All Puffed Up with Bluff

Found a newly hatched Eastern Hognosed Snake today at Arkalon Park east of Liberal. This little faker puffed up like a cobra, but I knew it was harmless. Hognose Snakes eat toads as adults and are not dangerous. They will puff up like a cobra, hiss loudly and strike when threatened, but they never open their mouths to bite. If their bluff doesn't work, then they will roll onto their back with belly up and pretend to be dead. If rolled back over, they turn belly up again. What a threatening snake, or should I say, threatened snake because in Kansas the Eastern Hognosed Snake is a watched species on the verge of becoming a threatened species. Their numbers are declining, likely because of habitat loss. They love sandy, river-bottoms and other areas where toads breed during wet years. I hope we don't lose this harmless bluffer.