My New Kitchen Mate -- A Snake...

[wpcoe]

I just moved into a 20-year old townhouse near central Hua Hin. The kitchen is an add-on to the rear of the structure, and as such, has a roof that is nowhere close to being sealed. (In fact, the other day I just started spraying "Boom" expanding foam into some gaps through which I was viewing the clouds float by.)

This morning, just now, I happened to catch sight of a snake coming through a gap in the roof by the side wall. I think s/he looks like a non-venomous variety, based on other pics I've seen off and on, but really would like to hear from outside sources that it is NOT venomous.

Any ideas how to repel it? I'd obviously like to discourage it from entering. With rainy season coming, I don't want it to think it has a handy refuge available in my kitchen...

The rear wall is not readily accessible from the outside, but I will continue to try to seal the gaps at the top from the inside...

[edited to re-attach the photo...having problems having it show up as attachment, so adding outside link]

Edited April 10, 2011 by wpcoe

[MSingh]

He/She is harmless & if it was me, i wouldn't repel it at all as it is no harm to you whatsoever & will keep away other Critters...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysopelea

[Mrjlh]

Harmless...eats Geckos, insects and other poisonous snakes.

It is the "Green Flying Snake" which is harmless. It actually has a very minor poisonous bite but rarely bites humans. It's fangs are too far back in the mouth to do any harm even if it was to bite. It has a very distinctive stripes across the top of its head. its capabible of jumping (flying) from tree to tree. Likes high places.

Harmless and useful.:jap:

[Old Croc]

Golden Tree snake - harmless.

The colour of the head varies between the top pic and the others?

Different individuals?

[Mrjlh]

Golden Tree snake - harmless.

The colour of the head varies between the top pic and the others?

Different individuals?

I noticed that too but I think just bad lighting angle.

[wpcoe]

Thanks for the reassurances. I think it *might* have gone up to that particular spot to dine. At night there is some creature -- I have NO idea what type it is -- that makes that two-tone cry like: "UH oh. UH oh. Uh oh." (I read once where it sounds more like "<deleted> you, <deleted> you, <deleted> you. )

Anyway, the particular spot where the snake was, is where that other creature did its serenading -- it was LOUD with an echo. If I no longer hear the "UH oh" tonight, then the snake might indeed truly be my friend.

I believe in live and let live, but I tend to draw the line at the perimeter of my house. Spiders and snakes are welcome OUTSIDE and I will do my best to avoid them, but INDOORS, is MY domain. I just want to keep it out where it belongs, and as I said, with rainy season coming, I don't want it to feel like it found a cozy place to escape.

My concern about it wanting to stay also involves the geckos that reside here, as well. Not very many, but there is a family of them above the suspended ceiling in the downstairs hong nahm, which is not far from the nook where the snake was this morning. Uh oh.

The colour of the head varies between the top pic and the others?

Different individuals?

Jeez. You're really playing to my paranoia, aren't you! No, it's the same gal/fella. Just taking photos from a safe distance with zoom lens on unsophisticated camera. If it's more than one serpent, they swapped places very quickly!

[DP25]

A pair of hedge clippers would 'repel' it

[Old Croc]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Look forward to more insects inside.

[wpcoe]

Well, even if I did have hedge clippers, I would prefer not to use them on a creature like this, unless somehow it became a real threat. Right now, I'm mainly creeped out, and every time I go in the kitchen, I wonder where s/he is.

I'm planning to get some more expanding foam to fill in more of the gaps between the roof and the wall, starting with the spot that had serpentine occupation this morning. The landlady conveniently painted the walls almost the same shade of yellow that the expanding foam matures into. In the lower left pic, on the right side you can see a blob of the foam in the arch of the roof panel.

[wpcoe]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Really? That was a *gecko*? It was SO loud and such a coarse sound. I thought geckos made more of a mono-syllabic "click, click, click" kind of sound?

Well, it was a very considerate gecko, anyway: it never left any sh*t on the walls inside! I don't mind geckos at all as long as their toilet habits don't festoon my indoor walls.

[BuckarooBanzai]

In Thailand the big ones that make the loud F* U sound are called Tokays. Some reference articles call them geckos but they are not the same as the little things people call geckos around here.

Back during the Vietnam ere GIs used to call them F*U lizards.

Edited April 10, 2011 by BuckarooBanzai

[wpcoe]

Thanks for the tokay background. I had seen pics of them, and knew they were larger, but never realized they were the ones making the noise. May it R.I.P. Nature's food chain at work.

[p_brownstone]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Really? That was a *gecko*? It was SO loud and such a coarse sound. I thought geckos made more of a mono-syllabic "click, click, click" kind of sound?

Well, it was a very considerate gecko, anyway: it never left any sh*t on the walls inside! I don't mind geckos at all as long as their toilet habits don't festoon my indoor walls.

It was a Tukae - a much larger lizard than the common Gecko - and could well be too large for that snake to take on by the way.

Patrick

[Mrjlh]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Really? That was a *gecko*? It was SO loud and such a coarse sound. I thought geckos made more of a mono-syllabic "click, click, click" kind of sound?

Well, it was a very considerate gecko, anyway: it never left any sh*t on the walls inside! I don't mind geckos at all as long as their toilet habits don't festoon my indoor walls.

It was a Tukae - a much larger lizard than the common Gecko - and could well be too large for that snake to take on by the way.

Patrick

Sorry to disappoint you but that snake could easily eat a Gecko. They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

[Phil Conners]

You might often see it spelled Tokay. Apparently they are very (!) valuable now as Malaysians believe they cure Aids among other things. (Try to Google "tokay price").

Anyway, let's move this to where we usually discuss critters like these: Plants, Pets and Vets in Thailand.

[wpcoe]

Before I posted in General, I looked for an "animal" forum, and thought, hmmmm, is that snake a "pet"? Thanks for moving it to the appropriate forum.

[wpcoe]

They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Later (after I go get some more expanding foam) I want to do some research on my new friend. I'm glad to hear they are diurnal. Just hope it doesn't decide to spend its sleeping hours within my four walls.

I'm quite curious to see if I hear the tokay this evening. It was so loud that I could clearly hear it in the upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the townhouse.

[Mrjlh]

They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Later (after I go get some more expanding foam) I want to do some research on my new friend. I'm glad to hear they are diurnal. Just hope it doesn't decide to spend its sleeping hours within my four walls.

I'm quite curious to see if I hear the tokay this evening. It was so loud that I could clearly hear it in the upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the townhouse.

Be careful before using the expanding foam around the roof tiles. Seal the inside walls is one thing, but don't block the natural ventilation for the attic. By the way the Tokay male does all the barking to establish territory. The snake may still be hunting it too.

Here's my guest.

[p_brownstone]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Really? That was a *gecko*? It was SO loud and such a coarse sound. I thought geckos made more of a mono-syllabic "click, click, click" kind of sound?

Well, it was a very considerate gecko, anyway: it never left any sh*t on the walls inside! I don't mind geckos at all as long as their toilet habits don't festoon my indoor walls.

It was a Tukae - a much larger lizard than the common Gecko - and could well be too large for that snake to take on by the way.

Patrick

Sorry to disappoint you but that snake could easily eat a Gecko. They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Have you ever seen a full grown Tookae (NOT a common house Gecko)?

They can grow - easily - to over 15 inches long and as round in the body as a (Farang) wrist.

Patrick

[Mugg]

They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Later (after I go get some more expanding foam) I want to do some research on my new friend. I'm glad to hear they are diurnal. Just hope it doesn't decide to spend its sleeping hours within my four walls.

I'm quite curious to see if I hear the tokay this evening. It was so loud that I could clearly hear it in the upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the townhouse.

Here is another Photo of the Tokay , could be bad lighting

[Mrjlh]

They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Later (after I go get some more expanding foam) I want to do some research on my new friend. I'm glad to hear they are diurnal. Just hope it doesn't decide to spend its sleeping hours within my four walls.

I'm quite curious to see if I hear the tokay this evening. It was so loud that I could clearly hear it in the upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the townhouse.

Here is another Photo of the Tokay , could be bad lighting

Yea...sure it is...

[p_brownstone]

They are in the Chrysopelea family and are diurnal so they hunt during the day. Prey includes lizards, frogs, birds and bats. Occasionally the eat other snakes.

Later (after I go get some more expanding foam) I want to do some research on my new friend. I'm glad to hear they are diurnal. Just hope it doesn't decide to spend its sleeping hours within my four walls.

I'm quite curious to see if I hear the tokay this evening. It was so loud that I could clearly hear it in the upstairs bedroom at the opposite end of the townhouse.

Here is another Photo of the Tokay , could be bad lighting

Yea...sure it is...

A joke Post I guess - but obviously that is not a Tookae!

Some species of Monitor Lizard more likely.

Patrick

[p_brownstone]

Duplicate Post removed

Patrick

Edited April 10, 2011 by p_brownstone

[wpcoe]

Be careful before using the expanding foam around the roof tiles. Seal the inside walls is one thing, but don't block the natural ventilation for the attic. By the way the Tokay male does all the barking to establish territory. The snake may still be hunting it too.

There is no attic over the kitchen area. It's a kind of "lean-to" added on to the back of the townhouse. It's three concrete walls, plus the previous back wall, covered with roof tiles. Every arch of the roof tiles along the wall is just an open passageway to the outside. I want to fill all these in. There was also a section where the tiles had a horizontal gap between them and the top of the concrete wall, and I already have filled it in.

With my luck, I'll seal the roof with the snake inside the kitchen.

Seriously, though, am I deluding myself by thinking the snake really will have no incentive to return to the inside of the kitchen? (Until it rains, when it may simply seek dry refuge.) Other than the family of geckos in the hong nahm, there's no other food source that I know of. I mean, snakes have no fondness for being inside buildings per se, do they?

[IanForbes]

Thanks for posting the topic, wpcoe. I love snakes and lizards, even the venomous ones, and find them all interesting. Also thanks to Mugs for his picture of the monitor lizard. Monitors have a NASTY bite that ALWAYS causes an infection if you piss them off.

[wpcoe]

Your welcome, IanForbes. I've come a long way with my fear of snakes and spiders. Although not entirely comfy around either species, I've developed an appreciation for their role in nature, and the last thing I want to do is harm a snake. I'm hoping for a peaceful resolution to my predicament, that being a sealed kitchen roof to keep him/her -- and perhaps tokays -- out!

It looks like it might be getting ready to rain this evening, so I have an added incentive to get busy and seal those gaps.

[WarpSpeed]

In Thailand the big ones that make the loud F* U sound are called Tokays. Some reference articles call them geckos but they are not the same as the little things people call geckos around here.

Back during the Vietnam ere GIs used to call them F*U lizards.

Yes, true..

[WarpSpeed]

The sounds you heard previously were the geckos. Hard to hear them now from the inside of a snake.

Really? That was a *gecko*? It was SO loud and such a coarse sound. I thought geckos made more of a mono-syllabic "click, click, click" kind of sound?

Well, it was a very considerate gecko, anyway: it never left any sh*t on the walls inside! I don't mind geckos at all as long as their toilet habits don't festoon my indoor walls.

It was a Tukae - a much larger lizard than the common Gecko - and could well be too large for that snake to take on by the way.

Patrick

Not too large, but certainly plenty aggressive enough and quite quick.

[wpcoe]

Goodness, the internet is a place of endless wonder. Just for kicks, I googled "sound of a tokay," and found several websites with recordings (and, of course, YouTube has videos) of various tokay sounds.

Sure enough, it's the male tokay I've been hearing, if these web sites are correct.

[wpcoe]

Back to the concept of repelling a snake:

Someone in another thread mentioned moth balls. But, I, too find the smell offensive. What about other things like spraying an insecticide -- would the smell from the spray residue repell a snake? Are there other aromas that snakes find unpleasant?

I was able to seal some of the gaps in the wall/roof joint, but not all of them. In particular the gap where the snake was this morning cannot be plugged with expanding foam from inside, and I don't have ready access to the outside/top. Hence, my interest in simply making the entry point unwelcoming to a snake. Any ideas?