Diamondback Rattler pt 2

Ok I was just kidding again. Found this little snake when I was out for my evening stroll- dusk is my new favorite time to head out into the forest, with the full moon coming up the dark isn't a problem. Anyway, she didn't move until I stepped really close to look at her. Then Maggie saw her and was after her. I hadn't identified it yet and I was like oh crap what if it's poisonous??

Maggie chased her, and though she was a darn fast snake, she stopped "running" and changed her defensive tactics. She curled into a writhing swirling ball, keeping her head tucked in the middle and flailing the tip of her tail as a decoy head. The fact that she wasn't in a more aggressive stance made me pretty sure she was harmless, but I grabbed Maggie away just in case. Plus, I didn't want her to hurt the snake- I wanted to see it closer.

This is what I put her in, for the brief ten minutes of captivity she suffered so I could take some pics. This is just so you can see how small she was- maybe 13 or 14 inches. I never touched her, though. I took my shirt off and threw it over her and then gathered her up. Don't worry, I had a sweatshirt around my waist so no forest animals were subjected to indecent exposure.

Aren't her scales gorgeous? They're like gems.

After I let her go back to nature (exactly where I found her) I went on with my stroll- and not 5 minutes later a HUGE owl swooped across my path, ten feet away from my face. At first I thought it was a crow, because we have a family of some very large crows living here, but then I saw the round head and flat face, and it was bigger than the biggest crow (Wow my brain is not doing well with words today. I took an allergy pill and now I'm all sleepy. At least my nose doesn't itch anymore). It never made a sound or even flapped it's wings. Just glided by. THEN I saw a lightning show better than fireworks. Nature was on a roll last night.

I just realized that I captured an unidentified snake- the same day that I screamed bloody murder because there was a caterpillar by my front door. Mom had to come rescue me by taking it somewhere else. EEEEEEK it wiggled all fast and scary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The snake was really active, too, but that's just not my phobia. Huh. Was Potterman's though. He was a wee bit alarmed when I walked in all proud of my catch. Flying, heights, spiders, small spaces... What's your phobia?