I wrote about some things awhile back that some folks questioned. One column concerned skunks and someone hoorahed the idea that skunks carry rabies and therefore there is liable to be a rabies outbreak this year. We may not see a rabies outbreak on an increased scale, but the increase in skunk populations, which has doubled or tripled their numbers, makes it likely. Another questioned why I would kill black snakes on Lightnin’ Ridge. That is because they climb high into the trees, and prey upon bird eggs and even baby birds. The other reason I kill them is to save baby rabbits and the eggs of quail, wild turkey and whippoorwills. All three of those birds are declining in number. Blacksnakes are always at peak numbers in the Ozarks. Always! Now if you have a barn where you store grain as food for cattle, as my grandmother did, you have a problem with mice and rats and you like having snakes as rodent trapper.
Read MoreBit, Stung and Threatened
