I was in my back yard and I heard a rustling. I looked and I thought it was a rat snake. It was small and black like a rat snake but when I took a couple of steps towards it, it moved off and I could see and hear the tail make a rattling noise. I looked at pictures of rattle snakes and it did not look like one. Anyone have any ideas? I live in south plantation and my whole side yard backs on to the wooded wetland area.
The tail actually went up in the air and shook. That's when I heard the rattle noise. The sound was definitely like a rattle and not rustling leaves.
The Pygmy, Timber, and Diamondback rattlesnakes are the only rattlesnakes in this part of the country. http://www.herpsofnc.org/herps_of_NC/snakes/Crohor/Cro_hor.html http://www.herpsofnc.org/herps_of_NC/snakes/Croada/Cro_ada.html http://www.herpsofnc.org/herps_of_NC/snakes/Sismil/Sis_mil.html And would be rare in the Clayton area, but not impossible. Here's a rat snake, pretty harmless, I would guarantee they are scared of you. Unless cornered, they probably wouldn't even attempt to bite a human. http://www.herpsofnc.org/herps_of_NC/snakes/Elaobs/Ela_obs.html
That's the thing. I thought it was a rat snake. I have seen plenty of them in the 14 years that I have lived hear. But what freaked me was when it raised its tail and I heard that distinctive rattle noise. I didn't notice any rattles on the end of the tail and I had never seen a rat snake do anything like that before.
