Snake went under our deck! What kind is it?

[DaynaJ]

It was probably around a 50 cent piece around. Only saw the back about 2 feet of it. Very dark grey with patterned oval's? on its back.. design was light as in faint. Did not recognize it at all & I grew up in these hills--area is around Pomme De Terre lake in central MO--any ideas? I've looked all thru the internet & can't find a picture of what I saw. Had a pretty blunt tail, all the same color--Help? I don't want to tear our deck apart looking for it & my husband is already talking that he'll burn it if he has to to get to that snake!
Good Grief! I say just wait till he comes out again--I don't want to kill it unless it is poisonous..

[EDDIE BUCK]

Here's some pictures of MO snakes. http://mdc4.mdc.mo.gov/Documents/169.pdf

[Shygal]

It sounds like a rattlesnake to me, with the pattern and blunt tail

[Ravenlost]

By the time you got to the computer and typed this that snake was probably long gone. I wouldn't worry about it.

[starjj]

What Ravenlost said. Snakes usually move on if you leave them alone

[HoosierHog]

dose not sound like a rattle snake to me. if it was a rattle snake you would have heard it long before you saw it. But looking through the link above i saw half a dozen snakes that fit your description. Id guess a bull snake and its a good one to have around as they will eat poisonous snakes and they are harmless if left alone. also as already said its probably long gone by now and if your really worried or you feel you must KILL it just keep the hoe by the deck and wait and if you see it again wack it. but if it was me i let the good snakes alone and only wack the poisonous ones. good luck

[motdaugrnds]

I agree with HoosierHog in that some snakes are good to have on the place. Also, a rattle snake would have made some noise when "it" heard you; so doubt it was that.

If it were me, I would probably lay a few eggs around the deck to coach it out if it is still around. I would want to know what it is.

[DaynaJ]

I looked & googled for an hour last night & didn't see this site--I agree, I think it is the great prairie king snake. I forgot to let everyone know, I also found his shedded skin yesterday so he was very shiny & slick looking when I saw him. Thanks to you all for the response, I feel better now. I never kill snakes, I try to befriend them so they'll stick around & eat all the little critters & other snakes. My husband thinks the only good snake is a dead one.

[NickieL]

Originally Posted by HoosierHog

dose not sound like a rattle snake to me. if it was a rattle snake you would have heard it long before you saw it. But looking through the link above i saw half a dozen snakes that fit your description. Id guess a bull snake and its a good one to have around as they will eat poisonous snakes and they are harmless if left alone. also as already said its probably long gone by now and if your really worried or you feel you must KILL it just keep the hoe by the deck and wait and if you see it again wack it. but if it was me i let the good snakes alone and only wack the poisonous ones. good luck

They don't always make noise. Out west they they did some "snake eradication" (before I was even around, in the 70's I think, can't remember, its been a long time since I read about it) trying to get rid of rattlers. Well, they killed many that made noise....leaving of course the ones that don't rattle....guess which ones there are way more of now because they were the ones left to breed as they didn't get caught?

So no, not all rattle snakes make noise.....Good luck lol

Also, if they are cold and sluggish, they tend not to rattle either, I've come accross green Mojaves like that, nearly stepped on them in the desert.

[Jenn]

our rat snakes look like that, like a dull diamond back