Trad Gang

lots of rattler and exotic skinned bows but i got lots of black snakes at my place.anybody tried to use them?i might if someone explains how to skin and dry.the wife shoots them all the time when she sees them,i will just not let bow outside unattended.

You are doing yourself a disservice killing black snakes. They eat lots of rodents and other snakes. Would your wife like more rats, mice and poisonous snakes around?
  Black snake skins would work fine for backings. They are fairly thin so be careful skinning them. You can either split them down the belly and peel the skin off or ring around their neck and slip the skin back down and off . This will turn the skin inside out. Then turn it back out side out, split down the center of the belly and tack it on a board, scale side down and remove any excess meat and other tissue and let it dry.  Pat

We never kill black snakes since they eat mice but they might look good on a bow.

I had the same thought on black snake skin to put on my sons blackbear bear recurve ! But as stated above Black snakes are your friend in that they eat alot of rats , mice, other snakes, ect. Had a 6+ footer for a month or so when younger !  feed it gardener snakes & mice . Cotton-mouth are a neat looking skin for a bow also ! >>>------->RIVERWOLF

This one did get my wife's attention in the living room     :D

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2 dogs you have a good wife...

i know they kill alot of rodents,but every year we kill 15 to 20 im sure two going to a good cause will not be missed.

'Em snanks is my buds.  :(

I've always read that a snake doesnt eat very often ............ maybe once or twice a month  ................. if thats true they are way over rated as rodent controllers .......... I dont allow em near my house  ........... if they get too close to the house they die! .......... otherwise I leave em alone.

A couple mice per month x 200 snakes x 6 months a year = 2400 mice a year sounds like a pretty good program to me.  I've always liked snakes, I had them as pets growing up.  I understand not wanting them in the house, but it is kinda like killing spiders.  I kill the hobos that are all over here in Missoula (sometimes I trap more than 4 a night during summer) One day we found a wolf spider in our basement shower, we watched it kill 4 different hobos, until my brother visited and killed it   :knothead:  .  My daughter named him Benny, we told her that my brother let Benny go so he could visit his family    :biglaugh:  .  My point is that beneficial predators are the best way to keep vermin in check.  I recommend you use a snake stick and move them to the edge of your garden.

if you have 200 snakes next to your house I would be movin!!!!!!!!

The snakes wouldn't be there without a reason.    Pat

Sticbow,
Not 200 right around the house, but even if you have 5-10per acre it adds up.  Also they look for mouse nests and eat the pinkies, the snake in the picture could eat a whole batch of pinkies in one sitting, uh or um laying.    :scared:  you want to talk about moving yikes!!!! needless to say they got the gas and match treatment, just 40 feet from his house, probably 100+ snakes in that writhing ball
:scared:    :scared:    :scared:

We had a black snake under the house at the lease and had NO mice, some hero killed it(illegaly) and the place has been over run with mice ever since.

In my neck of the woods we have a good selection of mouse/rodent/vermin traps.  Garders, black, pine, red bellied racers, black racers,  and a funny little brown snake I have yet to catch to identify.  A few winged mouse traps (Screechowls) that took up residence in my neighbors old shed.  I can only imagine how overrun my place would be without these little guys around.

Mice are in estrus as soon as they give birth. Gestation period is 18 to 24 days and litters range from 3 to 11 young. Six weeks later the young are breeding.

2 breeding mice X 3 weeks = 11 possble young X 9 weeks = 121 mice not counting the two that began the breeding, by now have bred again.

Blacksnakes eating one or two a month aint the answer if your infested.

GET SOME TRAPS!

I leave the female blacksnakes and take the males home if'n I'm in the mood.

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In Ohio it is legal to harvest 4 snakes per season. Blacksnakes are easy to skin and they air dry easily and make darn good bow backing.

It's agin the law to kill'em in Ga; of course you have the people who subscribe to "the only good snake is a dead snake" premise.  I don't worry about rats as much as I absolutely despise then blamed hateful little copperheads, and there ain't nothing out there that keeps them cleaned out like a black rat snake or big king snake.

Speaking of king snakes , has anyone got a bow with kingsnake skins. I like kings but i wont kill'em. i usually catch and release on my property to keep the copperheads away. I do have one roadkill...hoping to find another to match it.The black and white stripes would be cool on a bow i bet!

it has always been beyond me how a grown man could be afraid of non-venomous snakes...  

do they have snakes in alaska dave?

Ditto, Homerdave.  And I was born and raised in some of the snakiest stuff you can imagine.  No reason to be scared of poisonous snakes -- respectful and cautious, yes.  They've all got a role to play.

I would never voluntarily kill a black snake or a kingsnake - they are gorgeous, beneficial, and generally cool to have around. The kingsnakes will help control your copperheads, so that's a bonus.  However I have picked up several roadkilled black snakes and prep them like any other snakeskin - skin, flesh with a spoon, staple to board flesh side up, air dry.

It is against the law to kill non-venomous snakes in some states. I think Geogia is one of those states. I get big Elaphe Obsoletas (black rat snakes) in our attic crawl space. We never have rats or squirrels up there. Heck, I don't even kill copperheads or rattlers, but then I like snakes. If you want rat snake skins, I suggest you stick to road kills.

Some species of snakes are also protected by federal law as endangered species, so even if your state law allows killing of snakes, you'ed better be sure of what species it is.

nope, no snakes up here. (though it is geographically possible that there are garter snakes the the extreme SE part of SE). but i was raised where there were snakes, and always had some as pets, up to and including several species of python and one lil' pacific rattler. caught a few other rattlers for fun, never killed one.

It should be mentioned also, that even POSESSION
of one of the endangered snake species could put you in trouble with the Feds, it dosn't make any difference if it was a roadkill or whatever.