Snakes are out in force with weather warming up, with the lowland copperhead the most common variety to be found across Ballarat's suburbs and peri-urban areas.
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Ballarat snake catcher and Monash University research officer Jules Farquhar said copperheads were a live-bearing snake that liked Ballarat's slightly higher altitude and cooler climate.
Copperheads were more commonly found around the open wetland residential areas, as they ate small lizards and frogs.
The most common area for calls were Haddon and Smythes Creek, Buninyong and Mt Helen, Invermay and Miners Rest.
White-lipped snakes were often found in the forested areas around Ballarat, such as Invermay, Smythes Creek, Haddon, Smythesdale and Warrenheip.
Eastern brown snakes were less common in Ballarat and had been found in Snake Valley and Dereel, where the terrain was a bit drier, as well as north of the divide, towards Clunes. These snakes lay eggs and eat mammals, he said.
Snake catcher and Monash University research officer Jules Farquhar says while there's no magic solution, the best thing people can do to avoid them, is to not to make your backyard attractive to snakes.
"When we do callouts to people, nine of of 10 times it is because they've made their way to the house area, where there's traffic, kids, pets and they're worried about their safety," he said.
How dangerous are they?
Mr Farquhar said snake attacks were a misconception, because mostly, snakes didn't like conflict and wanted to avoid it.
"When there is a human, their first intention is to flee - even eastern brown snakes," he said.
"There are on average about 5,000 snake bits in Australia per year and only one to two deaths.
"There are a lot of venomous snake species but they have a calmer temperament than what people think. The trick is to note make their yard an oasis."
Mr Farquhar said if people saw a snake close to their home, the advice was to walk away and call a snake catcher.
"Most people who get bitten are trying to capture them and kill them to resolve a problem, but make themselves a statistic," he said.
Where snakes appear
From the outset, snakes are commonly found on the peri-urban fringes of town, with many of the newer growth areas intersected by creeks and tall grass vegetation.
- Maintain your yard well
- Snakes are more likely where they can get their ecological needs met, such as food, water and shelter.
- If your yard is structurally complex, including complex garden beds, building materials and gaps and frogs and lizards can get into - that's an attraction for snakes.
- Ballarat's main snakes love eating frogs and small lizards.
- They love sun, shade and rocks, especially retaining walls, where snakes like to set up shop.
How to avoid snakes
- Keep backyards structurally simple and open
- Mow grass low around the house
- Keep building materials up off the ground. Having them lower to the ground provides snakes with tight crevices where they can shelter from the elements.
