question: have anybody seen a reduction in the number of rattle snakes on your property following a rise in the feral hog population?

We hunt NW of Abilene and have not seen a rattle snake in 7 years, but we have a lot of hogs. Wondering if they eat the snakes?

I did some hog removal out in rotan, was told there was lost of rattle snakes in the time I went out there we only killed two... And they too have tons of hogs... Don't know if the hog population has anything to do with the snakes but maybe they do....

On another note if u need help gettin rid of some hogs give me a call...

I've heard the same thing at a few places. Not sure if the hogs eat the snakes or drive them out of the area.

Hogs will eat snakes but don't know that they eat enough to reduce the population.

My grandfather raised hogs when they were kids. He said they would catch snakes all the time and throw them in the pens just to see how long they lasted.....and it wasn't long.

here in New Mexico we've had a reduction in rattlesnakes, in areas with no hogs, so I believe it is either drought or other conditions that is affecting the snake populations

I have killed two 3 footers and one 12 in snake this year near my house south of Alamogordo and that was in late September or early October. That is the first I have seen in the past couple of years. I do know that hogs will eat snakes and be happy doing it.

We had domesticated hogs that we would turn loose in the creek bottoms in the spring. The first thing they'd do when they hit the holes (of water) they'd try to catch the fish and snakes. They seemed to love them or hate them, I couldn't tell, but they would eat them.
Most of the fish were yellow cats and jackfish and most of the snakes were moccasins.

Highly doubt the hogs have much to do with the snake population.

There is the urban legend that rattlesnakes no longer rattle to warn away animals because the ones that did that were getting eaten by hogs - hence natural selection - and poof, we are left with a population of rattlesnakes not prone to rattling. This was all very BOGUS, of course, but is is one of the myths that has come about with the lore of the hog.

Here is one version that says rattlesnakes don't rattle anymore because of humans...
http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/snakes/a/Rattlesnakes-Not-Rattling.htm

Hogs:
http://www.aranchersview.com/2011/11/are-feral-hogs-stopping-rattlesnakes.html

Then there is the rumor that hogs are immune to rattlesnake venom...
http://www.texashuntingforum.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/topic/144919/gonew/1

Hogs do eat snakes, but I haven't seen anything to suggest that hog predation on snakes has been particularly meaningful. Hogs will also eat rats and mice, which are common rattlesnake food, so go figure.

You may be seeing more pigs and seeing less snakes, but the correlation may or may not be related or directly related. It may be not that the snakes are being eaten, but that they have been driven away. A buddy of mine noted his property was covered with snakes until he had sheep and inside of 2 years, he didn't see snakes anymore. The reason was that the sheep ate all the cover for the snakes, not that they ate the snakes.

Perceived snake activity will go down with increases in the head of horse, cattle, and goats as well.

As DavidK noted, there are other factors ongoing as well that may affect the snake population such that a perceived correlation may be no correlation at all.

I heard rumor that in Sweetwater there was a lack of rattlers for the "roundup". They believe that is because the hogs are getting into the eggs and the venom can't penetrate the thick armor-like hide of the pigs.

I honestly believe they have done a number on the quail population too.

The armor isn't an issue as it is soft tissue and so if the venom gets under the skin, it will do its job.

Note the description of the shoulder bitten pig here...
http://www.thepigsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=152

It should also be pointed out that the armor does not protect the lower half of pigs very well at all, which is where a snake is mostly likely to bite along with the head region.

This is from an obviously anti-Christian site, but I liked the pig "facts"...

http://www.ensignmessage.com/archives/porkfacts.html

You can read the rest. They are pretty funny.

Pig tissue is actually studied for snake bites because their tissues react in relatively the same ways as humans.
http://www.llu.edu/behavioral-health/ebs/hayes/research-b-snakebite.page

Well then, lets get a wild hog and a wild rattlesnake put them in a pen and see what happens

Hogs run off everything.

Have you ever watched lonesome dove!! There is your answer

Rattlesnakes have live births, no eggs

I don't think hogs have anything to do with snake population

Very good! I had forgotten that. So hogs aren't eating the eggs without eating the mother snakes.

Our timbers will survive they live in the trees mostly....havnt seen a dimondback in years.... they got plenty of chicken snakes to eat around here too ha also copperheads

Plenty of snakes in Stephens County. Few rattlers and a copperhead last year. This year 3 copperheads and a several non venomous snakes. Plenty of hogs around and in my opinion way too many snakes!
I was standing 10" from a coiled up 4' rattler. He rattled but never struck at me. Thank God!!!!! I bolted, grabbed a shovel, got in truck and drove up next to him and he never moved. I was able to use shovel to make a new hat band. Lol

Our place is in the middle of the quail capital of texas or so I am told. We have a butload of them. The only thing that I have seen since 2007 that affects the quail population(we dont hunt them much) is rain. We also have mroe than our fair share of hogs and ratlers. I also have had 4 hunts this year where I saw hogs and deer feeding at the same time together.

Oh Great!!! They'll start eating chicken snakes and before you know it, they'll want mashed taters and corn and bisquets too.

we have actually had a decline in the numbers of feral pigs around my area and have not seen any more snakes then usual...no more no less really

rattlers have always been hit or miss, copperheads are around, plenty of the harmless ones

I am going to go with the lack of rain...thus the lack of cover, rats etc. I have not seen a rattlesnake, jackrabbit or cottontail on our place in 3 years. We also have no hawks, quail, owls and have seen a huge reduction in predators. We have had about 18 inches of rain the past 3 years. We have lots of hogs.