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John Koerner
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Sad

Post by John Koerner »

Image

Not only is this a DOR helleri, but it looks to be the victim of an intentional act.

I have never understood what makes people want to kill something that isn't bothering them at all, only trying to survive, like anything else.

Every person whom I've ever met (who is afraid of or "hates" snakes), I always point out their marvelous adaptations: the ability to survive in a brutal world with no arms, no hands, no legs, no ears.

Who would want to kill something that is essentially defenseless ... unless you are right next to it and oblivious to it?

Please remove, if this offends anyone, but thought it should be posted.

Can't count how many snakes I have "helped" across the road to save them from accidental DOR, let alone seeing what appears to be an intentional DOR :(
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Jeff
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Re: Sad

Post by Jeff »

John

You didn't mention why you thought it was an intentional hit.

I have ridden with many people who wouldn't notice a roadkill sasquatch -- eyes all over the place, rarely on the road. The rattle is still intact, which leaves some ambiguity to your claim. Really, some people would run over a baby on the road and have no clue.

Jeff
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John Koerner
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Re: Sad

Post by John Koerner »

Skidmarks over his head, Jeff.
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John Koerner
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Re: Sad

Post by John Koerner »

Simply driving (and not seeing) doesn't produce skidmarks; only an intentional burnout does.

I thought about "braking" ... but most people (if they wish to avoid) swerve, they don't lock-em up.

Maybe I am wrong, but it looks like an intentional burn-out over a prostrate rattler.
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Thorny
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Re: Sad

Post by Thorny »

Back in 2012/2013 Clemson University student Nathan Weaver was conducting a study on how many people were targeting box turtles while driving. In short, he found that 2% of drivers are dicks.

It's one thing to kill a rattlesnake out of fear, it's another thing to kill a non-venomous snake out of ignorance, and it's an entirely different issue to kill a box turtle. No one is afraid of or hates box turtles. No one has a story about their Great Uncle Jimbob dying from a box turtle and, outside of my dating pool, no one has a traumatic childhood story involving box turtles.

Some people just like to kill things.
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John Koerner
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Re: Sad

Post by John Koerner »

Thorny wrote:Some people just like to kill things.
True. And I think we have a word for that: Evil.
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Jeremy Wright
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Re: Sad

Post by Jeremy Wright »

Very true. Evil is an understatement.
Seems like a precursor for the kind of people that commit mass shootings. Can't remember who, maybe the Sandy Hook shooter, but I remember hearing the mother say that as a kid, the shooter would kill any animal he could find with his bb gun or run them over in his car.

I found the largest sidewinder of my life a few years ago, over 32 inches with 16 rattles. There was a car coming, and I didn't have a hook or tongs, so I was forced to leave the snake in the road, and low and behold the guy did a crazy braking last minute swerve, and killed it. I was lucky that I wasn't driving, because I would have sped after him to have a serious word.
People suck, but a lot of it is also due to lack of education. Some of the "news" articles you read about rattlesnakes are so damn wrong that it's not a wonder they are hated so much.

There's a youtube video that was posted on the forum ages ago, (maybe the same thing Thorny is talking about?) where a guy put a model snake, tarantula, and turtle on the shoulder of the road. Tarantula was run over the most, followed by snake, then turtle. There was a lot of people that intentionally swerved.
-Jeremy
RobertH
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Re: Sad

Post by RobertH »

I remember that video Jeremy. Here's a link to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-Fp7flAWMA.

Nicholas
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