If what I saw today is any indication, that is. This afternoon I heard what sounded like a rabbit crying out behind the house. Once I got back there I saw my Great Pyrenees looking across the fence, but it seemed like she was looking up in the trees for some reason. I heard the crying again, although much fainter, and finally saw movement up in an oak tree about 30 yards over on the neighbor's property. About 20 feet up I could barely make out a squirrel's tail, but something didn't look right. The squirrel looked to be on top of a limb where its whole body should be visible, but I could only see the tail which looked kind of limp. Then I was able to see its head even though it hadn't seemed to move a muscle, which really piqued my interest. A few seconds later I realized what I was looking at...a dadgum snake constricting a squirrel to death 20 feet up a tree!
I'm not a fan of snakes. I don't kill them like I used to, but damn if it isn't my first thought when I see one. I started heading for the house to grab a shotgun, but changed my mind and decided to try to get a picture. All I had was my old iPhone SE so the quality is lacking, but you can still make out what's what. The squirrel was a young one, not a baby but "good eating size". I'm pretty sure the snake is a rat snake, but not a huge one. I've seen them close to 6' and I'm guessing this one was around 4'. By the time I took the pic, it had moved off of the limb and was hanging from a much smaller branch. I'm not sure what happened after that because I was standing in tall grass and my snake allergy started acting up something fierce.
Never in a million years would I have believed this if I hadn't seen it. Has anyone else ever heard or seen the like? I wonder if any old timers have a saying about how bad the winter's going to be when snakes start eating squirrels!
I'm not a fan of snakes. I don't kill them like I used to, but damn if it isn't my first thought when I see one. I started heading for the house to grab a shotgun, but changed my mind and decided to try to get a picture. All I had was my old iPhone SE so the quality is lacking, but you can still make out what's what. The squirrel was a young one, not a baby but "good eating size". I'm pretty sure the snake is a rat snake, but not a huge one. I've seen them close to 6' and I'm guessing this one was around 4'. By the time I took the pic, it had moved off of the limb and was hanging from a much smaller branch. I'm not sure what happened after that because I was standing in tall grass and my snake allergy started acting up something fierce.
Never in a million years would I have believed this if I hadn't seen it. Has anyone else ever heard or seen the like? I wonder if any old timers have a saying about how bad the winter's going to be when snakes start eating squirrels!
