What a jerk? Why don't you just let nature happen? Snakes frequently eat birds as well as all of the rodents they eat. How'd you like it if someone just ripped you away from a meal and threw you over a cliff, huh? People can be such # at %&'s! And yes I love birds too; I just also love all animals, snakes included.
Brett Wolfe Seattle, WA
Hugh Jennings <hughbirder at bigzoo.net> wrote: I spent over two weeks at a cabin along the Blue River in Colorado. The
cabin is at 8900' elevation and 10 miles north of Dillon/Silverthorne. While
there I made two trips to Lower Cataract Lake which is about 15 miles from
the cabin.

On July 5 at the west end of the lake the trail is about 100' above the
lake. We noticed a pair of agitated Western Wood-Peewees(WEWP). Someone
noticed a snake crawling up the 6-7' bush toward a nest. I scrambled about
12' down the steep slope and not knowing what kind of a snake it was I
grabbed it the middle and jerked it out of the bush. We couldn't see it in
the deep grass. I did see a baby WEWP in the grass which was alive but
bloody. I picked it up and put in the nest which was already full of three
baby birds. I am not sure if it could have survived. We watched a few
minutes for the snake and then someone saw it was back crawling up the bush.
It was a garter snake about 30" long and about the thickness of my thumb.
She went down and pulled the snake out by the tail. I took the snake from
her and threw it down the slope as far as I could. Hopefully, this
discouraged the snake from trying again. I figured garter snakes would go
after birds eggs, but I was surprised it would try to take baby birds which
would be a big stretch to try and swallow.

Hugh Jennings
Bellevue, WA
hughbirder at bigzoo.net



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