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Snakes: Something slithery in Slade
SLADE, KY. July 8, 2005. We are trudging through an East Kentucky stream on a sweltering late June mid-morning. Reptiles have already retreated from the advancing heat and are nowhere to be seen. But Jim Harrison and his wife Kristen, owners of a reptile farm in Slade, arent hesitant to flip over rocks and find them. "I dont feel anything under 15 feet," said Harrison, as a small but determined water snake clamped down on his hand. The camera was rolling and Kentucky Afield Television host, Tim Farmer, took a closer look. The Harrisons and Farmer were taping an upcoming installment of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) award-winning outdoors show. The topic a view of snakes many simply do not take the time to see. "Just stop, and slowly step away from the snake," Kristen advises those who see a snake in the wild. But shes well aware that many react very differently. For many, its step one spot the snake. Step two yell, "Get the hoe!"But before you go "chopping" at the bit, so to speak, Harrison pleads for you to leave them be. Snakes want to be left alone Snakes just want to be left alone. Abolishing the stereotype that snakes want to strike at any given moment seems an impossible task. Educating people is Harrisons remedy for this common misconception about snakes. Farmer shares the same desire of enlightening people about snakes indigenous to the area. "Lets go find some snakes!" said Farmer, and it didnt take long before they were parting bushes enroute to the stream where Harrison found the nibbling water snake. The snake coiled around his arm and hand as he explained to Farmer just what snakes are all about. Snakes share the same characteristics of every other animal in the wild, says Harrison. They want to eat, sleep and find shelter from the heat. Contrary to popular belief, they arent looking for a person to bite because its too much work. It takes a lot of energy for snakes to bite It takes a lot of energy for poisonous snakes to strike and release venom. Later in the season and closer to hibernation, snakes are less likely to strike, unless they feel extremely threatened. They save their venom for their food, which are not human beings, but mice, fish and frogs. Wasting their venom on us might even cause them to die if they cant get enough food before hibernation. However, thats not to say that snakes dont bite people. Actually, one of Harrisons primary purposes for his reptile farm is to create serum that counters the poison from snakebites. They create the serum by milking the snakes for venom. Farmer and the Harrisons want Kentuckians to become familiar with the snakes that live in our state. Copperheads arent everywhere, neither are rattlesnakes or cottonmouths. Snakes are great mice killers Kentucky snakes are often mistaken to be poisonous, making them susceptible to the hoe, even though they are harmless. Snakes that people mistakenly kill often eat other pests such as rats and mice. Kristen favors a broom to deal with snakes youre simply determined to expel from your property. Sweep the snake into a garbage can and dump it off your land. "Snakes do not like brooms," Kristen said. "The snake will probably associate that spot with a broom and stay away." Be sure to tune in to Kentucky Afield for the footage of the indigenous snakes of Kentucky. Kentucky Afield is broadcast on Kentucky Educational Television on Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. and Sunday afternoons at 4 p.m. For more information on snakes, log on to the All Wild About Kentuckys Environment Website at http:www.kentuckyawake.org. This story was posted on 2005-07-10 09:30:16
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