Snakes shed their skins in a surprising place.
Yesterday I joined an evening yoga class on the banks of the Columbia River in a park. Trees have metal cages around the lower trunks to keep beavers from cutting them down.
"There's a snakeskin on that tree trunk!" I told a man after class. Suddenly I noticed it. Horizontally wrapped around a tree trunk, two dried snakeskins were attached to the wires, one above the other.
While hiking, Karen and I occasionally see pieces of dried snakeskin caught in bushes. Dried snakeskins are so fragile and lightweight, they get blown apart by the wind.
The head separated from the body as I carefully peeled the snakeskin away from the wire. Gave one to the man for his grandkids.
For fun, I added a rattlesnake rattle to the picture. Found the rattle on a hike years ago.
It's just an empty skin, thinner than paper. Beautiful with an echo of its inhabitant long gone.
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12 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.The details in nature are amazingly beautiful!
tinkercreek
Level 8
Aug 30, 2020
1
Snakes and other animals shed a layer of skin in one continuous piece, a process called ecdysis, which occurs between four and 12 times a year. Why? Two reasons. First, while the snake’s body continues to grow, its skin does not. A roomier skin layer is generated, and the old layer is discarded. Secondly, shedding, or sloughing of the skin, removes harmful parasites. Humans “shed” millions of skin cells every day, snakes and other animals like arthropods shed a layer of skin in one continuous piece. (Iowa Department of Natural Resources)
My wife worked as a Golf Caddy in a Golf Club in Japan and used to find many of this all the time.
Merseyman1
Level 9
Aug 27, 2020
3
Fascinating and educational. Thank you.
(Don't be mad, friends....but these are NOT snake ''skins.'' If the snake literally shed its skin...it would be bare muscle. This is a SHED. Now...you learned something.) 
LucyLoohoo
Level 9
Aug 27, 2020
2
I understand "shed" is a verb as in "shedding skin."
Okay, Ms. Zoo Volunteer. I salute you. Please give us the correct noun for a shedded snake skin.
Your comment reminds me of locals who call antlers on the ground a "shed."
scratches head
@LiterateHiker "Shed" is both a noun and a verb! The product of a shed IS a shed. 30 years of handling/showing snakes to crowds teaches us something.
More confounding Western vernacular. slaps head
@LiterateHiker Well, there are many more noun/verbs.....''tweet'' comes to mind, ''drink'' and so does ''shit.''
And so we also shed our skins periodically become a changed person. If only we could be aware when this happens. We are dynamic beings. So in relationships we need to be aware of our partner's evolution and give it room. Life is really a dance.
think-beyond
Level 7
Aug 27, 2020
3
I know many people are afraid of snakes, but they are just as scared of us. Snakes are such an important part of our ecosystem.
AgeofReason
Level 5
Aug 27, 2020
3
I would run off in fear, just in case the owner of the skin came back to claim it...
tsallinia
Level 6
Aug 27, 2020
2
It's just an empty skin, thinner than paper. Beautiful with an echo of its inhabitant long gone.
@LiterateHiker what a lovely sentiment!
Quite the adventure ,not many women would do what you did,so happy your outdoor life has made you at ease with mother nature and all her creations
RoyMillar
Level 9
Aug 27, 2020
1
It's just an empty skin, thinner than paper. Beautiful with an echo of its inhabitant long gone.
The Pacific rattlesnake is non-aggressive. Just don't step on it.
Some people are so terrified of snakes, they refuse to hike. Sad.
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