Release day

Cruciform · 06-09-04, 06:29 PM

With the weather having been fairly warm lately, it seemed the appropriate time to release the winter stowaways back into the wild.

Both garters were taken out to a small watering hole at Hawk's Cliff outside St. Thomas. The frog and minnow population there should keep them quite happy. I'm sure there are leeches too, but I didn't investigate that too much

After being kept on bark all winter, the snakes almost seemed to sigh with pleasure as they sank into the deep grass near the path. They wriggled around a big, took their bearings, and disappeared into the grass toward their new feeding ground.

Hopefully they'll fare better there than they would have hiding out in our offices.

I'll miss the little twirps. They had a lot of character.

JD@reptiles · 06-09-04, 07:06 PM

i think if you collect somthing, you should keep it. taking it out of the wild for a while and letting it go agian can mess it up...(espeshily if you take it away before hybernation.) glad to hear they they were happy though.

Jordan

Oliverian · 06-09-04, 07:11 PM

Well, I think you did the right thing anyways. Congrats on the sucessful release!

Sean_.E. · 06-09-04, 08:06 PM

Can I ask you why you collected these snakes and kept them for the winter? This can really effect the animals hibernation cycle and in general is not a practice which has a positive impact on the snakes, in my oppinion. I'm sure you have your reasons and meant well but I wouldn't exactly recommend doing it again.

Sean E.

Jeff_Favelle · 06-09-04, 08:09 PM

COOL!! That's awesome! Shoulda got a video of it!

mettle · 06-09-04, 08:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Sean_.E.
Can I ask you why you collected these snakes and kept them for the winter? This can really effect the animals hibernation cycle and in general is not a practice which has a positive impact on the snakes, in my oppinion. I'm sure you have your reasons and meant well but I wouldn't exactly recommend doing it again.

Sean E.

Judging from the original post where it mentioned 'hiding out in our offices' I'm guessing these were snakes that had made their way inside somewhere with the intent to hibernate, or what have you. And this person simply took pity on them and rather than discarding them into the cold took care of them for the winter?

Just guessing.

sapphire_moon · 06-09-04, 08:46 PM

basicly, look up a few old posts

Cruciform · 06-09-04, 08:57 PM

mettle has it right.
They turned up in our offices when the weather was in the minuses, and the options were

a) dump them outside

b) take them home, because the boss didn't want them getting electrocuted in a warm power supply and neither did I.

They were able to "hunt" for their meals during captivity. I supplemented them with dead mice, but they mainly chased live fish and worms in their enclosure. They saw very little handling, about 5 times total in the entire duration, as my intent was to release them. I was hoping their mating sessions would give me a baby I could keep, but no luck.
I believe the female was due for babies in late July, but didn't want to wait any longer now that the weather has been fairly stable.

Sean: maybe if you did a search of previous threads or actually read the post in entirety, you would have realized they weren't just snatched from the wild.

They weren't captive bred snakes, and didn't relish captivity. Now they've had a chance to survive the winter, and possibly reproduce. That's already better than what was in store for them if one of my coworkers had decided to exterminate them or they had died by accident.

I hope they thrive in their new home, which was the best place I could find in the area to release them. But if they get eaten by another animal, then they're still fulfilling their place within the food chain.

JD@reptiles · 06-09-04, 09:19 PM

Well. i am with sean. if you had done it properly, you would have hybernated them as soon as you got them, because thats what the snakes were doing. finding a place to hybernate. also they probably wont be able to find a place to hybernate next year depending on where you let them go. I am glad that you did take these snakes before they got killed by a dumbass person. but you should have hybernated the snakes so you wouldn't throw there cycle off...

Jordan

YummyCdnMale · 06-09-04, 09:50 PM

I'm willing to bet those snakes are now scratching there heads saying to themselfs.... man did we have it made or what!... Kidding!... once in captivity like that it's very hard for snakes to readapt, You had the snakes for what 6 months?.... That's along time BUT!!! if you were to recieve a jail sentence of 6 months would you forget what the "outside world was about? Would it throw you off socialy?... maybe! this is a big debate as you say they were hiding in an electrical panelgood warmth, i am sure lots of mice as well as mice love those spots as well , but on the other hand companys like puting mice poison down very freely. The snakes may have died by electrical shock, poison, humans afraid of snakes, etc etc, I feel you did the right thing and done the snakes more good then harm, do you really think they were in that warmth to hibernate?... I doubt it i firmly believe they were there for the heat as well as the mice, and whos to say this was not the snakes pattern to come indoors during winter and not hibernate. I have had a ball python 5 yrs and has only hibernated once but on the other hand my friends hibernates every year and there brother and sister!.... My guess is you did the right thing after all i would have did that too! and as these forums are here for opinions i am just voicing mine. After all it's not like you went herping and decided to keep a few you simply saved a snake from almost certain death and may have also saved your boss from having a serious fire!

Take it easy , Rob

Simon Sansom · 06-09-04, 10:11 PM

C'mon, people - He did the animals a favour.

Snakes are pretty much "hard-wired", behaviour-wise, and I don't think that 100 million years of evolved behaviours are going to be disrupted by six months in captivity.

Good job!

Simon R. Sansom

Cruciform · 06-09-04, 10:18 PM

JD: They mated the minute I got them home. I wasn't going to stick a possibly pregnant female in the cold.

The mating didn't take, but it can take 6 months to find out, seeing as garters can retain sperm that long.

If some of you want to turn this into a trial, come to St. Thomas and we'll sit down and discuss every last little detail until you're completely satisfied.

I was just posting an update because when I first found them there were people who were interested in hearing about them again at release time.

PS. And to the supporters, thanks

If I see them down at the cliffs again, I'll give them your best wishes

--edit for typo, not for content--

Removed_2815 · 06-09-04, 11:13 PM

Jeez guys... I can't believe what I have been reading. I am always the first person to jump down another's throat after they've removed a snake from the wild, but this is a commendable act. He saved the snakes from certain death and I can all but guarantee you that the snakes will be just fine, don't worry about any stunted rhythms.
Cruciform, most of these posters don't have their stories straight to begin with so don't worry about their opinion.
We're all aware of the pitfalls of an acclimatized snake being released into the wild, no need to preach, these are still wild animals - they will survive (barring any unforeseen happenstance).
Regards,
R
P.S. I worry that this negativity will persuade the next person that finds a snake indoors in December to just toss it out into the snow-bank.....
snow-bank = 100% certainty of death, anything else = less than 100% certainty of death... come to your own conclusions.

KrokadilyanGuy3 · 06-09-04, 11:18 PM

Hibernation is a natural instinct that follows through with photoperiods and temperatures, the animals will reacclimatize to natural living. They didn't forget. Besides, if that was the case, people wouldn't be able to skip hibernation season one yr then do it the next.. And, I don't think the garter snakes went into the building for mice..
I would be more worried about pathogens that were maybe released with the snakes..

But good deal either way. Hope they make it.

Removed_2815 · 06-09-04, 11:26 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by KrokadilyanGuy3

I would be more worried about pathogens that were maybe released with the snakes..

That would be my only concern as well.
I figure that there is likely nothing a human can pass on to a reptile (reverse zoonosis?

) that will affect the wild populations, hopefully. However, if the Garters were in contact with other reptiles then a possible pathogen could be spread....