A Real Snake Surplus or Just Hiss-trionics?

So you spent the El Nino-driven winter learning more than you ever cared to know about the geosciences behind ocean currents and weather patterns, and the fluid dynamics of mud.

Get ready for summer school. The syllabus: the food chain, life cycles of rattlesnakes and natural selection.

In other words, that little rustle in the dried grass at the edge of the yard isn’t necessarily a gentle summer breeze.

Heavy rains this winter have left Southern California wild lands flush with grasses and other vegetation that have led to a bumper crop of mice, rabbits and other rodents. And in the timeless churn of the food chain, more rodents this year probably means more snakes--including rattlesnakes--next spring and summer.

But that’s not until next year. Yet Southern California hikers say they’re already seeing more rattlesnakes than usual. And some animal-control officers say they’re getting more calls to remove rattlers from patios and backyards, leading to speculation that El Nino--translation: the Baby Boy--left its rattle behind.

However, that’s not really the case, experts said. There aren’t more snakes this year. It’s just that the snakes we have are more visible, sunning themselves on hiking trails and patios at a time of year when they normally would spend the hot hours of day hiding in burrows and rock piles.

The reason? Our cool spring.

Usually, rattlesnakes are most active in daylight in spring and fall, when sunshine warms them but isn’t intense enough to roast them, said H. Bradley Shaffer, a herpetologist at UC Davis. Come the hot sun of summer, the snakes hide in burrows, rock piles and other cool places until evening.

But unusually cool weather, which lasted until the past couple of weeks, has kept the snakes out in the sun longer into the year, Shaffer said.

“There also are a lot of amphibians now that normally you wouldn’t see anymore because the water’s dried up and their season is over,” he said.

Robert Fisher, who has helped direct a three-year study of snakes and their Southern California habitats, agreed.

“This season it’s nuts,” said Fisher, a conservation scientist for biological field stations at San Diego State University. “We’re still seeing tons of rattlesnakes in a lot of places. When we sampled two months ago, we were seeing four to five a day just going to the traps.

“In the last two weeks we’ve only seen one. So we’ve seen activity change. They’re really beginning to disappear now.”

Fisher also said more people are seeing more rattlesnakes because more wild areas have become open to hikers, which brings them into contact with snake populations that have existed for years.

Although some people maintain an almost biblical aversion to snakes, rattlers in Southern California are not especially dangerous, wildlife experts say.

Rattlesnake bites rarely are fatal unless the victim has an underlying medical condition exacerbated by shock, or the snake hits an artery, said Dr. Jeff Rey, an emergency room doctor at Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo.

“There’s a definite danger of being quite ill from them,” he said.

If you do get bitten, he said, try to remain calm and move slowly, keeping the arm or leg horizontal or aimed downward, which slows the flow of the venom. And get to an emergency room.

There, he said, doctors usually test the victim for allergic reactions to antivenin and then monitor the patient. If the venom is having a serious effect--it contains an enzyme that can lead to hemorrhage and tissue disintegration--the antivenin is administered. Allergic patients also are given drugs to blunt the reaction.

Otherwise, Rey said, doctors just let the venom run its course while keeping the victim comfortable.

Lt. Barbara Morrison of Orange County Animal Control said avoiding run-ins with snakes is fairly simple. Wear gloves when you’re gardening, and watch where you’re walking. If you see a snake , freeze and back slowly away. If you see one in your yard or house, Morrison said, “try to make sure the pets are confined and not accidentally running up on snakes and getting bit,” she said. “Give us a call as soon as possible and have a person watch the snake to keep an eye on it and see where it goes.” Animal control officers will capture the snake and euthanize it, Morrison said.

California’s rattlesnakes also tend to run rather than bite. Unless provoked, of course.

Their antagonists usually are young men out in the wild who’ve ignored the warnings on the beer labels and have not, shall we say, acted responsibly.

“Most people bit by snakes are not using caution--they’re playing macho games with it,” said Patrick Moore, spokesman for the state Department of Fish and Game in Long Beach. “Most people bitten by snakes are males, between the ages of 18 and 35. They’ve generally been consuming alcohol and they’ve been up in the hills playing with the animals.”

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Watching for Rattlesnakes

A long, cool spring has raised the visibility of the snake population. The only poisonous snakes found in Orange County are rattlers. Loosely attached scale segments at the tip of the snake’s tail strike against one another when shaken to produce the telltale rattle. Three types are found in Orange County:

Western

Length: 16-64 inches

Prey: Small mammals, lizards, mice

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Red diamond

Length: 29-64 inches

Prey: Rabbits, mice, ground squirrels, birds

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Speckled

Length: 23-52 inches

Prey: Squirrels, kangaroo rats, mice, birds, lizards

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Prevention

Rattlers feed on rodents and live in brush and under rocks. To make your yard unattractive to snakes:

Remove wood, rubbish and grass cuttings that attract mice.

Trim trees, shrubs, climbing vines and weeds.

Fill gopher and squirrel holes; snakes use holes as passageways.

Remove rocks or other items under which snakes can hide.

Seal openings in or under buildings.

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Confrontation

* If a snake is in your yard, call county animal control at (714) 935-6948, in South County, or your city’s animal control office, especially if you think it might be a rattler.

* When hiking or mountain biking, stay with others and on marked trails. If you come upon a snake, stay still. The snake will probably crawl away.

* Treat snake bites by resting the victim in a shady area; summon help; loosen tight clothing. Do not apply a tourniquet or ice or cut the wound and attempt to suck out the poison.

Sources: Orange County Vector Control, Times reports