#6. See a Snake? What to do and Resources for Identifying Snakes

Stephanie Manka

Stephanie Manka, Ph.D. is a wildlife biologist with 20 years of experience in mammal ecology and conservation, education, and outreach. Read her story to find out how she went from the daughter of a jeweler to a Ph.D. in wildlife biology.

posted on
May 31, 2020

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I grew up loving snakes, but I also grew up in an area with 0 venomous snakes. Since then I’ve lived alongside venomous snakes in Kenya, Gabon, and now North Carolina, where I see them on a near-regular basis.

But guess what? I still love them! The goal of this podcast is to hopefully get you to love them – or like them – or at least live with them.

Or listen on Apple, Spotify, or Google podcasts.

In this podcast, I go over:

My experiences being up close with copperheads and rattlesnakes
What to do when you see a snake
Who you can ask to identify a snake
What to do when you see a venomous snake
How many people die from snakebites (the answers may surprise you)
How most people get bit
Should you kill venomous snakes?
Should you relocate a venomous snake?
Do moth balls work to deter snakes?
And MORE!

See a snake? First identify it. If it's venomous, still leave it alone. I saw this gorgeous timber rattlesnake Alligator River National Refuge in eastern NC. — *See a snake? First identify it. If it’s venomous, still leave it alone. I saw this gorgeous timber rattlesnake Alligator River National Refuge in eastern NC.*

Blog posts and resources mentioned

See a Snake? Here’s How You Can Get it Identified Fast:

Follow me on iNaturalist!

Shall we play a game?

Three of the native snake species in this grid are venomous. Can you guess which ones? pic.twitter.com/UU0PFZjEQb
— N.C. Wildlife (@NCWildlife) May 5, 2020