That Reptile Blog – Reptile, Amphibian and Exotic Pet Care and Information
Please see Part I of this article for some cobra and python escape stories set in NYC.
The “Ditmar’s Trap”
I first became aware of snake traps through The Reptiles of North America, written by legendary Bronx Zoo curator Raymond Ditmars. Mr. Ditmars recounted capturing Northern Watersnakes (Nerodia sipedon) by securing fish to strings that were anchored to stumps in likely locations…a feat I was later to repeat successfully on several occasions (snakes have trouble backing off prey once it has been swallowed, and Watersnakes are especially ravenous feeders). If you have collected Watersnakes by hand, you’ll understand the attraction of a method that spares one’s skin! Read More »
Snakes have a well-deserved reputation as escape artists and, once at liberty, they are nearly impossible to find. Almost always, the escapee shows up by accident, no matter how hard one searches – even quite large snakes can virtually disappear in relatively small areas (please see photo – the 16 foot long anaconda pictured there “vanished” in about 6 inches of water on the Venezuelan llanos; I took over an hour to find her despite “knowing” where she was!). However, there are a few tricks that can improve your chances of recapturing a lost pet…but first, if I may, a few related stories: