Iowans should be on the lookout for legless creatures slithering around as the weather turns cooler in Iowa.
A lot of Iowans try to avoid snakes at any cost. Stacy Spry, a park ranger at Lake Red Rock, says an accidental meeting with a snake is more likely this time of the year as the cold-blooded reptiles start moving to find warm winter quarters.
She says they start moving in the fall to a place that’s at least three feet below ground to avoid the frost. Spry says the snakes move very slowly this time of year.
Spry says many people will see a snake and try to kill it with a shovel, or by running over it with a lawnmower. Spry says that’s the wrong approach, because snakes help keep down the rodent and insect population.
Spry says the loss of habitat and the “quick kill” approach by humans has led to a decline in the snake population in the past 15 years. Spry says if you leave the snake alone, it will slither away with no harm done.