The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-09-17
The Snakes and Other Reptiles Of Cali
fOrnia.


University Museum. who is better post
ed on snakes of the truly rural varieties
than any man in California The mu-
scum has quite collection of Californla
snakes of every possible color, barred
and striped with crimson, red and vel
low, and all those more somber hues
which simulate the color of the ground
on which they lie and bask in sunlight
until the unwary picknicker or pick
nickess steps on them with scream.
"Do you see that fellow up therep'
said Mr.. Rivers, pointing to huge red
snake, some ten feet long and two
inches thick, of the kind known as a
gopher snake. SID rather have that
fellow on my farm-if had farm
than $40. You would be astonished at
Che amount of vermin they can get away
with-gophers, rabbits, squirrels, birds
anything, in fact, that he is big
enough to get himself outside of, and
that means good deal, although you
might not think so to look at him.
I" You are aware, l suppose, of the
peculiar construction of the lower jaw.
1t can be unhinged, so to speak, and
then the snake is nothing more than a
long sack with the mouth open. l
have watched one of them stow away
squirrel-iong tail and all-without
making any bones about it. He COM
menced at the head and slowly drew
the squirrel in bit by bit, his teeth and
laws working on the animal somewhat
as man draws rope in hand over
hand. Finally the body was safely housed
ed, and then only the tail remained
that slipped down in the twinkling of
an eve. / never realized until then
why snakes were make so long-it is to
make room for the inconvenient tails of
the other animals predestined to be
snake meat. In an improved state of
existence when the tails have been
eyolutionized off the backs of the other
animals. probably snakes will be cut
shorter.
{" Do they lick their prey smooth;
as the boa constructor is said to do, to
make it slip down easilyp"
"No. they take it straight, and with
out any attempt at seasoning of that
kind. All these California snakes,
however with the exception of rattle
snakes, are true constructors. They
kill their prey by crushing it. Have
you ever seen gopher trying to catch
a dove by taking mean advantage of
its maternal instincts in nesting time?
No? Well the snake will squirm up
the prickly stem of a cactus plant until
he gets near the nest, which is usually
not very high up, and then long and
bitter fight begins between the dove
and his mate on one side and the snake
on the other. The former doesn't al
ways get the worst of it, either. have
cactus branch to the ground with blow
of its wings, and then the snake crawled
away as if he did not want any more of
that. But it generally ends the other
way-the doves keep up an angry, ter
rified screaming and buffeting with
their wings until they are tired out,
and the snake just bides his time in
deadly silence, until he can catch some
part of the doves body in his mouth.
The dove never moves after that; it
seems completely paralyzed; as it
were"
''He does not kill it with his fangs?'
@'No, he simply and slowly winds
one deadly coil after another around
the dove until its body is completely
enveloped in its folds, and then one
single scraunch does the business"
" Don't they sometimes kill animals
shat are useful or harmless on a farmp'
every seldom. The birds which it
kills are not many after ALL and they are
the most harmless animals they kill. The
amount of hurtful vermin which they
destroy in the course of year is meal
culable. A little discriminating knowl.
edge of this kind would be very useful
TO farmers. There are numbers of
insects, for instance, which they now
class as their enemies, simply because
they are bugs, which are entirely use
full"
6 Are there any venomous snakes in
California besides the rattlesnake?'
''No, there are none. When l am out
hunting specimens simply catch any
kind of snake in my hands except a
rattlesnake, and him catch in my but
terdy net. Rattlesnakes differ from
the others in the method of killing
their prey. | have watched one of
them killing rat. He struck him two
or three times with his fangs, and the
rat died in a few minutes, alter kicking
-convulsively for an instant or So Aft
'er he had struck the rat the snake
drew back and waited still and motion
less as a stone until the rat was dead,
or until he thought he was dead. He
then came forward and felt him from
head to tail with his nose. and when
the rat gave another kick while he was
doing so he drew quickly back again,
and waited in the same motionless man
ner until he thought the rat was surely
dead Then he felt him again, and
assured himself this time that the rat
was really dead. A snake won't eat
anything alive-in fact, live rat might
be disagreeable inmate. Whether
he knew that the rat was dead by the
stoppage of the heart beats. or in some
other manner, do not know, but l am
convinced that he assured himself OF
chat fact in some way before he COM
mences to assimilate the rat.
"ls that hairy, long-legged thing
L see in the case q tarantulap'
ono, there are no true tarantulas in
California, but that is what is known
on this coast as a tarantula. The ia.
rantula proper belongs to Europe. and
Ill