With all of the rain we have been having the past few months you may be noticing a lot more snakes out. Florida has about 45 species of snakes and 44 subspecies found in Florida but only 6 species are venomous. Thus leaving the rest non-venomous and harmless, unless you break your leg or neck trying to get away from them.

Many people seem to be surprised that snakes bite - not all of them bite, but many do, even harmless species. Biting is not a sign the snake is venomous or that it is vicious. It happens to be the only way that most snakes have to defend themselves. Think of it as that wild squirrel or neighborhood cat that you might feed out back. They are fine and come to eat everyday, but if you try to pick it up or catch it ,you bet it would bite or scratch you out of fear.

Most people would not condemn the squirrel or cat because they defend themselves by biting and scratching. If threatened a snake will usually flee unless cornered, without claws, biting is one of its only defenses. Some species also will defecate and smear the feces on the human or animal that is threatening them. Other species exude a smelly musk from glands in the cloacal vent (=anus) and smear that on any threatening human or animal. However, when it cannot flee, the snake's most common method of defense is biting.

Nevertheless, a word of caution is warranted here. If you find a snake and you do not know whether it is Venomous or Harmless (non-venomous) the safest thing to do is leave it alone, and call the proper person to handle it. Too many snakebite victims are bitten on the hands and arms when they are handling the snake. In addition, for a short time after a snake is killed, its reflexes may continue to work causing the body to writhe slowly for a while.

Poking or prodding a freshly killed snake can cause a convulsive contraction and possibly a bite. With all of this in mind here is a very helpful useful link to identifying all Florida snakes http://wwww.flmnh.ufl.edu/herpetology/FL-GUIDE/onlineguide.htm Along with this information Nuisance Wildlife Relocation offers a wide variety of snake controlling methods varying from deterrents to trapping. So, when you encounter that reptile that makes you go "EEK" give usa call we enjoy them all!

Jeff Norris is owner of Nuisance Wildlife Relocation Inc. located in Parrish Florida. Jeff has over 11 years as a wildlife management professional and has been involved in Hunting, Fishing and Trapping since the age of 5. Jeff Loves the out doors and is a competitive archer. On January 5, 2003 Jeff Married his best friend Christy and not long after that year their beautiful daughter Haileigh was born, Jeff also has a wonderful son Keith that works for the family company during his vacation from school in the summer.

http://www.floridawildlifetrapper.com