Hooked – A Story of Snake Ensnared

Northern Watersnake photo by Elyse Dilks

Content warning: This story includes photos and mentions injuries to wildlife that may be upsetting to some readers. 

Hooked - A Story of Snake Ensnared

Written by Elyse Dilks, Warner Parks Naturalist

Yes, this is a story about a snake, but more importantly, this is the success story of a Northern Watersnake that had been hooked by a fishing line here at Warner Parks.

To unveil the full story for this blog, I dug deep by interviewing those involved with this snakey incident, comprising mainly of our very own Warner Parks staff and the Nashville Wildlife Conservation Center.

It all started when one of our Naturalists, Rachel Carter, was at the Little Harpeth River working with our summer camp kids. There, she encountered a teenager who was getting ready to fish nearby. She ushered him to portion of the creek a little further away from the kids. It was shortly after this moment that Rachel C. heard,

“Snake!”

Rachel C., upon hearing this, turned towards the direction of the call and saw a large Northern Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon) swimming in the water near the fisherman. Watersnakes are a common occurrence in our parks, so--not yet understanding the full situation--Rachel C. exclaimed excitedly,

“Oh my gosh look at that snake! That’s a huge snake!”

“No, it ate my fishing line… it ate my lure!”

Now realizing the dire situation at hand, Rachel C. watched as the snake, hooked in mouth, began swimming towards a pile of rocks, dragging the fishing line with it. Although Rachel C. “has a healthy respect for snakes” and describes them as “beautiful creatures that are misunderstood and receipients of irrational fears”, she still felt inexperienced in her abilities in catching a snake of this size. She decided to call Rachel Anderson, another park Naturalist, and myself for guidance on what to do. As Rachel C. was frantically trying to find a solution, the young fisherman beckoned for his mother to come back. Knowing he would have to cut the line and potentially ruin their chances of rescuing it, he protested, but then both to his and Rachel C.’s dismay, they watched as the line snapped…

Over at the Nature Center, Rachel A. had received the phone call from Rachel C. and was headed towards the location where the snake was. As Kassie, our front desk Naturalist recounts,

“Rachel A. ran by, saying ‘I have to go save a snake!’”

On Rachel A’s. way, she bumped into two of our Summer SWEAT crew members, Austin and Lars, who were eager to help with the rescue. They appeared at the scene and quickly scouted out the snake with Rachel C.’s help. They were able to safely capture the snake, and brought it back to the Nature Center where they created a makeshift container to hold it: a simple bucket with a towel taped around the top with holes cut into it for better airflow.

Two of our staff members, Kassie and Caroline, started calling different wildlife rehabilitation centers and even local veterinarians to see if they would take in the snake. At this point, the snake’s condition was dire. It had swallowed the hook and only a string could be seen hanging from its mouth. Everyone knew that it needed medical professionals to removal the hook. After many calls and no one able to take it in, the name Debbie Sykes, a former Warner Parks employee, was mentioned.

Debbie seemed like the right person for the job. She created the Nashville Wildlife Conservation Center (NWCC), is an ER Licensed Veterinary Medical Technician and takes in all sorts of injured wildlife. Once Debbie was informed of our emergency, she assured our staff that she would be able to take the snake, but not until the next day. Because of this, Rachel A. took the snake home, kept it overnight, and delivered it to Debbie the next morning.

Radiograph of the hook inside the watersnake by NWCC

Watersnake post-surgery, still under anesthesia by NWCC

Once it was in Debbie’s care, she immediately took the snake be radiographed, which revealed that the hook had punctured through its internal wall and was now stuck in its neck. A surgery was performed by a veterinarian, and the hook was successfully removed. Debbie stated that “After a couple of weeks of pain medication and antibiotics, along with proper housing to decreasing stress and promote natural behaviors, he was deemed ready to go.”

On July 27^th at 9:09am, Rachel A. and I watched the watersnake be released back into the Little Harpeth River by a NWCC volunteer. To say it was an astonishing sight observing the snake be released, is quite frankly an understatement. This was a snake that had all odds against it: swallowed a hook, impaled internally, went through surgery, and was then kept in captivity for a few weeks. These are highly stressful events for even a person to go through, so imagine what it may have been like for this snake!

NWCC Volunteer during snake release, photo by Rachel Anderson

Watersnake release photo by Elyse Dilks

As Rachel A. remarks, “I was impressed on how resilient of a creature it is,” which I think perfectly encapsulates everyone’s opinions on our mighty little legless friend.

Some may wonder why we would intervene and help this snake out? Well, here is the simple and cold truth: It would have died without our intervention. When an animal gets hooked or wrapped up in fishing line, it interferes with its daily life. Its mobility is lowered, it can have difficulty eating, or even have internal complications arise. As Rachel C. stated,

“I feel we were obligated to help that snake. It was a victim of human actions, so therefore humans were responsible for doing everything they could to undo the damage they caused.”

(Photo of snake release by Rachel Anderson)

Everyone I talked to agreed that intervening was the right call. As Lars (SWEAT crew member) mentioned,

“It would have been different if the snake was injured by another animal or was just old, but it had fallen victim to something that was never meant to affect it. Something that it couldn’t avoid or understand.”

Although it was a happy ending for the snake and all those involved, oftentimes there are different outcomes to a story. While in the midst of typing up this blog, another animal was found hooked at our Little Harpeth River: this time, a juvenile Belted Kingfisher. The young bird was seen dangling in a tree by a fisherman, having been hooked by a line that had been tangled up in the branches and abandoned. Warner Parks staff once again hopped onto the scene. Unfortunately, in this case the Kingfisher was not as lucky as the watersnake, and had withstood too great an injury to have been rehabilitated. A heartbreaking end to pair with the success story of the Northern Watersnake.

Photo of the hooked Belted Kingfisher by Laura Cook

Both of these fishing hook encounters sparked conversation among our Nature Center staff. Two different hooked animals, with two different ends to their stories. Warner Parks is a nature sanctuary, and we do not allow our flora and fauna to be harmed or removed. When interviewing staff, I would often ask them: "What is one way you think would have prevented this situation from happening again?" Some, when prompted with this question, suggested on banning finishing in our parks. Others want to urge park fisherman to cleanup their fishing supplies, leaving nothing behind. Some staff were unsure on the best course of action. As Kassie put it,

“We are a city park and nature sanctuary, should fishing be allowed when we don’t allow the harming or taking of our animals?”

 We wish there was a simple solution. However, it is important to note that Warner Parks are a part of the Metro Parks system. Because of this, fishing in any Metro Park is allowed as long as anglers have a required, valid fishing license. Even though we do not have a definitive solution to this issue, here are some ways you can help prevent an incident like our hooked snake and kingfisher friends experienced from ever happening again:

- Leave no trace! Clean up after yourself and others, and do not leave anything behind. If out fishing and your line snaps or a lure gets caught, please retrieve it and discard it into a proper waste container.

- Be aware of your surroundings. If you are in a location where you could encounter animals other than fish, be mindful of where you cast your line and be vigilant as to what is being attracted to it.

- If you do catch something that’s not a fish and are unsure how to extract it, please contact the Nature Center at 615-862-8555 or wpnc@nashville.gov. Do not cut your line or leave a hooked animal in the Park.

A big thank you to the Nashville Wildlife Conservation Center for being our helping aid for both the Northern Watersnake and Belted Kingfisher. If you would like to help support the NWCC, you can go to the link to donate or visit their site: https://www.nashvillewildlifeconservation.org/ways-to-help

Photo of snake release by Rachel Anderson