Where do snakes go during winter in North Texas? Closer than you think.
When the weather in North Texas turns cold, you’re less likely to see snakes out and about. That’s the good news.
The bad news is they may be inside your home.
Here’s what experts and pest-control specialists say you should know about snakes during fall and winter.
When do snakes hibernate in Texas?
Technically, snakes don’t hibernate like warm-blooded mammals.
Reptiles, including snakes, brumate during cold months, means they stop eating when the temperature drops. Their metabolism slows down and they look for places to hide, according to the Nature Museum at the Chicago Academy of Sciences.
You will still see snakes during Texas winters, though, since we typically see warm days between cold snaps. Snakes can emerge to warm themselves but won’t eat until spring.
Usually beginning around Dec. 1 in North Texas, snakes will try to occupy anything from crawl spaces in your house to attic spaces for warmth.
Texas has more than 100 species and subspecies of snakes, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife. Venomous snakes in Texas species include rattlesnakes, copperheads, cottonmouths and coral snakes.
Where do snakes like to brumate in winter?
Snakes are not picky about where to take their winter rest. They really just want a warm place to stay.
The most common places for snakes to brumate are:
Crawl space under a house,
Wall voids,
Attic spaces,
Brush, wood and rock piles.
How to keep snakes out of your home in Texas
Snakes are predators, and mice and rats are their prey. If your home has rodents, that may attract snakes to hide in spaces that may surprise you, too.
According to the pest control company Rentokil, ways you can keep snakes out of your home include:
Keep vegetation nice and clean. If you have tall grass or bushes around your house, this could be a place for rodents and snakes to hide.
Keep wood piles off the ground. Wood piles and materials should be stored on a palette at least a foot off the ground to keep snakes from nesting between the logs.
Seal holes around your house. Ensure all possible points of entry to your home are sealed. Snakes will find any open space to keep warm.
Get rid of dampness. Keep any spaces with water nice and clean, and sealed. Snakes like damp areas.
What to do if you see a brumating snake
If you find a snake brumating in your home, do not come in contact with it. While brumation makes snakes a little slower due to lack of energy, they will strike back if provoked.
Critter Control recommends calling a pest control company. If you can, you can also try to show the snake a clear pathway out.
Sometimes you may find only a snake’s shed skin. If so, you should have pest control run an inspection to ensure there are no snakes hiding.
When is snake season in Texas
Snake season starts in March and runs through December, said Randall Kennedy, owner of Dallas Fort Worth Wildlife Control. That’s typically when the weather is warm, at least 80 degrees.
That’s when you’re most likely to see snakes in your yard, on hiking trails or near waterways.
Is it true that snakes can work their way up people’s toilets? Yes, snakes have been found hanging out in toilets. However, the snakes aren’t actually coming from the city, rather the plumbing pipe exhaust vents found on the roof of a house. Snakes will work themselves into these vents, which lead to sinks and toilets.
Kennedy has said he removes several snakes from toilets a week, mainly being rat snakes since they’re arboreal and like to climb. “Plumbing exhaust vents need coverage on them,” he said.