saw a new snake in my garden. it was scarey but i didn't harm it because it had no rattles, but i need to know it it's dangerous.
it wasn't there long enow to get a pic, but  it's some kind of mutant.

it was 6' long, but no thicker than my thumb. a rattler would be thicker than my fist at that length. i never saw such a thin snake.

it was vaguely rattler colored, but the last 6'' up to n including the head was pinkish red.

i know this isn't much info, but i really need to know if this is evil. i shoot rattlers but approve of snakes in general.

i won't harm nice snakes, but at 6' he's scary. will he hurt me if i leave him alone?

the reason i shoot rattlers is that sometimes they put you in the hospital with no rattling.

if this guy wants to hang out n eat mice n birds n not hurt me, i'll make him welcome.

any ideas? i'm not familiar with new mexico wild life, so please help.

Hi Suzieqz, I don't what kind of snake but I am glad you didn't kill it automatically.  I just read down in GA, wildlife officials are bringing in more non-poisonous snakes to counter act the huge number of copperheads and rattlers coming into suburban living space. 

I hope they do an adequate level of education in the area so non-poisonous snakes are able to achieve the desired results.  Hope someone can identify this critter for you quickly.  Lotta hopes...

oh, i never kill non poisonous snakes. until a hawk ate him, i had a bull snake in residence that ate rattlers, mice n birds. the most valuable livestock i ever owned.

Look at pics of a ring neck snake see if that's it

thanks chick. i guess not but i'm feeling better. new mex only lists 8 rattlers n coral snakes as poisonous. this was neither of those.

To be that long and that thin it's almost certainly nonpoisonous. In this country poisonous snakes are fat for their length, the coral snake is an exception but they don't get that long and are distinctively marked.

For safety sake, treat it as if it were poisonous until you can positively identify it.  Better safe than sorry.  Thank God, there's no snakes here ;)!

Nate

If the pupil of the eye is round, non-venomous. If it has a cat's eye, venomous.

thanks guys. i wasn't gonna touch it in any case. is that true, john?

not sure i can get close enow to determine eye shape. i don't want to.

http://nmherpsociety.org/reptiles/snakes/index.html has some photos.  The absent pictures can be found on the web. 

http://www.californiaherps.com/snakes/pages/c.f.piceus.html this one has a variable amount of pink

http://nmherpsociety.org/reptiles/snakes/coluberflagellumtestaceus/index.html is similar but from these photos less pink

thanks bob. i checked those. i already went thru all new mex snakes. none are shoelace thin. none have red only on the last part of the neck n head.

as far as i can tell, this snake doesn't exist , but it's here.

Susie, my fairly educated guess is that it was probably a coachwhip snake (Masticophis flagellum). Throughout the southwest, it's a common, non-venomous snake that is slender-bodied as you describe, and gets quite long--six feet would not be unusual. There are several subspecies, and the pattern and coloration are highly variable. They range from solid jet black to mottled brown, olive, tan, or red. The underside, particularly near and including the tail, is often bright pink or red. One subspecies is commonly referred to as a "red racer"). They will eat most any small animal they can catch, including lizards, snakes (even rattlesnakes), mice, and small birds and their eggs. I once found one that had grabbed a baby cottontail, which hopped off when the snake saw me and decided to escape. While not venomous, I don't recommend trying to pick one up, as most tend to be enthusiastic biters when captured. (Incidentally, pupil shape is not a reliable indicator of whether a snake is venomous--nor is head shape. If you're concerned about it, find out which venomous species live in your area, and learn to recognize them.)

  

  

thanks ken.  when i looked a t bobs sites, they came closest.

the top left pic with different colors is a match.

haha, no, i'm not gonna pick it up. but as long as it's not venomous we can coexist.

hopefully it eats vermin.

Susie I'm not sure what kind of snake that was.  I never saw one like that before.  It's probably not poisonous.  But like Nate said it's a good idea to be cautious until you know for sure.

thanks joe.  i bet it's a coach whip with weird colors.

i didn't see it move fast, i froze when i saw it.

as long as its not venomous, i won't shoot it, but i won't get near it either.

i still wish i had a bull snake. when he lived here, there were no mice, no rattlers n birds never came near my figs.

There is  a "pink phase" coach whip.  They are great to have around, you are super lucky.  If you get tired of him, feel free to ship him to me.  :)

Scott

scott, why are they great to have around?

If a stagecoach with lazy horses comes by you can probably get a good price for him.

if he eats mice, he has a home here

Michael,
  I had to read that, wait 5 minutes, and then read it again before I finally got it.
Jim

i have a great fondness for critters that eat vermin.

gonna make a snake cottage. one kind member told me a big old pot covered with branches keeps them comfy.

Just a piece of plywood will do, if it's in a place with.rodents, or a brush pile. I put some roofing tin down around my elephant garlic bed. Lift it and there's a lot of rodent tunnels under it. I found two shed snake skins in the bed when I was harvesting the garlic.

Speaking of snakes, when I got home from work today I found one ensnared in bird netting that I use across my shed door. It was a beautiful long black snake hanging there limp and motionless. Had it been a sunny day or been there longer, it would surely have died. It took me about an hour to cut it out of the netting, all the while twisting, hissing and snapping at me. When stressed they give off a pungent malodorous musk. Anyway, it was a successful rescue. Glad it lived.

thanks for the tip grey. frank, when i shot the rattler it stank horridly.

It's harmless.  Let it live and eat all the bad critters.  If it has no rattles, harmless.  We don't live where they have cottonmouths...  Saddest song ever sung.  Can't hear it or think of it without tears... Mel Tillis Cottonmouth

Saddest song I ever heard.  Family laughs at moma crying.  Can't hear that song without tears. 

Suzi