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Posted: 5/22/2012 5:42:06 PM EDT

http://www.wistv.com/story/18590445/2012/05/22/large-snake-slithering-through-columbia-neighborhood

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:43:06 PM EDT

[#1]

possum, obviously

ah.. i read the story. and its 15 to 20 feet long.. but its a rat snake???

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:46:45 PM EDT

[#2]

Very dark for a grey rat snake.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:46:46 PM EDT

[#3]

"After getting a call from his elderly neighbor about a snake in his yard, Heathwood resident Andrew Philson, who is used to seeing small garter and black snakes, took a look around when he got home and was more than a bit surprised to see a 15-20 foot long intruder slithering up one of his trees."

Looked at the pics. Wonder if it is an escaped exotic. Seems way to big for a rat snake.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:48:05 PM EDT

[#4]

Albino spitting rattle moccasin, or "Dikfer" as they're so fondly referred to in some parts.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:49:58 PM EDT

[#5]

We had a 10-12 foot boa of some sort living under a house on the other side of town here in middle Wisconsin a few years ago.

My vote is escaped exotic.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:51:41 PM EDT

[#6]

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:55:17 PM EDT

[#7]

Quoted:
Very dark for a grey rat snake.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_Rat_Snake

Looks like it, but this says the record length is 7'. This looks a lot bigger, but perhaps it is a really small tree.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:58:59 PM EDT

[#8]

Im no snake expert but it does looks like a massive rat snake to me. It could be a really small tree but even so it a really really big snake maybe even shattering record size. I hope its caught so we can see how big it really is.

Posted: 5/22/2012 5:59:01 PM EDT

[#9]

almost looks like a python of sorts....

looks awfully big to be a black rat snake... looks thicker in the body..

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:00:14 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Very dark for a grey rat snake.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_Rat_Snake

Looks like it, but this says the record length is 7'. This looks a lot bigger, but perhaps it is a really small tree.

I dunno, I've only seen the black ones like this. The ones I've seen in my area were around 4 feet long.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:00:33 PM EDT

[#11]

that is a european canardly from madagascar

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:02:58 PM EDT

[#12]

If it was my yard, it would be a dead snake.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:03:20 PM EDT

[#13]

That is a python.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:04:46 PM EDT

[#14]

Whatever it is, it's his tree now...

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:05:58 PM EDT

[#15]

African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:06:26 PM EDT

[#16]

Am I reading this article right, that animal control won't remove it because it's a "rat snake?"

I don't give a shit what it is, that guy has a kid and there's no way I'd have that fucking thing in the yard of my house.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:06:32 PM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Very dark for a grey rat snake.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_Rat_Snake

Looks like it, but this says the record length is 7'. This looks a lot bigger, but perhaps it is a really small tree.

I dunno, I've only seen the black ones like this. The ones I've seen in my area were around 4 feet long.
http://www.rfadventures.com/black-rat-snake.jpg

This is also a gray rat snake.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:07:35 PM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:

African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

In high school I made extra money breeding reptiles and amphibians.

My prize was my seven foot long savanna monitor. Her name was godzilla. She probably weighed about 80 lbs.

I used to walk her up and down the street in a dog harness.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:13:16 PM EDT

[#19]

Melanistic burmese

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:17:24 PM EDT

[#20]

6-9 foot rat snake(some get that big) seen by someone who does not like snakes. Fear makes it "grow" to 15 feet. The pythons and boas that get that big are thicker at 9-10 feet than that snake looks to be(except for the scrub python, and that is not one).

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:21:34 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:
African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

Nope, an Afrock that size would be much thicker and have "hollow" saddle markings down its back(the inside of the markings would be "filled in" with the lighter background color). IF it's a boid the only thing the head resembles is a white lipped python, but I don't know if they get that big.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:24:20 PM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:

Quoted:

African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

Nope, an Afrock that size would be much thicker and have "hollow" saddle markings down its back(the inside of the markings would be "filled in" with the lighter background color). IF it's a boid the only thing the head resembles is a white lipped python, but I don't know if they get that big.

^^This guy seems like the expert that the OP requested.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:24:27 PM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:

Quoted:
African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

In high school I made extra money breeding reptiles and amphibians.

My prize was my seven foot long savanna monitor. Her name was godzilla. She probably weighed about 80 lbs.

I used to walk her up and down the street in a dog harness.

Holy shit, got any pics? The biggest savanna I have seen was 35-40 pounds max. I know they can get bigger, but I've never seen it. I'd love to see pics of yours.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:27:25 PM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:

Quoted:

African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

In high school I made extra money breeding reptiles and amphibians.

My prize was my seven foot long savanna monitor. Her name was godzilla. She probably weighed about 80 lbs.

I used to walk her up and down the street in a dog harness.

Holy shit, got any pics? The biggest savanna I have seen was 35-40 pounds max. I know they can get bigger, but I've never seen it. I'd love to see pics of yours.

Hell that was 15 years ago!

I have some old Kodaks around here somewhere. Let me see if I can dig them up.

She was on a two rabbit a week diet. She was actually very tolerant of most people.

Her biggest problem is that she didn't like our dog, and there were bends in the hardware cloth where she would try to go through the wire to try to get at him.

Her cage was just big enough for her to basically turn around and lay still, which is why I had to walk her daily.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:27:44 PM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:

Quoted:
African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

Nope, an Afrock that size would be much thicker and have "hollow" saddle markings down its back(the inside of the markings would be "filled in" with the lighter background color). IF it's a boid the only thing the head resembles is a white lipped python, but I don't know if they get that big.

^^This guy seems like the expert that the OP requested.

Bah! everyone is an expert on GD.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:27:47 PM EDT

[#26]

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:31:13 PM EDT

[#27]

future dead snake

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:36:00 PM EDT

[#28]

Without perspective on how big the tree is its hard to tell how long that snake is. Looks like a rat snake to me. I'd see if ti was friendly, what could possibly go wrong.

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:40:22 PM EDT

[#29]

I have seen some large black snakes in SC. I am terrified of snakes. When I was a kid I ran into a rattler at my dads and did not goes into those woods for years...

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:42:50 PM EDT

[#30]

It's big enough to make an easy target for OO buck! And that's what it'd be if I found it in my yard!

Some of us Floridiots are getting touchy about the subject of snakes. With so many feral pythons loose in the state,

we're kind of likely to start blasting away at any snake that MIGHT be a python.

CJ

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:43:40 PM EDT

[#31]

Quoted:

Quoted:
African rock python, KILL IT WITH FIRE!!1! (this is coming from a snake lover, someone who has owned tens of dozens of snakes.) Of all the snakes I have owned, including some damn hot hots like pigmy rattlers and eyelash vipers, my African rock python scared me the most.

Nope, an Afrock that size would be much thicker and have "hollow" saddle markings down its back(the inside of the markings would be "filled in" with the lighter background color). IF it's a boid the only thing the head resembles is a white lipped python, but I don't know if they get that big.

^^This guy seems like the expert that the OP requested.

Bah! everyone is an expert on GD.

Nope, just a hobbyist who wanted to get into more advanced animals but the state decided to ban everything I wanted. I'll be the first to admit I'm no expert. The white around the mouth of that snake is the only thing that makes me consider a whitelipped python, the body's wrong(Whitelips have nearly solid colored bodies). Patterning on the body looks like ratsnake patterning, the dark coloration could be consequences of iffy light conditions, a cheap camera and an only slightly skilled photographer who is at leats a little afraid of his subject.

ETA-it looks like it's climbing like a rat snake too-tail coiled around the tree higher than a large percentage of the body, and head end using that for a "step". When I've seen pythons climb they have wrapped their tail around at the bottom and just pushed everything else up from there-or just tightly coiled around the tree like a barber pole and crawled around. Where's Retic? We'll see if he agrees(he's a lot more advanceed than I ever got).

Posted: 5/22/2012 6:56:58 PM EDT

[#32]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Very dark for a grey rat snake.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_Rat_Snake

Looks like it, but this says the record length is 7'. This looks a lot bigger, but perhaps it is a really small tree.

I dunno, I've only seen the black ones like this. The ones I've seen in my area were around 4 feet long.
http://www.rfadventures.com/black-rat-snake.jpg

This is also a gray rat snake.

http://srelherp.uga.edu/snakes/pics/elaobs7.jpg

that woiuld be my guess. I don't know why, but some snakes get dark (or are dark). Maybe from the sun. I my area there are very dark cottom mouths.

Posted: 5/23/2012 4:59:18 AM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:07:07 AM EDT

[#34]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

No, it's not. Those are 2x4 joists (this is America and that's how we do things here) in that shed behind the tree which is only a few feet away from the tree. That wire on the fence has either 3" or 4" in length grids- again, this is America and we have standardized building materials. That's a BIG fucking snake.

If it were in my yard I can tell you what kind of fucking snake it would be- DEAD!

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:31:59 AM EDT

[#35]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

No, it's not. Those are 2x4 joists (this is America and that's how we do things here) in that shed behind the tree which is only a few feet away from the tree. That wire on the fence has either 3" or 4" in length grids- again, this is America and we have standardized building materials. That's a BIG fucking snake.

If it were in my yard I can tell you what kind of fucking snake it would be- DEAD!

The joists are also farther away from the camera than the tree and snake. They look smaller than they are. The tree could easily be less than 4" thick. Remember the pics of the "90 pound" rattlesnake floating around? The guy took a 6-7 foot snake and held it out on long tongs, making it look bigger.Same principle without a man in the shot.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:34:27 AM EDT

[#36]

Could be getting ready to shed. If it is a rat snake it's a damn big one. I've seen them 6' here, that one must be eating cats and small dogs.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:42:14 AM EDT

[#37]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

No, it's not. Those are 2x4 joists (this is America and that's how we do things here) in that shed behind the tree which is only a few feet away from the tree. That wire on the fence has either 3" or 4" in length grids- again, this is America and we have standardized building materials. That's a BIG fucking snake.

If it were in my yard I can tell you what kind of fucking snake it would be- DEAD!

The joists are also farther away from the camera than the tree and snake. They look smaller than they are. The tree could easily be less than 4" thick. Remember the pics of the "90 pound" rattlesnake floating around? The guy took a 6-7 foot snake and held it out on long tongs, making it look bigger.Same principle without a man in the shot.

And the wire butts right up to that tree and we both know those vertical grids are either 3 or 4". That a big damn snake.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:44:08 AM EDT

[#38]

It looks like a boa or python to me.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:45:43 AM EDT

[#39]

Quoted:
Am I reading this article right, that animal control won't remove it because it's a "rat snake?"

I don't give a shit what it is, that guy has a kid and there's no way I'd have that fucking thing in the yard of my house.

This^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^20ft=dead!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:47:01 AM EDT

[#40]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

No, it's not. Those are 2x4 joists (this is America and that's how we do things here) in that shed behind the tree which is only a few feet away from the tree. That wire on the fence has either 3" or 4" in length grids- again, this is America and we have standardized building materials. That's a BIG fucking snake.

If it were in my yard I can tell you what kind of fucking snake it would be- DEAD!

The joists are also farther away from the camera than the tree and snake. They look smaller than they are. The tree could easily be less than 4" thick. Remember the pics of the "90 pound" rattlesnake floating around? The guy took a 6-7 foot snake and held it out on long tongs, making it look bigger.Same principle without a man in the shot.

And the wire butts right up to that tree and we both know those vertical grids are either 3 or 4". That a big damn snake.

yeah, that' looks like the non-climb wire on my fence; 2" x 4" is about the grid size.
I'd remove the snake from the tree with my Mossberg 590, I think.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:47:06 AM EDT

[#41]

Quoted:

officials at the Department of Natural Resources and Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens believe it is a black rat snake.

Judging by the picture, if that tree is only 4" in dimater, that snake is between 7 and 10 feet long, and not really colored like a black rat snake......thanks for the help, DNR officials....

For all we know that tree could be 1" in diameter.

No, it's not. Those are 2x4 joists (this is America and that's how we do things here) in that shed behind the tree which is only a few feet away from the tree. That wire on the fence has either 3" or 4" in length grids- again, this is America and we have standardized building materials. That's a BIG fucking snake.

If it were in my yard I can tell you what kind of fucking snake it would be- DEAD!

The joists are also farther away from the camera than the tree and snake. They look smaller than they are. The tree could easily be less than 4" thick. Remember the pics of the "90 pound" rattlesnake floating around? The guy took a 6-7 foot snake and held it out on long tongs, making it look bigger.Same principle without a man in the shot.

And the wire butts right up to that tree and we both know those vertical grids are either 3 or 4". That a big damn snake.

There is a video up in OP's link now. Man standing next to tree makes it look like a 4" wide tree.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:50:16 AM EDT

[#42]

There is a video up in OP's link now. Man standing next to tree makes it look like a 4" wide tree.

Again, BIG fucking snake.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:50:32 AM EDT

[#43]

The length of snakes is very often - might as well go ahead and say usually - vastly exaggerated. A 7-8' long snake is a pretty damn big snake and people very often think they're almost double their actual size.

I think it's most likely a pine snake,which can get up to 9 and change feet long. It's not ordinary or common for one to get that big - or bigger - but it could very well be a near 10 foot snake and really,having little chance to ever see one so large estimating it at 15 feet really isn't all that unreasonable.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:55:22 AM EDT

[#44]

Looks like a pine snake (Pituophis melanoleucus) to me. Dad would bring them home and put em in the bath tub. Always called them Pine Boas.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:56:10 AM EDT

[#45]

It is a 8-9 foot rat snake. Its head is not the shape of a Boa or Python.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:56:35 AM EDT

[#46]

That isn't a fucking rat snake.

Posted: 5/23/2012 5:58:58 AM EDT

[#47]

That is black rat snake, a large one. It isnt 20 feet long, that is just fear mongering. But this could be a record snake. Of the rat snakes teh black ones grow the largest and the biggest on record was close to 9 feet long.

They are very docile, non-venomous, your cat will leave worse bite marks when playing than this snake will IF it were to bite you. A black rat that large is probably pretty old also.

The markings are typical for the species and they darken with age. Notice the white chin. They are incredibly specialized and equipped to hunt in trees or on the ground.

This could also have been a captive pet that has been released by the owner. In any event, it is a non-issue really. These snakes inhabit most of the eastern US and in my personal experience range from 4-7 feet long. I keep a gorgeous one for a pet. He is about 4' long, have raised him from a little 18" juvenile.

Posted: 5/23/2012 6:04:48 AM EDT

[#48]

Okay, looking through all the pics, definitley a very large black rat snake. Im positive. In one pictue a close up of teh head clearly shows it is a rat snake and another pic has it on a limb with the body kinked up, this is common for rat snakes when they are startled.

It isnt anywhere near 20 feet. Maybe 7 or 8..