Link

Snakes Alive! Watch Where You’re Walking!

Snake Expert Explains Which Snakes Are Harmful, Which Aren’t

JACKSON, Miss. – There have been reports recently of snakes popping up all across Mississippi.

 

Just this week, several snakes were found in a Hattiesburg middle school. One even bit a teacher. 

Snake expert Terry Vandeventer explained that people don’t have to look very far in Mississippi to find snakes. 

Terry Vandeventer found this snake hiding under some old tin.

 

There’s no such thing as a snake repellent, Vandeventer said. Mothballs and commercial repellants don’t repel snakes. So homeowners should keep areas mowed and clean. 

Along the edge of a building that hasn’t been mowed is a good place for rats and mice, which also makes it a good place for snakes to pursue their favorite foods. Snakes are good because they destroy rats and mice, but they’re a nuisance around the house where there’s children and pets. 

“If I’m available, I’ll go remove a snake,” Vandeventer said. “I don’t charge for it or anything like that, but I would rather take away and release it where it would do some good than have it killed. I’m not snake busters.” 

Roofing materials, which Vandeventer said he calls “Katrina Tin,” that have been blown off old buildings are prime hiding places for snakes. In fact, Vandeventer found a copperhead under some roofing material with 16 WAPT cameras rolling. 

This copperhead was found hiding under old tin in Terry.

 

“Now, that is not a deadly snake, but he will ruin your day,” he said. “This is a snake found in urban areas.” 

Vandeventer said copperheads are potentially dangerous because they are venomous and they bite a fair number of people in Mississippi, but they are not considered a lethal species. In other words, he said, copperheads rarely, if ever, cause a human fatality. 

However, Vandeventer said, there have been some very close calls in the U.S. 

“It’s an animal that’s secretive, that wants to be left alone,” he said. “But when people seem them, they always make an effort to kill them. And as a result, we have a lot of bites in Mississippi from copperheads.” 

He also found a bigger snake, which was a chicken or rat snake. Both snakes were found near rodent burrow holes. 

The timber rattlesnake was once common in Mississippi, but is now rare.

 

Vandeventer showed 16 WAPT News a timber rattlesnake, or a kind brake rattlesnake. 

“This is a snake that was once common in Mississippi but is now somewhat rare,” he said. “They’ve been destroyed on a wholesale manner. This is the snake that was on the first American flag — don’t tread on me, the timber rattlesnake.” 

The Mississippi corn snake is often mistaken for the venomous copperhead and killed. In the end, Vandeventer said, the best idea is to use common sense and leave snakes alone.