Southern New England Outdoor and Nature Site: Eastern Milk Snake!

Saturday, September 16, 2023

Eastern Milk Snake!

After spending the morning in the house waiting for the tropical storm to materialize we decided not to waste anymore of the day. We didn't have any plans because who makes outdoor plans during a possible hurricane besides my friend Dave? So after a few quick minutes of thinking we decided to go herping in the place I saw ten snakes last week.

I knew Rhode Island was going to be spared almost the entire affects of the storm. I hoped it had rained in the morning and the sun would come out to dry things up making hungry snakes come out to feed. When I got down to South County it looked as though it never rained at all. Even more surprisingly, the water was calm.

Laurie and I looked along the edges of the grass like Greg and I did earlier in the week but didn't have much success. We each only found one snake. This was a bit of a surprise to me.

When herpers lift rocks to see if anything is living under them it is called "flipping". This is sort of a misnomer, at least for me, because after I lift a rock I always put it back exactly as I found it. Today we found nine snakes while flipping. I caught five Decay's Brown Snakes, three Garters and one really special snake.

My first snake was a Decay's followed by a Garter. Both were babies about five inches long. I caught them both and showed them to Laurie and got some photos. The Brown Snake was a lifer for Laurie. I caught both of them under consecutive rocks. I was pumped to get two different species in a row and also to get them in such a short amount of time. All told, I got four of my eleven snakes in less than five minutes. The other species of snake I caught was a baby Eastern Milk Snake!

I had seen only one Eastern Milk Snake before. It was at the Saratoga National Battlefield in New York. It was up on a hill near a canon of all places. Laurie and I kind of harassed it into the woods so no one would bother/kill it. I did take some photos first.

Today's Eastern Milk was much smaller. It was probably a foot long. The adult I had seen was a dull brown. Today's little guy was absolutely gorgeous. It had a gray and scarlett design. The marking were not linear as I expected. They were varied and curved. When I saw it, I was in shock and yelled out loud to Laurie multiple times that I had a Milk Snake. I was so nervous I would miss it. It turned out that was a moot point because it thought it was hidden and didn't move until I picked it up. Once in my hand it got feisty. It bit me twice but it was so small I couldn't feel it. I brought it over to Laurie and I took a dozen photos.

I texted Greg to confirm I did indeed have a Milk Snake. He told me he was on his way and asked if I could hold it for him until he got there. I had already let it go but it was still under the rock I put it under. I picked it up and kept it safe for the ten minutes until he got there. He took some photos then we let it go. Greg walked with us for a few minutes but he had to leave. Laurie and I found a few more snakes but none of them were as cool as the Eastern Milk Snake.