Messy boy!

Discussion

9 replies

Posted by David Sewell on July 23, 2009 at 6:07 PM

Well, it may actually be a messy girl. The only reliable way to tell with a smooth snake is to pick it up and look at the length and shape of the tail, and I left this snake where I found it, untouched. The animal is in the process of sloughing, you can see some unshed skin in various places. What really interested me, however, was the way the snake had taken on the colour of the twig around its mouth. Evidently it had been rubbing itself against the twig to help rub off the old skin. Hopefully by now it has completed the process and looks smart again.

Nikon D200, 150mm Sigma, 1/160th @f8, 250 iso, HH. Crop about 50% of original

Posted by John Robinson on July 23, 2009 at 6:41 PM

Good stuff.
John Breeds showed me the only one I,ve ever seen on Studland I think it was.
I could bend down in those days !

JohnR

Posted by Craig Jones on July 23, 2009 at 7:36 PM

Lovely image and the detail in the head is brillant, nice composition, nice work

Posted by Fran French on July 24, 2009 at 1:45 AM

Very nice image David with plenty of detail in the eye where it counts.

Fran

Posted by jack chapman on July 24, 2009 at 10:08 AM

great shot and a beautiful animal

Posted by Rene de Heer on July 24, 2009 at 10:12 AM

Excellent shot and great detail as mentioned.
Rene de Heer

Posted by Bob Cox on July 24, 2009 at 12:32 PM

Thats nice , the eye makes it for me.

Bob.

Posted by Paul Hobson on July 24, 2009 at 5:33 PM

lovely image of a hard to do species, very jealous

Paul Hobson

Posted by Major Gilbert on July 24, 2009 at 6:53 PM

Great subject David and like the eye contact.
Don't much like the twig but I realise its part of the story.

Major

Posted by Peter Woods on July 25, 2009 at 4:51 AM

Really lovely image, only little nit pick is the catkin (I think) on the branch, does distract slightly