In what may be a South Bay version of a sea serpent saga, a
Morgan Hill family was about to go for a for a dip in their
swimming pool one warm day last month and were startled by the
sight of a snake in the water.
In what may be a South Bay version of a sea serpent saga, a Morgan Hill family was about to go for a for a dip in their swimming pool one warm day last month and were startled by the sight of a snake in the water.
The boys quickly rescued it and upon closer examination, realized that it was badly injured and bleeding, most likely from a cat attack.
They set up a temporary habitat for the snake in a terrarium, complete with rocks and plants, then contacted their neighbor who is a volunteer at W.E.R.C.
The next day, the volunteer brought the California king snake to the Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center, where the staff immediately realized it was in critical condition with exposed vital organs. The snake was initially treated with antibiotics, and then transferred to veterinarian Dr. Laura Bellinghausen, who examined it and sutured the wound.
The glossy black-and-white striped snake has continued to make excellent progress, though the end of his tail is paralyzed, and he has been eating on his own. Once the suture is removed, he will recuperate a bit more before being released into an appropriate snake habitat, where nearby water is “people-free”.
California king snakes range throughout most of the western United States and are common in a wide variety of habitats including forests, woodlands, marshes, deserts, grasslands, and apparently, semi-rural backyards.
The king snake’s name is apt: It eats an amazing smorgasbord of other wildlife, including lizards, birds and eggs, small mammals, turtles and frogs. They are also cannibals – eating snakes, including other king snakes and rattlesnakes, to whose venom they are immune. King snakes are constrictors – they hunt and kill by striking and coiling around their prey, suffocating the animal before swallowing it whole.
W.E.R.C. encourages the peaceful coexistence between civilization and our native wildlife. All animals have their place in our environment and W.E.R.C. strives to rehabilitate injured and orphaned native wildlife before returning them to their natural habitat.
Sometimes, unreleasable animals can be placed in educational programs. Such is the case with W.E.R.C.’s two king snakes: “Quasimodo,” who had his back broken when a cat attempted to eat him as he was hatching from an egg; he is partially paralyzed but able to slither around the terrarium and otherwise functions well.
“Cat-Got-My-Tongue” is another unreleasable snake, who, just like his name states, had his tongue pulled out during a run-in with a cat. He would not be able to hunt and survive in the wild without this sense, but he is still able to eat on his own, since the snake’s tongue isn’t used for swallowing but for detecting food.
To find out more about the snakes and other wildlife living in your backyard, check out nature Web sites and visit your library.
For more information on W.E.R.C.’s services and to contact W.E.R.C. call (408) 779-9372 or visit www.werc-ca.org.
