UW Extension

Snakes are out and about now that the weather is warming up. The sentiment “the only good snake is a dead snake” is one that is repeated frequently.

This article is not written by a snake lover; it comes more from a place of fear and loathing. However, I do understand snakes possess qualities that make them an important part of the ecosystem.

Snakes help maintain balance in the food web. Snakes can be both predator and prey.

When a large prey population attracts and sustains a large snake population, those snakes become prey for birds, mammals and even other snakes. Snakes help keep population...