Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: snake

(4 more pictures in notes above) One day in October of 2012, Steve came into the house with a plastic box and asked in excitement, "Guess what I found in the shop?!" I had no idea, so it was a wonderful surprise to discover that he'd captured a baby Gopher snake! He knew I'd like to see it before he released it, and naturally, pictures were in order! After a few minutes of happy clicking, we brought the box outside, tipped it on its side in the meadow, and quick as a flash, our young friend slipped out of sight in the bushes!

(Invitation to my next project info at the bottom AND I have a new group for our projects: Janet's Photography Projects [temporary name]) I've got folders brimming with finished pictures that I'd like to post at some point, and while I was looking for images which contained numbers of objects from 1-10, I discovered this one, which is among my favorites since it also has a story to go with it. One morning Steve and I got up and he went down to the kitchen to get breakfast, when I heard him exclaim in surprise. Pulling my clothes on, I dashed down to see what the excitement was alll about. Pointing to our aluminum recycling can, he said, "Janet, there is a garter snake in that corner behind the can!" He continued his story as we both moved to each side of the can, explaining, " I came into the kitchen and turned on the light, and I found it in the middle of the room! The second it saw me, it raced to find a place to hide...how in the world did it get into the kitchen???!" I shook my head in wonder. "I have no idea...maybe there is a small hole under the cabinets?" Steve moved the can while I guarded one side, and quickly and gently, Steve reached in and grabbed the harmless snake behind the head to keep it from possibly biting and lifted it up, supporting its sinuous body in his other hand. It tried to escape, but like me, Steve's owned snakes and we've caught many wild garter snakes as kids and know how to hold them safely and securely. It calmed down quickly when it found it could not get away, the rest of its body intertwined around Steve's fingers. We appreciated its lovely markings for a moment and then I traded with him so I could hold it too. Snakes feel wonderful to hold. They have lovely textures and it's amazing to feel them moving along with thier muscular, ungulating bodies. Steve got my camera and took some pictures of me holding it, and then we walked outside and released it about 100 feet from the house. From the time we discovered it to the time we released it was only about 10 minutes, because we wanted to cause it as little stress as possible. I am delighted by this image and am so happy that I can use it for my final picture in my 1-10 Project! A big thanks to my Project Buddies: Chrissy , Valfal (Valerie), Jenny McIntyre , Rachel , and Lynne , it was really wonderful having you along on this adventure! Great creativity and lots of fun!! This 1-10 Project was Chrissy's idea, and she also thought about doing a series of colors. The other day, Lynne approached me with a color theme too, with the addition of a rainbow scheme with enough colors that a weekly project will carry us through nearly to Christmas! I would like to extend an inviatation to anyone who would like to join us on this project! Let me know if you're interested and I'll add you to the list so that folks can see what you've come up with for each week too! Next project: Color Wheel! Next Week will be a pictures that features any shade of Red. The following weeks will be any shade of Pink, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, Brown, and then the non-colors of Black and White. You can restrict yourself to a single subject or you might like to have a theme, like flowers, things that are a certain shape, or whatever. It just needs to be the color of the week! :) I hope you'll consider joining us! Photography projects are a great way to be inspired and keep the creative juices going! Explored on September 30, 2014. Highest placement, #2.

+ 10 more inset images above in notes! :) "Killer" is also slang for "cool", which is what this stunning, beautiful, gentle and non-venomous snake is! I found this amazing California Mountain Kingsnake on our property 1.5 years ago and when I discovered that this reclusive species is actually quite common in this area, we decided it would be ok to keep him as a pet. Affectionately named "Snakey McSnakerton", he's doing great and growing larger with each passing month. When I found him (we don't actually know the gender, but call it a male!), Snakey was about 10" long, and is now about 16". There are about 45 species of Kingsnakes, which also include Milksnakes. They come in a large number of colors from solid black to almost white, with a dizzying variety of patterns. In fact, some species, such as this one, mimic the highly venomous coral snake , which only lives in the southern States. (NEVER approach a snake unless you are SURE it's harmless!) Kingsnakes are among the most popular pet snakes due to their docile, friendly dispositions and ease of care. In the wild, they are secretive, usually moving about during the day, and eat rodents, reptiles and birds. If you would like to know more about Kingsnakes, Wiki has a nice page here: Wiki: Kingsnake This picture uses some texture in the background, courtesy of Jerry Jones: Soft-Faux-n-Grunge-Bokeh Explored on April 18, 2014. Highest placement, #2.

3 more pictures and 1 text note above! :) Last October I was checking under rocks along our ridgetop and to my complete surprise, I found this beautiful California Mountain Kingsnake!! I could not resist capturing this tiny baby so that I could bring it home to show Steve, who also loves snakes. Never in my life have I seen such a gorgeous snake in the wild...and I found it on our property!! WOW! Both of us were so amazed by this little guy that we wanted to keep it for our own. However, I needed to know that it would be ok to do this, so I did some research on the internet and found out that in our area, this is a fairly common snake, but because it's secretive, it's rarely seen. I found out that it isn't illegal to keep them as a pet, and both of us have had snakes, so we understand how to care for them. Finally, both of us were concerned that he was too small, so late in the year, to survive the long winter. So, after trying out many different names, we decided to call him "Snakey" because it's cute to say, bought him a tank and everything needed to care for him, and he's been with us for nearly 9 months now. He's grown much larger from his original 11" by several inches and is wonderful to hold and observe! :) The quote I picked is perfect for him, because these snakes mimic the color of the very dangerous Coral Snake, but are not venemous and are very gentle and docile. Chanakya (c. 370–283 BCE) was an Indian teacher, philosopher and royal advisor. Originally a professor of economics and political science at the ancient Takshashila University, Chanakya managed the first Maurya emperor Chandragupta's rise to power at a young age. He is widely credited for having played an important role in the establishment of the Maurya Empire, which was the first empire in archaeologically recorded history to rule most of the Indian subcontinent. Chanakya served as the chief advisor to both Chandragupta and his son Bindusara. Wikipedia: Chanakya Explored on August 11, 2012. Highest placement, page 4.

9 pictures above as insets, all the older images are clickable to see a larger size! ENJOY!! Isn't he AMAZING?!! Snakey enjoys moving all around his environment and has a cave to hide in, a pool of water, a large rock and several branches to climb on. We enjoy his company every day and he is very healthy and eats well! There are about 45 species of Kingsnakes, which also include Milksnakes. They come in a large number of colors from solid black to almost white, with a dizzying variety of patterns. In fact, some species, such as this one, mimic the highly venomous coral snake , which only lives in the southern States. (NEVER approach a snake unless you are SURE it's harmless!) Kingsnakes are among the most popular pet snakes due to their docile, friendly dispositions and ease of care. In the wild, they are secretive, usually moving about during the day, and eat rodents, reptiles and birds. If you would like to know more about Kingsnakes, Wiki has a nice page here: Wiki: Kingsnake

Here's a close-up of the panorama image so you can get a better look at our beautiful snake's face.

NOTE: Please forgive the tragic nature of these images. It is not my intention to offend, alarm or disgust my visitors, but only to educate and enlighten. About a month ago I was out taking pictures of Larkspur flowers when I heard rustling about 20 feet away. I stood and slowly moved in that direction, looking very carefully as I went. At first I saw nothing, but then I gasped quietly in surprise when I located the source of the noise. It was a garter snake that had just caught a blue-belly lizard, something I'd never witnessed in my life! The two were completely still as I creeped towards them, and I began taking pictures and tried not to disturb the event unfolding before me. Some may wonder why I didn't try to save the lizard, but it's not right to meddle with this cycle of life. This garter snake must eat. The lizard wasn't wary enough, and its genes will not pass to the next generation, but a more wary lizard's genes will. For me, this was a chance of a lifetime!! I've been out in the woods for countless hours from when I was a child and I've seen so many things, but this is the first time I've witnessed a snake's successful hunt. I am so happy that I could take these pictures, and I was quiet and slow enough that I was able to take all the pictures I wanted. When I was done, I backed away slowly and left the area, thrilled at what I got to see. A few days later another astonishing thing happened. I was walking down our road, very close to this spot, when I noticed something sticking out of the grass. To my amazement, a garter snake--and I believe it was the same one--had raised itself up about a foot off the ground and was staring into my eyes, I kid you not! We stared at one another for about two seconds when one of my dogs broke the trance by coming over, and quick as a flash, the snake turned and zipped away into the grass!! Never in my life have I seen this happen. Truly remarkable! And finally, if you can believe it, this happened AGAIN several days ago, but for just a few seconds this time...the snake seemed to recognize me and sank back into the grass to go on his way before we could lock eyes. So interesting! This image was taken in April, 2012.

A couple of weeks ago, Steve came into the game room where we have our computers and announced, "Look what I found in the shop!!" I looked into the plastic box and found a Pacific Gopher Snake hatchling looking up at me! Naturally, I exclaimed, "COOL!! Let's take pictures!!" After I took a series of images, we leaned the box on its side outside, and in a flash, he disappeared into the bushes and was gone! What fun!! :) Pacific Gopher Snakes are a fairly common snake which is found along the western coast of North America, from British Columbia to Baja, California. It can grow to be 7 feet long and is harmless to humans. In fact, it is one of the best pet snakes, due to its gentle nature and ease of care. If you would like to know more about Pacific Gopher Snakes, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: Pacific Gopher Snake . For more information and lots of pictures, CaliforniaHerps.com has a great page here: Californiaherps: Pacific Gopher Snake By the way, I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Thanks to all of you who have visited and have left comments and favorites! I try to go to all of your pages within a day or two and is a highlight for me to see your beautiful photography! :)

Look what I found yesterday!! I went for an autumn photo walk along our ridgeline with hopes of finding some new mushrooms. As I walked, I peeked under logs and peered into stumps. I came to the log which once had a scorpion under it, and to my utter amazement I found this magnificent hatchling California Mountain Kingsnake curled into a compact ball! So exciting, a dream come true!! I simply LOVE snakes, and this particular species is one that I have long admired in pictures and vivariums (reptile store) but never imagined I would actually see in the wild! Given the fact that the sun was down and it was getting dark, I had to set my ISO to 1250 and my aperture to 3.5, and though most of my pictures were blurry, I did get a few nice ones! The lovely, gentle California Mountain Kingsnake is native to California but can be found in Oregon and southern Washington as well. I was surprised to find that they're not uncommon, but are secretive, which is probably why I've only seen garter snakes for the most part. There are 7 subspecies, but I'm not sure which this is. Hatchlings are 6"-7" in size and adults can grow to be as large as 4' in length with a lifespan of up to 15 years. They eat lizards, rodents, birds and eggs. If you would like more information about this stunning snake, Wiki has a page here: Wiki: California Mountain Kingsnake By the way, I've uploaded two other pictures today and I hope you'll visit them too! Explored on Flickr on October 18, 2012. Highest placement: #220.

A few days ago, I found this gorgeous hatchling under a log while hunting for mushrooms. I knew that Steve would go crazy if he saw this lovely guy, so I gently captured him and took him home for a visit. As I suspected, Steve was enchanted! There are about 45 species of Kingsnakes, which also include Milksnakes. They come in a large number of colors from solid black to almost white, with a dizzying variety of patterns. In fact, some species, such as this one, mimic the highly venomous coral snake , which only lives in the southern States. (NEVER approach a snake unless you are SURE it's harmless!) Kingsnakes are among the most popular pet snakes due to their docile, friendly dispositions and ease of care. In the wild, they are secretive, usually moving about during the day, and eat rodents, reptiles and birds. If you would like to know more about Kingsnakes, Wiki has a nice page here: Wiki: Kingsnake

What do you think of his original name?! We kept calling her "Snakey" and it stuck. Besides, we think it's cute! As for the other part of her name, Snakey loves to cruise all over her tank and up into the branches. She often hangs out at the top, and if she's eaten recently, it's obvious because you can see her so well on the branch, basking like a king on her throne! :) We are extremely excited today because Snakey has completed her first shed!! Last week she became very secretive, retiring to her hide for many days. We weren't surprised because her skin had started to get a blue sheen to it, indicating an eminent shed, but we were still a little worried since we haven't had her very long. However, last night Steve discovered that Snakey had been out earlier and left her shed skin rubbed off onto one of her rocks, and this morning she came out, glistening and shiny and looking absolutely gorgeous! HOORAY!!! (This picture was taken a few weeks ago, but we hope to take new ones today and show off her lovely new "suit"!) :D YAY, SNAKEY!!