Most people know about the Kookaburras catching snakes and keeping their numbers under control in the bush.
Thanks to their noise, Guineas are an excellent way to protect the yard from uninvited snakes. In a flock, Guinea Fowl will sound out loudly to alert you of the presence of a snake.
Kookaburras are not selective feeders. They feed on a wide range of food sources depending on what is available. They eat snakes, lizards, small mammals, frogs, rodents, bugs, beetles and worms. Kookaburras are often seen waiting for prey on low tree branches or powerlines.
They say the birds use a "wait and swoop" technique to catch prey. "Once they see the prey, the kookaburra swoops down and grabs it with its beak," it said online. "Larger prey items such as snakes are hit against trees and rocks to kill, soften or break into smaller pieces before they swallow it.
A video shows a magpie fearlessly attacking a large snake, and managing to chase it away from it's territory. The relentless magpie lands quite a few nasty nips on the reptile, eventually chasing it into nearby bushes to escape the swooping.
Guinea Fowls and Snakes
Guinea fowl are great snake deterrent and do a great job of keeping the snake away, and the at the very least they will warn you that snakes are around.
Use Natural Predators
Common snake predators include cats, raccoons, pigs, turkeys, guinea hens, and foxes. Keeping any of these animals around your home will help deter snakes from coming near. You can also buy fox urine and sprinkle it around your property to help deter snakes, as well.
The species' known predators include birds of prey and feral cats.
Kookaburras are excellent at hunting snakes and have been observed killing and eating snakes of some 1 metre in length! These birds kill snakes by bludgeoning them to death, and then dismembering them into small pieces before eating them.
Avoid: Feeding Kookaburras by hand, as they might mistake your finger for food and give you a nip. Using pesticides that can poison insects that Kookaburras feed on. Cutting down old, large trees that Kookaburras might nest in.
Danger to humans
The Coastal Taipan is often regarded as the most dangerous snake in Australia. They are extremely nervous and alert snakes, and any movement near them is likely to trigger an attack.
Pale-headed snake (Hoplocephalus bitorquatus)
The pale-headed snake hunts at night for small reptiles and usually lives under tree bark. The coloration is mostly light grey or brown, with the broad head spotted with black. Average length is 0.5m, maximum 0.9m.
The Laughing Kookaburra native to eastern Australia makes a very familiar call sounding like raucous laughter. Their call is used to establish territory among family groups, most often at dawn and dusk.
What Smell Do Snakes Hate? Strong and disrupting smells like sulfur, vinegar, cinnamon, smoke and spice, and foul, bitter, and ammonia-like scents are usually the most common and effective smells against snakes since they have a strong negative reaction to them.
Natural repellents including sulfur, clove and cinnamon oil, and vinegar may help repel snakes. Pour these substances around the perimeter of your property, any place you have noticed snake activity.
"They are very aggressive. Being a 'perch and pounce' predator, they're able to capitalise on any small mammals, nesting birds, reptiles and amphibians," she said.
Kookaburras are the largest of all the kingfishers. Although well-known for being an Australian bird, Kookaburras are also found in New Guinea. Kookaburras are famous for their call, which sounds like laughter (you can hear it further down the page). Groups of Kookaburras often call loudly at dawn and dusk.
Kookaburras are drawn to native vegetation, as it provides shelter and food. Blueberry Ash, Bottlebrush, Golden Wattle, and Paperbark are all known to attract kookaburras and other native species like wrens and magpies.
Magpies are omnivores, meaning they eat plants and animals. They usually feed by walking along the ground and picking food out of the soil. They eat all sorts of insects and larvae, but will also eat spiders, mice, and small lizards and snakes.
We have noted at Walkabout Park that most kangaroos bitten by snakes are hand-raised kangaroos. We have seen a disproportionately larger number of hand-raised kangaroos bitten, relative to wild raised kangaroos.
South Australia
Sand dunes are common breeding grounds for snakes of this region. Most of the venomous tend to be in this area. This is because it receives large amounts of sun but at the same time allows for enough cover for protection.
While they can be out any time, rattlesnakes are most active in the morning and from dusk into the night. They hunt mice and rodents in darkness because they can sense body heat with special organs on their face.
The snake's biggest enemy is the mongoose, which is quick enough to dart in and bite the back of the cobra's neck before the snake can defend itself.
EnviroBug offers the strongest, most effective, most reliable battery-powered snake repellers you can buy to protect you from deadly Australian ground snakes. 8 out of 10 snake bites occur when people try to pick them up, scare them, corner them or accidentally step on them.