Ents, The snake pictures amongst the Cohutta photos seem to have generated some interest, so I'll add a little more context for them. When I used to average four days a week hiking in the southern Appalachians, I would typically see only one or two venomous snakes per year. The two I saw on this past trip matches my record for a one week period. Of course, who knows how many I've walked past in huckleberry thickets.
In my experience, the venomous snakes in the Appalachians are not aggressive. If you don't mess with them, they won't mess with you. The timber rattlesnake in the photograph never rattled even with five people and a dog walking past it. I've stepped within a foot of rattlesnake without it moving and seen people step as close to copperheads without provoking a reaction. I'm sure there is some variation from individual to individual, and I've certainly irritated some rattlesnakes, so I didn't push my luck with the photographs and used my camera's zoom from about five feet away. Venom is energetically expensive to produce and has a high opportunity cost in terms of catching prey. Hence, relying on camouflage (see copperhead photo), rattling, or dry biting improves snakes' chances of long term survival and reproduction. Jess --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
