Snake in the Grass

I have to tell you about something I found in our yard recently. When I stumbled upon this curious creature I knew it was quite a discovery so I quietly reached into my pocket and was happy to find my phone and speed-dialed my hubby. Why quietly? I didn’t want to scare off the critter I’d found. The hubby answered the phone with a hesitant-sounding hello. I mean, I was just out in the yard, right? Me calling him on the phone from the backyard probably meant one of two things: I was either extremely lazy or in trouble.

I whispered into the phone, “Honey, grab the camera and come out to the backyard. Quick!”

He was equally impressed with my find and he took picture after picture. It was just a common garter snake, but they’re not quite so common here anymore. I’ve read that’s a result of pesticides.

People are also afraid of snakes so they kill them. It’s hard to imagine killing this little guy. For a snake, he’s awfully cute. Besides, although snakes are mostly meat eaters, this little guy wasn’t interested in eating us.

Yes, they have a red, forked tongue which can make them look sort of sinister, but they’re not. They use their tongue to smell.

I think he was trying to figure out if we were friend or foe. Garter snakes are more into eating insects and small rodents which is why I think they’re particularly good critters to have around. Hmm, that ant on his nose doesn’t seem too worried. “Please stay, little snake,” I said. I don’ think he heard me. Snakes don’t have external ears, but it is thought they can feel vibrations of sound.

This guy was content to pose for us for quite awhile. The neighbor boy, curious at seeing two adults crouched down over the grass, came running into our backyard. He yelled out, “Hey, what are you looking at?” When I responded that we were looking at a snake, he stopped dead in his tracks and then hightailed it out of there! Poor snake. So misunderstood!

It came time to leave this guy to forage for his lunch. After looking at these pics, we decided it was time to sharpen our lawn mower blade.

Yes, our work is never done, but it’s good to take time to enjoy the splendors in the grass!