Timber Rattlesnakes- has anyone seen one in the wild?

Reticsrule · 07-24-05, 05:12 PM

i went up to a cabin(near Somerset PA) in the appalacian(sp?) mountains this weekend and i was out herping the whole time. i always thought that rattlers lived and made their dens in huge boulders. so im out in the woods and there were these boulders(some 10 feet tall) with tons of crevices and holes everywhere in them. and it seemed like there were hundreds of them. i searched these things for hours and found not one sign of a rattlesnake. the cabin is in a pretty remote area with just a few cabins around and tons of other snakes. i know that timber rattlesnakes are endangered but cmon this place was PERFECT. i was talking to a guy and he asked me if i had found a rattler yet. if he said that it must mean that theyre in that area right? so, why didnt i find one even after hours of searching this PERFECT area?(im probably going up to the cabin again in august so if you have any tips on finding rattlesnakes let me know) thanks!

ont_herper · 07-24-05, 06:07 PM

I reason would be the time of day, if it was too hot or too shady then they wouldn't be out. Also during the summer rattlesnakes disperse from their den sites out into the surrounding area.

Reticsrule · 07-24-05, 06:46 PM

it wasnt too hot and there were a few places where the sun broke throught the trees and hit rocks which make perfect basking places. i was also checking all around that area, not just the rocks, though that was where i looked the most.

bassteck76 · 07-24-05, 07:54 PM

I would think you will find em under small shrubs and such at this point in the year.....They are out at night hunting and return to the lower shrubs and bushes during the heat of the day.

Richard

Lrptls · 07-24-05, 09:55 PM

im not really sure what to tell you about looking in the rocks or in a really remote area. sad but true- snakes are too easy to find where there is human development. they just love to hide in the stuff we make and our food atracts mice and rats and obviously snakes. i use to live near PA, timbers were easily found in barns and other shady buildings rodents also like to live in. good luck finding them in their more natural habitat though.

Reticsrule · 07-24-05, 11:07 PM

thanks for the advice guys. in that forest i was in, the huge rocks im talking about were surrounded by these big ferns and all types of vegetation. so i guess ill have to keep an eye out on the forest floor as well. it wasnt very hot in the forest though so i was expecting them to be on top of the rocks basking.

Lrptls: i hate to say it but your theory on where snakes live is absolutely true. its too bad that they dont realize that most people will kill them if they find them

but if timbers are endangered how were they EASILY found in barns and buildings?

bassteck76 · 07-25-05, 07:58 AM

That is what makes them endangered.....the fact that people would find them in their barn and just kill them.....they have no idea that the snake is actually helping them.....keeping the mice and so on out of their feed and hay.

Richard

Lrptls · 07-25-05, 08:47 PM

the last iv heard they werent exactly endangerd but considerd threatend and just as richard said, people killing them for no good reason is why they are threatend and will most likely become endangerd unless they are under that list already.

shaggybill · 07-28-05, 04:36 PM

ReticsRule, if the temperature was anything over 85 or so, they were probably hiding somewhere deep within those boulders. If it was a den site, then those crevices were probably very deep, and most likely those snakes know exactly where to go to cool off, which is probably too deep for you to see into. The last few days, everywhere in the country was in the mid-upper 90's, so my guess would be that's where they were.

Reticsrule · 07-28-05, 09:04 PM

yes some of the crevices were very deep, like 5-10 feet. i really dont think it was too hot, especially being in the forest, i thought they would be out basking in the few sunlit patches that hit the rocks. i think i went up there a couple days before that heat wave hit us. but is there a pretty good chance that they just are not living in that particular area even though it is perfect IMO?

shaggybill · 07-28-05, 10:31 PM

I doubt it. Somerset is well-within their distribution range. If the habitat looked good, and it was a pretty remote area, then they are definitely around. If the crevices were only 5-10 feet deep, then its probably not a den site. Dens go WAY back in, far enough so that the outside temps dont push the dens temperatures below 50 degrees or so.

I guess some days the snakes just arent out. Same thing has happened to me plenty of times. You have perfect habitat and weather, but nothing is to be found. Did you see anything else while you were out?

Reticsrule · 07-29-05, 02:44 PM

when i said that the crevices were 5-10 feet i was talking about the vertical drop crevices. there were a ton of holes under rocks that i could not see the end of so i would think these could make good dens. i saw a few other snakes when i was up there but they werent in the forest. i have terrible luck finding snakes in forests, i always find them near human things. i found a northern ringneck, two eastern garters, and a lot of northern water snakes(the lake there was full of them). but i was pretty disappointed because i really wanted to find a timber rattler or a northern copperhead. any other ideas or tips on finding these two would be greatly appreciated. thanks!