Gary Reese wrote:PCACala@xxxxxxx
>The worst part about working in nature is being forced to drop your
equipment
>in panic and then having to retrieve it! I left an early model Olympus
>Pearlcorder [note the OLY content] at a nest site when I was swarmed and
stung
>about 22 times. It can also send you running and then you do stupid things
>like trip and fall.
OUCH!! Your comments remind me of one time I got good and lost.. I had
left camp in the foothills of a Mountain in Darien to look for a quiet,
contemplative spot.. an absolute necessity when I'm the only female in a
group of 4 guys.. and I was following a sharp ridge line as the alternative
would have necessitated wearing climbing pitons. I usually watch my feet,
rather than at eye level when I'm walking as I'm prone to fall a lot, but I
looked up to see what looked for all the world like a 8 to 10 foot tree in
the middle of the way, branches denuded of leaves, but looking like it was
decorated for Xmas.. It had something draped all over the bare branches.
It took my mind about 2 minutes to register that the "decoration" was the
largest snake I"D ever seen, just draped over the bare branches.. it was so
big it had to be either a non-venomous constrictor of some type.. or a
highly poisonous bush-master. But I didn't want to get any closer to see!
It had to be 5 inches (that's a conservative estimate) in diameter in it's
wider portion and over 12 feet long if it was an inch.
Anyhow, about that time the snake's head came up, I snaped a quick photo
[OM content!] with my 90mm and flash, and it started moving quickly, as did
I. I went off the ridge, and it was probably just as frightened as I was
and headed off the other side! Bad move.. It took me almost 3 hours to
find the same ridge and get back to camp. The tree, curiously, had been
rubbed smooth by the snake's apparently using it habitually to snooze on.
BTW the photo was a loss. not enough light as I was about 12 feet from
the snake, and my T32 Flash wasn't powerful enough.. Just the time I could
have used the 45, huh? But they weren't around, then. I never dropped the
camera, but I certainly did a lot of running and falling!! Course, I wasn't
getting bitten, either!
I often wondered about snake boots, but the fer de lance and bush master
usually aimed a lot higher than that. Friend of mine got a bushmaster
cornered by accident and it bit him mid-thigh. He was lucky enough to be
within 15 miles of the Canal Zone and drove himself to the hospital..
Still, I prefer snakes on the ground to the eyelash vipers and others that
are in brush and trees and get you about neck level!
For those folks that have active allergies to Poison sumac and ivy, I think
there is a cream that you can put on before hand to protect you against
it.. I guess each time you get it can be worse than the last time.. Bad
stuff.
We always saw a lot of snakes, but most people dont. I've decided that's
not because they aren't there, but because most folks don't see things that
aren't moving. We have developed an eye for catching details.. like
flowers and snakes. In over 35 years (my husband) and my 23 + years,
neither one of us has ever been bitten by a snake.. I really think it's a
matter of going slowly, and giving the animals a chance to get away from
us. We certainly aren't their idea of dinner, so unless we catch one with
PMS or shedding, they really give people a wide berth. They are a much
overrated danger as compared with ponerine ants, bees, and just plain
clumsiness..
Kerry
+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +
Kerry Dressler Email: bio-photo@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Bio-Photo Services, Inc. http://www.bio-photo.com
21305 NW 86th Ave TEL: (352)466-4215
Micanopy, FL 32667 FAX: (352)466-3151
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