Eastern indigo snake on the prowl - video

Found this girl prowling around on the grounds of the Bok Sanctuary in Lake Wales, Florida...

They are beautiful...and that one is LARGE!.:thumbsup:

The eastern indigo snake is federally protected throughout it's range. They are VERY impressive animals. They have been known to get up past 7 foot in length, with rumors of even larger ones found on Cape Sabal.

They will kill and eat venomous snakes, so a lot of people in the know encourage them hanging around the homestead.

I have picked them up in the wild and NEVER had one attempt to bite me. VERY cool animals.

I used to breed them when I lived in Maryland. They are VERY intelligent and personable for snakes, and I hated to have to get rid of them. But when I moved to Florida, Fish and Game told me to make certain I did not have them in my possession when I crossed the line into Florida.

I believe this one in the video is about 5 foot long. It is rather rare to find them any longer, as they tend to prefer habitat that is also in big demand by developers. Of course, in such a conflict, the wildlife will lose every time.

Rich Z said:

Found this girl prowling around on the grounds of the Bok Sanctuary in Lake Wales, Florida...

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Rich, as someone who knows zilch about snakes, I wouldn't be able to tell a girl from a boy :shrug01: ! How do you know that this is a "girl"?
Andy Anderson :wavey:

Well, it's kind of like human beings in some respects. The shape of the tail is different between males and females. :hehehe: Of course, I've been doing this for one heck of a long time, and can tell pretty much at a glance which is which.

navy2kcoupe said:

Rich, as someone who knows zilch about snakes, I wouldn't be able to tell a girl from a boy :shrug01: ! How do you know that this is a "girl"?
Andy Anderson :wavey:

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Thanks for asking. I had the same question. I wondered if you had to turn her over to tell Guess not ...

Years ago I remember responding to an alarm at an older manson type residence in Bartow. Out back lying comfortably along a ledge towards the sun was a beautiful Indigo. I picked him up and he was totally docile (I knew what Indigio's were and had longed to have one but I knew the law). This docile beauty was every bit of 5 feet long and the most beautiful blue black you can imagine. I imagine he still lives out back of this dwelling and I hope so.

We like the black racers around our place also....good neighbors keeping the rif-raf out.

I can't stand the idiots that kill any snake they see.

Cape Sabal is not in any danger of development I hope.....been a few years but I have walked for miles on the beach & never saw another footprint, just trash that has washed up & some great shelling.:thumbsup:

Kap142 said:

Years ago I remember responding to an alarm at an older manson type residence in Bartow. Out back lying comfortably along a ledge towards the sun was a beautiful Indigo. I picked him up and he was totally docile (I knew what Indigio's were and had longed to have one but I knew the law). This docile beauty was every bit of 5 feet long and the most beautiful blue black you can imagine. I imagine he still lives out back of this dwelling and I hope so.

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I found a colony of indigos near Bartow years ago. That was before the car dealership got built right next to the site and there is some sort of waste management facility near by as well. They are really impressive animals. I remember one day when we were on vacation down in Florida (live in Maryland at the time) we found an indigo that had just been run over a few moments ago. I picked him up and he died while in my hands. Many of the yahoos will go out of their way to run over a snake, and quite likely that is what happened then. Trust me, I had murder on my mind........

2Vettes said:

Thanks for asking. I had the same question. I wondered if you had to turn her over to tell Guess not ...

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I figured that all you had to do was wave a credit card (Reptile Express?) and if it's a female, she'll turn around to come get the card....:shrug01:
Andy :wavey:

Rich Z said:

Well, it's kind of like human beings in some respects. The shape of the tail is different between males and females. :hehehe: Of course, I've been doing this for one heck of a long time, and can tell pretty much at a glance which is which.

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Used to be that way for people too. Walking around the malls I sometimes have to wonder.

VertC5 said:

Used to be that way for people too. Walking around the malls I sometimes have to wonder.

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Yeah, I'm glad I'm not single. I'll bet dating is a REAL challenge these days.

Simply Beautiful!