Snake Berries

Why did the snake cross the road?  Didn’t it feel the vibrations from oncoming traffic? 

Hey, do I look worried?

This maritime garter snake managed to survive being run over by a truck, luckily slipping between the tires.  Why was it willing to risk life and limb to get to the other side?  Was it looking for something tasty to eat? Snake berries perhaps?

For years I’ve heard both adults and children talk of ‘snake berries.’  Could these be berries that were frequently eaten by snakes? 

As children, my sons and their friends used the term to describe the fruit of the bunchberry plant, shown above.  It seemed that only the daring among them had ever tried tasting these snake berries.  My friend Sandy thought snake berries were blue. Others who knew of snake berries weren’t able to describe the plant in any detail. 

After a bit of digging, I discovered that the term is used to describe any berry of questionable edibility.  So, if you are in the woods, and see a berry that you’re not sure you can eat, you might choose to call it a snake berry.  All snake berries are therefore considered poisonous.  By the way, bunchberries are edible.  They’re bland with a large pit, but edible nonetheless.

Since the berries shown above are unknown to me and I’m not sure if they’re safe to eat, I’ll call them snake berries until I can learn more about them.  And since all snakes are carnivores, there’s no way that they would eat this or any other berry.

So, as to why the snake crossed the road… in Cow Bay, there can only be one answer:  it was the pheasants’ day off!

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Garden Garter

The colder weather and accompanying snow this past week has slowed down the activity of cold-blooded creatures.  This little garter snake was found cuddled up under a rock in the mint garden. 

It wasn’t moving very quickly, so I was able to pick it up and place it in a container for closer observation.  Over the years, my sons captured numerous snakes under the rocks in our yard.  We’ve also come across garter snakes in the woods and among the wild rose bushes.  Last year I almost stepped on one that was sunning itself on the front steps.

Garter snakes are known to make good pets.  One year, we kept a large garter in a terrarium over the summer months.  They do eventually give off a scent after a period in captivity so it was eventually released back into the wild.

Garter snakes are ovoviviparous, meaning that a mother carries the eggs internally but offspring emerge live with no sign of the shell at birth.  Garters are independent of their mothers as soon as they’re born.  One of my neighbors would frequently dig into a mass of newly born garters while working in her garden.  In northern areas, garters will also congregate in a massive ball with other snakes prior to hibernation. 

Garters are mildly venomous.  My youngest son was bitten by them as a boy with no adverse effects. 

These snakes are the most widely distributed reptiles in North America, likely due to the fact that they’re not picky eaters. Worms, amphibians, mice, young birds, bugs, fish and eggs are all acceptable fare.

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Death and Blood Lust on the Trail

Though the outdoors are full of life and activity at this time of year, death is also present.  Animal relics can be found on the beach, in the woods and along trails.  Creatures  can arrive at their natural end of life during any season.  Spring is no different.  

They might meet up with an accident.  Sometimes ospreys break their wings while diving into the water head first.  Some find themselves preyed upon by creatures higher than themselves on the food chain.  Seeing their remains, one can’t help but wonder… how did this creature meet its end? 

Although birds will often lose single feathers, clumps of feathers tell a different tale.  Several clumps of these white ones were found together.  Did a coyote drag some unsuspecting shore bird into the woods for breakfast at dawn?  I’ve sometimes seen birds of prey carrying snakes off in their talons, but this Maritime Garter Snake looks like it was left for tinier creatures to scavenge.  Could it have been attempting to cross the trail just as a bicyclist was zooming past?

The remains of Rock Crabs are a common find along Nova Scotia beaches and marshes.  Seagulls crack them open on the shore and gobble them up on the spot.  Though their insides have been consumed, some are left looking intact.  Others appear to have been torn apart.  Unlike humans, wild creatures strive for survival and die without complaint or expectation of anything better.

Nothing makes the outdoors more uninviting at this time of year than blackflies and mosquitoes.  There are thick swarms of them in the more humid areas along the Salt Marsh Trail.  You can’t help but inhale them as you walk along.  It’s the females that are after blood to enable them to incubate their eggs, and they’re relentless in their pursuit.  Any warm-blooded creature will do.  But it won’t be long before they’re gobbled up in turn by baby birds. The cycle of life and death goes on.

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Meandering through Nature

Along the Salt Marsh Trail, it’s easy to see how waterways have formed over time throughout the grassy areas in the middle of the marsh.  These waterways fill up and recede with the ebb and flow of the tides.  Often, ducks can be found wading in these little rivers. 

Over time, rivers of water will form into a shape called a meander as they wear away at the soil along the edges.  These meandering rivers are often noticed from the air, but can also be appreciated from ground level, depending on our vantage point.

The meander shape looks a lot like a snake.  In fact, snakes use a meandering movement to get from one place to another.  I think it’s this movement that gives many of us ‘the creeps’ whenever we are surprised by a snake in the garden.  However, the poor snake can’t help how it moves.  It’s just doing what comes naturally.

Pictured at left is the bright and beautiful Eastern Smooth Green Snake, found in the Cow Bay area.  It’s so strikingly colorful, that it looks like it belongs in a tropical rainforest.  I haven’t seen a snake yet this season, but managed to see quite a few Maritime Garter Snakes in the yard last year.

The meander is one of several interesting shapes that are found repeatedly in nature.  These shapes often form exquisite patterns and many are building blocks for larger things.  In the Saturdays between now and mid-summer’s eve, I’ll explore a number of other shapes found in nature as a lead-up to a Summer Scavenger Hunt.  Details of the hunt to be disclosed June 20th. There will be prizes.

For more information on the spring scavenger hunt hosted by Kathy at Opening the door, walking outside, see Let’s have a scavenger hunt!  My spring hunt photos and submission can be found at A Spring Scavenger Hunt .

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