Beware the Deadly "Water Rattler"!

[Aurelia]

So would a water rattler splash you as a warning?

 

[Cirith Ungol]

So would a water rattler splash you as a warning?

Hahaa! Or maybe they squirt water like archer fish

 

[presurcukr]

It's not a myth. I got one I keep chained up by my leprachoun.

that would be your leprechaun. and i have one next to my skunk ape lol

 

[Rockstarpets]

That is hilarious, haven't heard of that one in the West here. However, being a retail store, I get this crap ALL the time! Let me re-run some of my favorites:

Every home in Utah has Brown Recluse and if you find one it is reason for SHEER PANIC!!! (and the spraying of mass pesticides that is more likely to harm your family than the spider).

The most common snake in the wild here is the Western Diamondback (not native), and not common Pituophis; and the average size for the Diamondbacks are 8+ feet.

A. iodius is deadly and aggressive.

Most of my customers have or have had 10-20+ foot red tail boas (largest I heard and they INSISTED was 28 feet).

If you see a rattlesnake you should immediately run as fast as you can, suck the "poison" out when you are bit, and you have less than 15 minutes to get antivenom before you DIE! (from a basin rattler mind you)

I could go on and on but these are some of the most common that I get.

 

[whitewolf]

Watch those fingers there's no anti venom yet. It's just wayyyyy to rare. ROFL. Careful the rainbow is hypnotizing.

 

[Sarcastro]

That is a beautiful snake(no sarcasm) ...Why is it always the most beautiful creatures have to be the most deadly...lol

 

[the toe cutter]

I am from Georgia, and believe me I have heard many tales of man eating/murdering reptiles. One I was particularly enthralled with was the dreaded copperheaded water rattler(no joke), which I always thought was either plain ole nonsense or a mistaken variety of one of the 11 species of watersnake in Georgia! But due to recent light being shed upon the water rattlers apparent existence, perhaps it could another integrated sub species! Just think, the combination of the water rattler with another fellow Agkistrodon entered into the mix! That being said, I think I've finally found what my lifes work will be. Hunting down these vile creatures to prove to the world that the education system in the southern US is still viable!

BTW, dont ever give the skunk ape PBR! Ever seen deliverance?

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

The truly frightening things are the Cottonmouth Hoop Python Copperheaded Water-Rattlers that have overrun the Everglades since Burmese pythons were introduced. I have it on good authority that after running you down, these 40 foot monstrous reptiles hypnotize you, inject you with a venom that they create by eating skunk apes, turn your skeletal system to jelly with their coils, and then for good measure, spit a mouthful of brown recluse-black widow spider hybrids all over you!
Luckily, they are easily identifiable by skull and cross-bone patterns alternated with bio-hazard symbols down their entire length. But those are the juveniles. The adults are said to be a lot bigger,and invisible. They haven't been seen by the hundreds down there. And if any more are not seen it could be an ecological disaster. I'm told that you used to never see any only in the remote areas, but now it isn't uncommon to never see them in the urban areas.

 

[pitbulllady]

The truly frightening things are the Cottonmouth Hoop Python Copperheaded Water-Rattlers that have overrun the Everglades since Burmese pythons were introduced. I have it on good authority that after running you down, these 40 foot monstrous reptiles hypnotize you, inject you with a venom that they create by eating skunk apes, turn your skeletal system to jelly with their coils, and then for good measure, spit a mouthful of brown recluse-black widow spider hybrids all over you!
Luckily, they are easily identifiable by skull and cross-bone patterns alternated with bio-hazard symbols down their entire length. But those are the juveniles. The adults are said to be a lot bigger,and invisible. They haven't been seen by the hundreds down there. And if any more are not seen it could be an ecological disaster. I'm told that you used to never see any only in the remote areas, but now it isn't uncommon to never see them in the urban areas.

Yeah, the History Channel's "MonsterQuest" show had an episode on those recently, only they claimed that these were hybrids of Burmese Pythons and King Cobras...pffft...goes to show you can't believe everything you see on tv. The show also claimed that due to Global Warming....er, excuse me, CLIMATE change, these hybrids would be able to colonize Green Bay, WI, within the next ten years. They even brought out some top scientists, including that Rodda guy, to make it look legit. MY worst fear is that these deadly hybrids will mate with Coachwhips, to make a 30-foot-long snake that spits deadly venom, can crush your bones in its powerful constrictor grip AND move over 60 mph, enabling it to chase down any living thing, beat it to death with its tail, and devour it whole. Not only that, but it will have the Coachwhip's ability to mimic a child in distress to lure adults into its coils.

pitbulllady

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

We live in terrifying times. My uncle was killed by a coachwhip when he thought he was going to the rescue of my three year old niece.

The King cobra rumors were a lot of hogwash. Anybody who knows anything about the species knows that the cobras that managed to establish themselves in Florida were eradicated by the death-stalker scorpions introduced there by the Florida Department of Natural Resources for just that purpose. Ultimately that plan backfired when the death stalker scorps started crossing with the local hummingbirds, quickly spreading northward from Florida into the Appalachian Mountains, becoming major pests there and rapidly extending their territory westward. The only hope is that their only predator, the nocturnal piranha-bat, will keep their numbers in check.
Piranha-bats first appeared when a irresponsible aquarium enthusiast/spelunker released his tank of fingerling piranhas into a subterranean stream in Carlsbad Caverns. Thru methods not yet fully understood by biologists, these fish hybridized with the cave's massive bat population. They are murder on all types of avian scorpions, but unfortunately can fly down and strip a cow down to the bones in 30 seconds. The impact on the cattle industry was not without consequences. If you ever wondered why Big Macs are no longer 99 cents, you now know the reason.
As a side note, McDonalds has so far had no success with their McPiranha-Bat sandwich during their limited test-marketing in their bid to replace the Big Mac on their 99 cent menu while helping to lower the piranha-bat population.

 

[the toe cutter]

If only the piranha-bat sandwich would have been prepared like the old McRib sandwich, it would have been a smashing success!

 

[Faing]

That is hilarious, haven't heard of that one in the West here. However, being a retail store, I get this crap ALL the time! Let me re-run some of my favorites:

Every home in Utah has Brown Recluse and if you find one it is reason for SHEER PANIC!!! (and the spraying of mass pesticides that is more likely to harm your family than the spider).

The most common snake in the wild here is the Western Diamondback (not native), and not common Pituophis; and the average size for the Diamondbacks are 8+ feet.

A. iodius is deadly and aggressive.

Most of my customers have or have had 10-20+ foot red tail boas (largest I heard and they INSISTED was 28 feet).

If you see a rattlesnake you should immediately run as fast as you can, suck the "poison" out when you are bit, and you have less than 15 minutes to get antivenom before you DIE! (from a basin rattler mind you)

I could go on and on but these are some of the most common that I get.

Where I live someone released a red tail boa not too long ago (around here it would have died over the winter but still). You get this call going "This snake is at least 12 ft long!" It was more around 6 ft maybe.

and yeah, because everybody knows that running slows down the spread of the effects of venom to the body. Just another of my 2 cents of pure sarcasm. It's a different story for those who are ignorant of a situation and willing to learn something new though...

 

[skilletsteve]

I bet this myth comes from this snake

It is a type of nerodia, common name is "diamond back water snake"

it isn't venomous, but it does look somewhat like a rattle snake with no rattle that lives in the water. Probably wont get much bigger than 5ft or so either.

 

[pitbulllady]

I bet this myth comes from this snake

It is a type of nerodia, common name is "diamond back water snake"

it isn't venomous, but it does look somewhat like a rattle snake with no rattle that lives in the water. Probably wont get much bigger than 5ft or so either.

It most likely does stem from the various species of Nerodia that we have, even though we don't have Nerodia rhombifer in SC. Those are found much further west. To ME, someone who actually breeds Water Snakes in captivity, these don't look ANYTHING like a Rattler, especially not the two Rattlers we have, the Canebrake(Crotalus horridus atricaudatus) and the Eastern Pygmy(Sistrurus miliarus), and a Rat Snake looks even less like one. The guy swore that this snake he caught had "diamond" markings(which our Rattlers DO NOT have), but then, to the average ignoramus, ALL snakes have "diamond" markings, even a striped Garter! He also swore it had "slanty" eyes, whatever the heck THAT means. Rat Snakes have a very distinct look to them, no matter what the species, even among those found on other continents, and I don't see how one can be mistaken for a venomous snake.

pitbulllady

 

[SixShot666]

Great story!!! Especially the part where you reached into the bag and pulled out a harmless black rat snake. :clap::clap::clap:

 

[loxoscelesfear]

I'll never get used to Pantherophis. Will always be Elaphe in my mind. No rattlers where I live, but the rat snakes, racers, and kings buzzing their tails will always have people swearing on their lives that they do occur here.

 

[AudreyElizabeth]

We live in terrifying times. My uncle was killed by a coachwhip when he thought he was going to the rescue of my three year old niece.

The King cobra rumors were a lot of hogwash. Anybody who knows anything about the species knows that the cobras that managed to establish themselves in Florida were eradicated by the death-stalker scorpions introduced there by the Florida Department of Natural Resources for just that purpose. Ultimately that plan backfired when the death stalker scorps started crossing with the local hummingbirds, quickly spreading northward from Florida into the Appalachian Mountains, becoming major pests there and rapidly extending their territory westward. The only hope is that their only predator, the nocturnal piranha-bat, will keep their numbers in check.
Piranha-bats first appeared when a irresponsible aquarium enthusiast/spelunker released his tank of fingerling piranhas into a subterranean stream in Carlsbad Caverns. Thru methods not yet fully understood by biologists, these fish hybridized with the cave's massive bat population. They are murder on all types of avian scorpions, but unfortunately can fly down and strip a cow down to the bones in 30 seconds. The impact on the cattle industry was not without consequences. If you ever wondered why Big Macs are no longer 99 cents, you now know the reason.
As a side note, McDonalds has so far had no success with their McPiranha-Bat sandwich during their limited test-marketing in their bid to replace the Big Mac on their 99 cent menu while helping to lower the piranha-bat population.

Hilarious!
That particular episode of MonsterQuest made me want to :barf:. I sent a nice email to the History Channel explaining this, but apparently they didn't care enough to respond. Oh well, it made me feel better anyway. I've also heard the myth 'round these here parts about the snake rolling around in a ring to chase you. I can't fathom why people believe such nonsense!

 

[Howlinwolf89]

LOL....great story.

A few years ago when I worked at Petsmart, an old lady came into the store carrying a gallon bucket, claiming to have caught a "Horny Toad"...."biggest 'un she'd ever seened!"....turns out it was an adult Bearded Dragon that must've escaped from a neighbor's place or something, lol.

Horned Toads are real . There used to be alot of them here in the Texas Panhandle but now they are a endangered species . As kids we used to claim they would spit at you but of coarse a myth . Now when we mow weeds we will walk it first and make sure one doesnt get killed . Its a horned lizard but for some reason it has always been called a horny toad long before i was born . Its illegal to have one as its a protected species !