NATURE AT YOUR DOOR This series describes nature as it unfolds through the seasons in the Appalachian mountains and the east coast region. Plants and animals that your might encounter in your backyard, neighborhood or local park or forest are highlighted as they emerge, flower, or become active. How to identify different plants and animals is explained and unique features of the organism's life history, biology, colonial uses and uses by native Americans as food or medicine is reviewed. The voice of video is directed toward young learners and the rich biology and history curriculum content engages learners of all ages and is a guide for teachers to create inquiry-based lessons. The goal is to engage children and families in exploring the world of nature just outside their door! It is biology content rich! With almost 40 years experience in biology teaching I cover many state and national science standards. I frequently include text, life science vocabulary, concepts and themes.
A buddy went fishing and brought me back a bunch of bluefish. So I'm out on my back deck scaling these suckers. I have the unscaled fish in a bucket. Maybe 10 lbers? Out of the corner of my eye, I see this garter snake slink up the side of the bucket, grab one of the blues by its tail and try to pull it out of the bucket. Maybe a 1lb snake trying to lift a 10-15 lb fish. But he was DETERMINED. Well of course I cut him off some chunks. Cute little bugger!
We got them in our garage.... they make babies and help keep the rodents and copper heads at bay... We've rescued a few too, when they got into trouble. My only issues with them are that they smell... and help stink up the garage.
I found one in my pond yesterday. You have some pretty cool facts on it! I won't be afraid of it now. Thank you for sharing the information. I also have water boatmans, guess I will check it out next. :)
A northern is chilling on my patio with me today. I put it in the shade out of the way from our two dogs, and he's just hanging out. I'm not sure if it's really calm, or if it's possibly sick. It's 91 here in Maryland today, so I'm hoping he can stay in the shade.
Fascinating!!! I've been going up to Shenandoah National Park for 50 years and seen hundreds? of these guys. Used to really creep me out (probably from climbing up rocks and suddenly finding one in front of my nose as I pulled myself up. Finally I decided it was ridiculous to be uncomfortable with them and that I'd learn to love them. Started by stroking one and quickly got over it and now I have great affection for them. But I didn't know any of what you shared about them! The toxins, the number of legs, how they gain segments, the single egg, 11 years! I've been going up to SNP weekly this past year. Next week when I'm up there again and see them, I'll remember all I learned just now. As always, thanks for your videos!
I like millipedes! I've found a lot of them; unfortunately for me, I've never seen one that size, but I'm hoping! Thanks for the interesting info about them.
Years ago - a few decades, it was Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta. You can go insane getting coiled in the intracies of ophidian systematics. I love rat snakes. I had corn snakes (Red Ratsnake), yellow rat snakes, grey rat snakes and black rat snakes. They make doxile, hardy pets. Love them. I Never killl snakes.
I've saw quite a few different snakes in Western NY. Garter snakes, water snakes, A large black and white snake?, and even found a rattle snake before in the basement of an old restaurant. Now that I am in North Florida, the snakes are much more prevalent. I've saw Pigmy Rattlers, Large eastern rattlers, Black racers, Oak snakes, water snakes, some massive tan snake, and couple others that I can't identify. I normally do not harm them but recently I had a 4ft Cottonmouth that came to my back glass door and tried to strike my dog through the glass. I had to put that one down.
When I'm working on my landscape I will move snakes out of the area so they don't accidentally get hurt. I had no idea the garter snakes could "skunk" me, although some of them are fairly feisty, especially in springtime.
I can attest that you cant keep them in the house unless you have a well contructed aquarium. I tried keeping black racers in cardboard boxes inside the garage when i was a kid. Other snakes like hog nose were never a problem but the black racers always escaped and were never seen again. Black racers aren't as well mannered as rat snakes but they're still my favorite partly because of their feisty temperament and strength. Caught one 5 footer & was snapping its body, was very difficult to hold onto; very strong. Only that one acted that way - of all the racers I've handed over the years.
@@natureatyourdoor yes, it was the double whammy! I didn't have any doubt that it was a harmless garter snake so the bite didn't bother me, it also didn't hurt. But I had never smelled snake musk and it was nasty! 🤢🤣
I have less milkweed in the garden this year and started running out.i saw leaves with up to four eggs on them and little flower buds with several as well. At first i was moving the eggs. Is that ok to do? I just started bringing them inside in a Tupperware. Which instar stage is best to put them on the plant? I've caught some cats fighting and eating eggs etc. Naughty 🐛
Be careful about keeping them inside plastic containers ...eggs and larva need plenty if ventilation to discourage fungal and bacterial growth. It is a tough world out there ..maybe second instar?
This was a very interesting and informative video. It bothers me a great deal how many people just automatically kill every snake they come in contact with. Snakes are far more beneficial alive and in our environment not. Many people assume all snakes are dangerous and poisonous. When I was a 7 year old I was very upset when my mother had a neighbor kill a hog nosed snake she came across in her garden because of how it responded to being startled. She piled rocks on it and had the neighbor cut its head off. I quickly taught my mother about the snakes I was knowledgeable about living in Massachusetts and she never killed another snake again. I still try to educate people about the snakes of Virginia where currently live so they won't be so quick to kill them. I also have a soft place in my heart for spiders as do both my adult daughters. We often stop our cars to rescue snakes or turtles crossing the roadways. Let nature be.
I appreciate that there ARE people with your attitude and regard for ALL living things. Gosh, if I had a nickel for everytime people send me a picture of a dead rat snake juvenile...saying they killed a copperhead! Arggghh.
They will only harm the seeds they are feeding on. They won't open the seed pod...that will occur naturally as seeds mature. There are plenty of seeds in lots of seed pods. Rest assured there is little worry about a few seeds predated! 🙂
Honestly, I despise people who kill every snake they can get to! They have no idea what kind of snake they're beating or cutting and even less desire to learn about them! I've caught copperheads and taken them far from trails or roads and released them into semi-safety. I have a cottonmouth that's my fishing buddy- sits next to me on a floating log and suns until I catch a small fish in a way that it couldn't survive and toss it near the snake. People are the monsters, not snakes!
When I was about 13 I drove a tractor with a sickle mower on it cutting hay in the Forked Deer River bottom in West Tennessee. I saw while mowing a Blue Racer aprox. 5 ft. in length from a short distance, traveling in the field with his head up a few inches off of the ground moving at a good pace. The following spring we broke ground to plant in the same area and uncovered 3 to 4 large clutches of white leathery eggs across the field we were working. I have never seen a Blue Racer any more in my adult lifetime.
@@natureatyourdoor Welcome. Perhaps U will have presentation on a Copperhead since U spoke so much of it. Coincidentally, I was nailed by 1 a few years ago. No Doc, No hospital. Just a bit of pain, Wild Turkey 101 and Bag Balm a few months. I only missed 2 nights working security of those few months. Quite unpleasant buggers.
I got a little to aggressive with one when I was a kid, found out they will bit they have something like fingernails for teeth, just the other day found one about 10 to 12 inches long and had a toad nearly three times his or her diameter! I always thought they went for insects and such!
Garter snakes love eating amphibians! In fact some eat so many that the garter snake themselves taken on the toxins of their prey and become poisonous if eaten as well!
We have several blue indigos on a couple of our properties. They are very evasive. Unlike the bull snakes here that will chase you and rattle like a rattler. We have way too many what I call chicken snakes because they have been found multiple times invading my coop for the eggs. We catch and release them on the back of our property hoping they don’t return. We actually snake proofed our coop but since we leave the door open during the day so the chickens can go in and out. We have found a couple of snakes inside the coop but the cat that lives with our chickens alerted us about them. About 2 weeks ago after 4 inches of rain one of my cats alerted me to a snake on the sidewalk in front of my house. When I finally paid attention to him I realized it was a snake he was charming and not a pile of Spanish moss that I thought had fallen from the trees. Turned out to be a water moccasin (which we have a few in the tanks around here). I was so thankful my cat didn’t get bitten. When I looked back at the cameras it looked like the cat swiped at him a few times but I never saw the snake strike at him. I wish I had a hundred blue indigos. They are beautiful!
@jackwoods535 east coast black rat snake...very typical...they are generally laid back like this one. I ll be sure to be careful with Texas version! Thanks for tip!
Same same. I'm just saying so that people don't go snatch up a, "blue" racer, thinking it's going to be their buddy. They might freak out when it chases them for about 30 yds.
I have found many snakes in my yard, my home backs up to a swamp land in north jersey,, I grabbed a look like a garden snake but has head to tail RED PIN STRIPPED, I quickly let go it was about 28 inches long , do you have any idea what this snake is ???? Thank you for your time , love your documentaries…. Frank
Thoughts...likely an interesting garter snake variation! "The eastern garter snake, Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis, usually has white, mint green, orange or red on the skin BETWEEN the scales (usually only visible when the skin is stretched such as after a large meal). The red-sided garter snake, Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis, is very similar, differing only by the presence of bold red bars or spots on the sides between the dorsal and lateral stripes. This red coloration is usually visible without any stretching of the skin. Both of these subspecies may also be called common garter snakes.. And thanks for kind words and encouraging me to continue sharing on more topics!
