Snake experts tell 1200 WOAI news that late August and September will see an explosion of snakes in back yards, as the critters start slithering out looking for something to eat.
�They�re very hungry right now,� central Texas snake expert Jerry Cates tells 1200 WOAI news, in a statement which is creepy on its surface. �The hungrier they get, the more they start ranging the fields looking for food.� He says that�s why we can expect snakes to show up in places where they are seldom seen.
He says the three most common types of poisonous snakes in Texas are the common rattlesnake, the Texas coral snake, and the cottonmouth, which is relatively rare.
The rattlesnake has the distinctive rattle at the end of the snake, but Cates cautions that the snake doesn�t always rattle the rattler, so if you don�t hear the tell-tale sound, don�t think it�s not a dangerous rattlesnake.
If it is a colorful, banded coral snake, Cates says the Boy Scout nursery rhyme really does tell you whether the snake is dangerous or not. �Red touch yellow, kill a fellow. Red touch black, venom lack. That is probably the best way to remember that.�
He says snakes will almost always retreat when confronted by humans, and he says many people are startled by how fast snakes can travel.
If the worst happens, and you get snake bit, Cates says get to the doctor as quickly as possible. He says snake bites are actually less painful than a sting from a scorpion or a wasp, and he says the victim may not experience the effects of the venom right away, but, as anybody who has seen movies ranging from �Lonesome Dove� to �True Grit� can attest, snake bites are nothing to mess with.
He says the venom will begin kicking in a few hours, and frequently leads to paralysis, respiratory failure, and can be fatal. And he says a snake bite will drain your wallet as well.
�If you are bitten by a venomous snake, you and your insurance provider together are going to spend between $50,000 and $150,000 in medical bills,� he said.
Cates says as we approach mid August and get into September, we should be aware of the fact that snakes are likely to pop up in all sorts of places. He says you should put the flip-flops aside, and wear leather shoes or boots whenever you are walking in or around tall grass brush, or while you are doing gardening work or lawn mowing.
He warns that even if rains do come to the region, the snake infestation is inevitable. He says the snakes are ranging looking for their favorite prey, which is rodents, and a couple of rains won�t suddenly produce a crop of rodents for the snakes to eat.
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Looks like I am staying inside until Christmas

this looks alot like this post:

http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/6566135/Snakes_a_coming#Post6566135

Why did he leave out copperheads? They are much more dangerous than corals.

It�s probably posted everywhere and I haven�t had a chance to check it out to see if it�s even legitimate, but I thought it was kinda interesting so I posted it on here. If it�s old news sorry I wasted your time.

Rex

It's for real. My 35 year old son was bitten on the toe last Friday night while walking across the yard in flip flops after dark. I carried him to the ER where they gave him the anti-venom. It was classified a mild bite and the swelling was confined to below the knee. He was released Saturday and returned to work on Wednesday. Didn't see what kind of snake but the ER folks said the anti-venom they used was not for coral snake bite in fact they did not keep it on hand.

Yea I would have thought they would have listed copperheads.

$50,000 to $150,000 seems a little steep for meds. KG68 did it cost that much?

A 6 year old was bitten by a prarie rattler on the school ground out in the county last week. Luckily he was rushed to the ER and they got him fixed up. He did spend 3 days in Pediatric ICU.

Good write up.Ihave never seen a cottonmouth here in north tx.I know people confuse them with the diamond back water snake which can be very aggressive,but like your article says they(cottonmouth)are rare to be seen around here.

and are the most common of the FOUR types of poisonous snakes native to Texas

The little I can add to this discussion is that it IS important to know what kind of snake you were bitten by, even if just a description.

Some of our lethal snakes carry neurotoxins, others carry a hemotoxin.

A different anti-venom is needed for each type.

In addition, if I remember correctly, Coral and Copperheads are only found in deciduous forests - defined by high rainfall and multiple hardwoods. In other words, forests that produce a lot of Fall colors, like East TX.

That might explain why a Hospital in Central TX wouldn't have the anti-venom for Coral snakes.

Thanks for the heads-up, OP!

There are only 4-5 "lethal" snakes in North America. I say 4, because the fifth, as I waas taught, is simply a subspecies of the Rattlesnake.

And yep, we've got all four in Texas.

That's the best of my memory from a BS in Biology. Maybe a Herpatologist will chime in.

I have killed two copperheads already this summer here in Rockwall. They were not adults as they still had the yellow/greenish on their tails. They were very agressive little fellas.

My son cares Scott&White insurance and the Hamilton hospital is S&W affiliated. A friend went and picked him up the next day and I haven't found that out yet. In most cases you don't see the final bill for weeks but one night in the hospital plus ER and bloodwork and the anti-venom I wouldn't think it was that much. I'll try and post that up here if and when I find out.