Sunday, August 17, 2003

By Scott Shalaway

Except when a robin or mourning dove builds a nest outside the kitchen window, finding active bird nests can be hard work. Birds conceal their nests well, often deep within tangles of prickly thickets. So that's where I search for them.

I don't search blindly, though. I watch for singing males and note where their mates disappear into the brush. If I'm willing to crawl on my hands and knees and endure some scratched arms, I find a nest.

	Send questions and comments to Dr. Scott Shalaway, R.D. 5, Cameron, WV 26033 or via e-mail to sshalaway@aol.com, and catch Scott on the radio Saturday afternoons from 2 to 4 p.m. on 1360 WPTT.

It's a similar technique female cowbirds, brood parasites that lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, use when they need a host nest.

Earlier this summer, I set my sights on finding a yellow-breasted chat nest. As I approached a thicket below the house early one morning, an agitated pair of chats warned me away. They scolded and chipped, so I knew a nest was nearby. I searched and eventually found the nest. About two feet above the ground, the tightly woven nest was secured among three vertical stems. It contained four cream-colored eggs with brown spots.

Later, my rumbling stomach led me to some nearby ripe blackberries. As I reached for the plumpest berry, a hint of movement caught my eye. One of the stems seemed to move, but it wasn't a stem. It was a smooth green snake.

Two species of green snakes occur in the United States. The smooth green snake inhabits the northern midwest east to New England. The rough green snake occurs south of the smooth green snake's range, though there is some overlap in their distributions.

When I lived in Oklahoma, I found rough green snakes occasionally. In West Virginia, I encounter the smooth species.

The rough/smooth designation refers to the scales that cover these snakes' bodies. The rough green snake's scales are keeled -- a ridge runs along the middle of each scale. The smooth green snake's scales lack a keel and thus are smooth. They also differ considerably in size. A rough green snake can exceed 40 inches in length, while the smooth species tops out at about 22 inches.

Both species are slender, beautiful bright green above and completely harmless to humans. Rough green snakes prefer dense brushy habitat where they spend much of their time sunning and hunting amidst the branches of small shrubs.

Smooth green snakes climb less frequently than their counterparts. They prefer meadows and grassy areas, including lawns, and can often be found under flat rocks and slabs of bark.

Over the years, I have found several smooth green snakes in my backyard. One the lawn mower found first, and I got to observe a bizarre result of green snake death. Shortly after dying, they turn blue. The yellow pigment that combines with a blue pigment to make the snake's skin green breaks down quickly after death. Only the blue pigment remains, so the snake's body changes color.

Green snakes mate in June and usually lay their eggs in a depression under a flat rock. Five to 10 capsule-shaped eggs incubate under the sun-warmed stone for six to 12 weeks. The eggs measure about three-quarters of an inch long. Hatchling green snakes are thin and about seven inches long. Hatching usually takes place in August, so be alert for young snakes, especially when mowing the grass.

Green snakes eat insects and other invertebrates exclusively. Grasshoppers, crickets, spiders and caterpillars are their primary foods. Because they are so cryptically colored, green snakes typically lie quietly in the grass or shrubby vegetation and let their prey come to them.

Another elegantly gorgeous snake you may encounter this summer is a ringneck snake. Though it can grow to 20 inches, most I find are smaller. Ringnecks are harmless and unmistakable -- the black body is marked by a bright orange or yellow ring around the neck and an orange or yellow belly.

Though many people kill every snake they find, resist that urge if you ever spot a ringneck or green snake. They are beautiful, harmless and beneficial creatures.

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