Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat snakes?

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Saybs444
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Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat snakes?

Post by Saybs444 »

If so I would love to hear your encounters!! I always do hope that i will stumble upon one some day but I hear the likelihood of that is not very good. Not in my area anyway. To anybody who can share your experiences I truly appreciate it! I hope to hear/see some! :)
mikez
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by mikez »

I found a DOR two footer in Ma about 2 miles from the Ct border.
I guess we're not supposed to share specific locations, but,...it was on the east side of the road, two feet from the yellow line, right in front of the yellow house with yippy dog in the yard. :twisted:
Joe Mahoney
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Joe Mahoney »

I found some about 3 years back, but have not had a chance to get back to the spot.

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MassHorridus
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by MassHorridus »

I found some East of the accepted range in SE MASS. I was so proud, it got me into this hobby. Good luck.
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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

mikez wrote:I found a DOR two footer in Ma about 2 miles from the Ct border.
I guess we're not supposed to share specific locations, but,...it was on the east side of the road, two feet from the yellow line, right in front of the yellow house with yippy dog in the yard. :twisted:
Lol!
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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

Joe Mahoney wrote:I found some about 3 years back, but have not had a chance to get back to the spot.

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Wow Joe that's so amazing! Is it not legal to interact with them when u encounter them? Is love to so much but at the same time I'd be somewhat worried about the stress. I know that they're endangered but is that only in MA or is it overall? I have no experience with these snakes but they're so gorgeous. I eat up any first hand info/experiences I can get/heart about but it is few and far between for me.
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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

MassHorridus wrote:I found some East of the accepted range in SE MASS. I was so proud, it got me into this hobby. Good luck.
For sure!! I would be too! That type of discovery does the same for me! Did you interact with the snakes or only see them?
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pete
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Location: cape cod ma.

Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by pete »

Look at em, love em. Leave them be :D
They are endangered in this state because it is the edge of their range. They are reasonably common farther south but in Ma RI and CT they have a spotty distribution.
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MassHorridus
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by MassHorridus »

Pictures only. I moved to Texas and I handled a 6 footer recently. awesome snake!
juicebox
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by juicebox »

Saybs444, I love your album cover shot even better than the last one. Are you limited in Black rat hab? Could be that you try looking for them at a different time of day or more often? Try looking up also, I have seen several up in trees well above my head and would've missed them if I would have only looked around the ground. I have to drive several hours to go see one live now, unfortunately the captive one I had recently died to an unknown cause. I would love to see general pics of your habitat that do not give away local, I'm from WI but I still don't need to know the where abouts or see your secrete spot or anything like that. Also are they protected or anything of concern where you live?

-troy
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Mike VanValen
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Mike VanValen »

Come to CT :mrgreen:

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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

Mike VanValen wrote:Come to CT :mrgreen:

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wow Mike is that YOUR PHOTO?!!! so beautifullllll! I guess because we dont have them around here much I feel like if I were to come across one it would probably make my YEAR. I'm always on the lookout even though I know the chances of my finding them around here are like so damn small. I just am optimistic that its POSSIBLE i could like be the first to discover that we have a tiny pop. in my neck of the woods. bahaha, i know that's not very realistic BUT with our environment changing so quickly right now, i think stranger things have happened. though Im sure the fact that things are being so negatively effected, if anything, it would probably make the likelihood even SMALLER. I can dream lol
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Mike VanValen
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Mike VanValen »

Yup, I photographed this ratsnake at one of my "go to" spots in southwestern CT. I totally understand about wanting to discover a local population.
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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

juicebox wrote:Saybs444, I love your album cover shot even better than the last one. Are you limited in Black rat hab? Could be that you try looking for them at a different time of day or more often? Try looking up also, I have seen several up in trees well above my head and would've missed them if I would have only looked around the ground. I have to drive several hours to go see one live now, unfortunately the captive one I had recently died to an unknown cause. I would love to see general pics of your habitat that do not give away local, I'm from WI but I still don't need to know the where abouts or see your secrete spot or anything like that. Also are they protected or anything of concern where you live?

-troy
Thank you juicebox. my album cover shot? sorry Im new to this forum Im not sure exactly what that is. Thank you for the tips! I live in New England. unfortunately an area where BRS are not very abundant at all. They're protected here.
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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

Mike VanValen wrote:Yup, I photographed this ratsnake at one of my "go to" spots in southwestern CT. I totally understand about wanting to discover a local population.
wow thats AMAZING! Im so very jealous :cry: :( LOL! I hear that they're a pretty calm species. Do you find that to be the case with your encounters?
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Mike VanValen
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Mike VanValen »

This particular snake actually bit me. Overall, they are calm but some individuals may hiss and lunge, but it's mostly bluff. 99% of the rats I've encountered were dog-friendly.

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Saybs444
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Saybs444 »

Mike VanValen wrote:This particular snake actually bit me. Overall, they are calm but some individuals may hiss and lunge, but it's mostly bluff. 99% of the rats I've encountered were dog-friendly.

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wow GORGEOUS!!!! cant get over it! I hear pretty favorable things about their temperament (or at least the best you can expect from a wild animal really) My father however said that the rat snakes he encountered were VERY defensive. he described his few encounters here as MORE bite prone than racers. Mind you this was literally decades ago. But he's positive of the identification, & he loves racers and often close to running off the road to get them out of the street. its always so interesting to me how different encounters with diff people vary so much. I'd so love to find a BRS. .... Are they the biggest snake In CT also?
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Mike VanValen
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Re: Has anybody in MA had any experiences with black rat sna

Post by Mike VanValen »

Saybs444 wrote: Are they the biggest snake In CT also?
Yes, with the black racer a close second.
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