If there’s one thing you generally would not want to come across within the wild, it’s an enormous and formidable snake.
Be it a monstrous 6-foot rattlesnake or a fair more colossal python, these primordial snakes are a nightmare for many individuals.
However, most snakes just do not get that big, and the overwhelming majority are much smaller.
Some are downright small, like a red belly snake. These snakes are so small and elusive that it is simple to miss them entirely. But this raises one other serious query: are red belly snakes venomous and are they dangerous to humans?
No, red belly snakes are non-venomous and harmless to humans and most other animals, including pets and livestock.
Red-bellied snakes, despite their small size, are fascinating creatures, but they’re so tiny you most likely won’t even notice they’re there, even in case you’re standing right next to at least one.
Don’t let it hassle you at night because these snakes are so small that even in the event that they bite you, nothing bad will occur.
Still, read on and in this text I’ll inform you all the pieces that you must find out about these small but vigorous snakes.
What does a red-bellied snake seem like?
Red-bellied snakes get their common name from their vibrant, boldly coloured red bellies. Talk about truth in promoting, eh?
But their bellies should not at all times a “true” red color and may range from pale, coral orange or salmon to a daring, “hot” red. In any case, you will certainly not miss the belly in case you are in search of it!
But what concerning the remainder of the snake? Their basic coloration ranges from a dusty brown or tan to a wealthy medium saddle color, although regional subspecies could also be completely black or gray with stripes running down the flanks or back, which is feasible in all species.
In addition, these hoses are extremely small in construction. They are so thin and wiry that when young they will be mistaken for earthworms, and only within the rarest cases do adult specimens reach lengths over 12 inches (30 cm).
Where are red-bellied snakes found?
Red-bellied snakes typically inhabit moist forests, wetlands, or stands, and near human activity in areas which might be easy to traverse and dig, resembling compost heaps and gardens.
This doesn’t mean that red bellies dig their very own burrows: they don’t, but they take over and appropriate the burrows of other animals, including insects.
Among their favorite places are pitchforks and man-made pits.
Like all predators, that are red-bellied snakes, they have a tendency to remain near the habitats of their prey of selection, and their habitual habitat in North America and Canada gives us a clue as to what they eat, which is especially snails, worms and insects.
Are red belly snakes venomous?
NO. The red-bellied snake will not be venomous or dangerous to humans in any respect.
The Australian red belly is a very different snake
Before we proceed, I feel it is vital to notice in case international readers are tuned in…
A snake in North America that is usually called the red belly (Storeria occipitomaculata) is a really different creature from the snake given the identical common name as in Australia, which is definitely venomous.
And in fact it’s, since it’s in Australia! I swear the birds there are probably poisonous…
Kidding aside, Australian red belly (Pseudechis porphyriacus) is far larger than North America’s tiny red belly.
These Australian red bellies are just like the larger, more nasty cousins of the North American variety, exceeding 4 feet in length and having flame red or orange scales crawling down the snake’s sides and a dark cherry red belly.
These snakes are quite common and encounters are frequent, and although they’re venomous, dangerously so, the bites are often survivable.
Can a red-bellied snake kill pets or livestock?
NO. Unless you might be a worm keeper, the red-bellied snake cannot harm your livestock or pets. These snakes are so small and so slender that they can not even reliably harm a newborn chick.
Red bellies feed on snails, worms and small insects, not mammals or birds, not even their eggs.
Do red-bellied snakes attack humans?
No, in principle. Red-bellied snakes strongly prefer avoiding or hiding from confrontation, provided that they’re almost at the underside of the pecking hierarchy in terms of predation by animals larger than them.
If you manage to catch it, it’s going to probably thrash around for some time before gushing out a nasty anal discharge designed to gross you out and persuade you to drop it.
If that does not work, they may, somewhat cutely, growl and bare their tiny teeth, and even then they very rarely bite, preferring a display of threat to actual violence.
Will a Red Belly Snake Bite Hurt You?
Let’s say that in some way you were cruel enough to impress a red-bellied snake to bite you. Does it hurt? I suppose it could.
Although non-venomous, red-bellied snakes have sharp teeth, but these teeth are incredibly thin and small, designed to grab their equally small prey.
If a red belly bit you, it could potentially scratch or cut you, but I’d say it may’t do much else.
And red bellies bite so rarely that recorded bites within the wild, even when snakes have been caught with bare hands, are almost never recorded.
Is it best to kill red-bellied snakes when you’ll be able to?
No, actually you mustn’t! Although they’re snakes, which disgusts some people, red bellies are as harmless to humans and animals as you’ll be able to imagine.
The red belly won’t bite you, and even when it did, nothing would probably occur. It won’t kill your chickens or your pets. It won’t hassle you in any respect.
And while red bellies are among the many least impressive snakes, like all their larger relatives, they play a very important role within the ecosystem and ought to be respected, not killed by hand.
But as an instance that in some way the red belly is terrorizing you or your pets. You haven’t got to kill him to eliminate him.
The snake should run away from you at the primary sign of your approach, and even when it doesn’t, you’ll be able to just scoop it up in a convenient bucket and move it to a different location. He’d probably be pleased with the elevator and you will never see him again…
