Texas wildflowers will be making their appearance soon, and it's traditional to plunk your kids and/or dogs down in the middle of a patch of wildflowers, preferably bluebonnets, and take photos. However, it is also traditional for rattlesnakes to be lurking in wildflower meadows (lots of voles and mice try to lurk there, too, and rattlers love voles and mice). Most likely the rattler will sense your approach and leave, but you may want to take a look around before sitting a child or pet in the flowers. This message via the Central Texas Poison Control, which will be doing a program on poison prevention at the Waco Zoo on March 23. Guess who is doing poisonous plants?
I am surprised how many people don't recognize poison ivy. I once went on a nature walk for birds and bird calls. The naturalist led a group of about 25 people into a large area of poison ivy. I stopped at the edge not wanting to itch for the next three weeks and said,"POISON IVY". Only then did the group look around and realize where they were. There were some interesting dances as several people exited the poison ivy patch. Jerry
UMM, Yeah, Poisonous snakes. They just aren't my thing. I was just telling a friend this morning we had a quarter horse out of Texas when I was growing up that you didn't dare spray ANYTHING that was reminiscent of a snake hiss. He went berserk trying to get away from the "snake". That is just one thing I LOVE about Ohio. No POISONOUS snakes or spiders to be found. Now we do have Poison Ivy, but that I am not allergic to and don't over worry about it. Anything else poison? I can't think of. maybe later I will.
Sorry Carolyn, but you have venomous snakes in Ohio. (courtesy of All About Reptiles). Fortunately, snakes are very sensitive to motion--they feel footsteps rather than hearing your approach. Just walk heavily, and you'll likely be safe. Jerry, when we were taking our Master Naturalist training, we were in a wooded area and the leader led the group right into a patch of poison ivy. We hung back and pointed out that it was poison ivy, but he said that no, it was Virginia Creeper. Guess what two people did not show up itching and scratching for the next session?
I've done quite a bit of tromping around in wilderness places so I've developed a somewhat succinct 'word of advice' for folks with little or no experience at wandering around in the woods, 'MOVE SLOWLY AND MAKE A LOT OF NOISE'.... I would almost bet you'll never see a snake if you do that.. (An aside to hunters, you won't see any game, either!) But the poison ivy (and some other poisonous plants) is not afraid of you and cannot move out of your way.. Love to all, Hank.
Missouri has a number of poisonous snakes including copperheads, rattle snakes, cotton mouths, and a few others that escape me at the moment. I was bitten by a copperhead a few years back, and in my own yard. I usually have to kill several of them every summer. My youngest son sat on a pygmy rattler once when he was 12. It was in the fall, and all those leaves were on the ground. Look where you sit or step! Thankfully, he was not bitten, as one's bottom is not a good place to get bitten.
Virginia creeper? I hope he learns before he finds out the hard way. 5 leaves is easy to identify. Jerry
Jane, You are correct, I should have clarified, not where I reside. and if there is I have never heard of them. In southern Ohio there timber rattlers and there used to be copperheads here, but they are unheard of anymore. The only way to see them now is in captivity. We went to a place called Nature Realm a few years ago (not far from here) and they had a copperhead in there display case and it was so camouflaged you couldn't see it until it moved. That was scary to think they used to be around here and was it ever UGLY!
