Customer Reviews

Snakes of Virginia

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I checked out this book from the library and liked it so much I had to have my own copy! It's a great reference book and has good pictures of the snakes and maps of the areas of Virginia they are found in. The text is informative and has subtle humor in places. These guys really like snakes, and it is contagious, even to someone who really doesn't like them! It has helped my daughter's fear of snakes greatly.

Great book for anyone in Virginia who wonders about snakes. I enjoyed it and reccomend it. It helps puts to rest worries about whether a snake is "dangerous" or not, and generally adds insight into these much maligned reptiles. It is also going to be a big help when my grandchildren visit me in the Roanake area from Manhattan and ask about "Mr. Snake."

I was so glad to find a snake book that's centered on our area. I have a field guide for the broader East Coast but this is a neat one in that it centers in on species right here. The maps are full-page maps (with VA counties delineated) showing with dots where the particular species has been seen. I wish they had also used color or gray-scale to shade the counties rather than just the dots but having the counties shown is so neat that I'm willing to get my colored pencils out and shade in the maps when I need to. The descriptions of the snakes are terrific too. They cover description (colors, patterns, sizes), habitat, range (beyond VA borders), habits (what they do during the day, night etc), reproduction, food, enemies, success/failure of keeping them in captivity, and folklore which I find interesting too. A great reference on snakes. There are photographs too - all at the center of the book, about 54 in all, as well as line drawings in other places of the book

Didja know that some juvenile snakes may not look anything like adults? Wanna identify them all, positively? Wanna know EVERYThing about them, where they hang out, what they like to eat, when and where to find them?
THEN BUY THIS PUPPY!!! You will not be disappointed. My name is in the library book 4 times in a row, back in my borrowing days - now I own one.

This book reads more like a textbook for high school or college. It is very thorough, but lacks enough color pictures to make identification easy, which was the reason I ordered the book in the first place! I have 2 curious elementary school grandchildren who saw a snake near my front porch. We never could identify it using "Snakes of Virginia".

Since I am originally from New Jersey, I felt I needed a book on snakes specific to Virginia. I am not one to kill snakes because I know they serve a purpose in nature. I also find them interesting from a distance. This book has been helpful to me for identification purposes and has also spared the life of a Mole Kingsnake that my husband thought was a copperhead! I would highly recommend this book!