African Rake Snake

            There’s a predator lurking in your lawn, and it will strikes with a head throbbing vengeance when stepped on.

            The strange thing about this lawn assassin is that it is more likely to pose a problem when people are working in the yard; almost like this kind of activity lures them out into the open.

            Its teeth are formidable when on its back, yet these mandibles are not the deadliest part of its anatomy; the end, or tail, is the biggest inflictor of pain and misery.

            When lying presumably face down it becomes quite dossal, seemingly asleep. But flip it on its back and it is poised and ready to strike when some hapless wayfarer stumbles upon it.

            Most come in bright colors and assorted lengths, so you would think they could be easily spotted and avoided, but casualties unfortunately number into the thousands every year.

            Bob Larson, creator of Far Side was the first to discover and name this fused vertebraed reptile; it is known as the African Rake Snake, and it lives to plant a big knot on your forehead whenever it can.

            The best defense when coming upon one is to disarm it by flipping it on its face. Hanging it on a nail or peg in the garage seems to render it helpless as well.

            Pictured is a dramatization of what can happen; embarrassment typically follows an attack.

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