released or caught and released might be, but if the young pups are not caught and tagged, they would not emit these beeps and would be hard to track once they are old enough to go out on their own because of being ousted from the pack, sickness, etc. This was a small red wolf I saw, so small DH said it must have been a female, but it could have been a very, very young male.

[mm34b]

Red wolves will breed with gray wolves, domestic dogs, and coyotes too.

[chenry]

I live in Matthews which is very densely populated and there are black snakes here during the summer. I am not sure if there is a way to escape snakes in NC, but I heard that moth balls will repel them

[Ann in Oriental]

Last summer our Bichon was killed by an Eastern diamondback right in our backyard! The vet said by the size of the fang marks it was probably 8-10 ft. long. Needless to say we no longer live there. We know there are lots of snakes in our new location also but it's not as rural so we feel a little safer. We use leashes on the other dogs now even in our yard.

[Deez Nuttz]

Yes, i found a snake in my own back yard. I do not know what kind it was....it had orange and white markings.

[uncletupelo]

It is highly doubtful that the eastern diamondback that bit your dog was 8 feet long. There has only been one 8 foot long ED ever captured. 7 footers are rare, but are out there. The 9 foot claim is absurd.