We just shared this message recently but with two similar rescue calls coming in back to back this week, we thought we would highlight this issue again. Last Thursday we received a call from Clinton Johnson and his family who found this Eastern Rat Snake tangled in some plastic deer exclusion netting protecting a small backyard garden. While we don’t remove and relocate healthy wildlife from properties unless it can’t otherwise leave on its own (you would have to contact and pay for a licensed wildlife “pest” removal company) or it is injured, this snake was certainly in distress. Instead of killing it as many would do (which is illegal in Maryland), they asked us for help. It was an amazing educational moment for us and the family who got an opportunity to not only help the snake but see it up close, touch it and learn more about them. After we freed the snake and inspected it for injuries, it appeared that it just had some scale damage that would heal on it’s own after a few sheds. We released it in a natural area within a short distance of where it was found in their neighborhood.
As we have stated before, landscape netting, pond netting for herons, and deer exclusion fencing with small holes, especially the light weight plastic type, can have unintentional impacts on wildlife. Please remove this material if you have it already installed and consider materials with larger openings that keep deer and groundhogs out but allow smaller species to pass safely. For landscaping / erosion control – natural biodegradable materials, products without netting or netting with larger openings 3″ or larger are recommended. Snakes are not only protected by law in Maryland but are incredibly valuable to our ecosystem, and even our backyards, keeping other species such as rodents that can spread diseases in check. You don’t have to like snakes but we ask that you don’t kill them, and help protect them from being harmed.
