In Alabama, the cottonmouth may attain a maximum length of about 5 feet. Adults are variable in color, ranging from a solid dark gray to tan with brown bands. Young cottonmouths are tan with conspicuous bands. The cottonmouth lives in waters statewide.
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How can you tell the difference between a water snake and a water moccasin?
The most noticeable difference is the shape of the head. A water snake’s head will be slender and flow smoothly into the neck, while the head of a water moccasin is far more blocky, and the neck much more narrow as it meets the head.
What’s the difference between a cottonmouth and a water moccasin?
Water moccasins have vertical, “cat-eye” pupils, and dark stripes extend out near each nostril. The snout is pale in comparison with the rest of the head. Cottonmouth snakes have triangular heads, thin necks, and “cat-eye” pupils.
Do water moccasins live in Alabama?
DISTRIBUTION: Agkistrodon piscivorus is found in the southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and east Texas. There are three subspecies: the eastern, Florida, and western cottonmouths.
What do you do if you see a Water Moccasin?
If you see a cottonmouth in the wild, be calm and realize that you are much larger than it, and it perceives you as a potential predator that has invaded its space. Cottonmouths are not out to get you, are not aggressive, will not chase you, and ultimately would like to be left alone.
What snake looks like a Water Moccasin?
Water Snakes
These snakes, like the northern water snake, broad-banded water snake, yellow-bellied water snake and the Mississippi green water snake can superficially resemble a cottonmouth due to their dark, dull coloration, rough scales and the uniform bands around their bodies.
Where are water moccasins located?
Cottonmouths are native to the U.S. and range from southeastern Virginia to Florida, west to central Texas and north to southern Illinois and Indiana, according to the IUCN. They primarily live in aquatic and wetland habitats, including swamps, marshes, drainage ditches, ponds, lakes and streams.
What color is a water snake?
Water snake characteristics
The markings and coloration of water snakes vary somewhat from species to species, but for the most part they are brown, gray, olive green or reddish with dark splotches or bands on their backs. Sometimes they look solid brown or black when wet.
What color is a water moccasin?
The cottonmouth, or water moccasin, is a dark-colored, heavy-bodied snake that can grow to an average of 2-4 feet in length. Juvenile cottonmouths are a brown or tan color with darker, reddish brown crossbands containing many speckles down the back. Juveniles also have bright yellow tail tips.
Is a water moccasin the same as a copperhead?
Copperhead snakes are some of the more commonly seen North American snakes.Water moccasins (cottonmouths), radiated rat snakes, Australian copperheads and sharp-nosed pit vipers are all sometimes called copperheads, but these are different species from the North American copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix).
Can a water moccasin bite you underwater?
Besides sea-snakes, there are two common snakes that can live in or near water – the cottonmouth (water moccasin) and the water snake. Not only can snakes bite underwater, but water moccasins join a list of more than 20 species of venomous snakes in the United States making them even more of a threat.
Will a cottonmouth chase you?
Perhaps the snake with the reputation for being the most aggressive is, of course, the Cottonmouth. Legend has it that when they’re not falling into your boat, they are chasing you around the beach, eager to teach you a lesson for wandering into their territory.
How do I get rid of water moccasins in my pond?
Identifying and Controlling Water Snakes
- Remove, trim and maintain shoreline grasses and emergent plants – this will reduce the habitat for the snakes.
- Control the food source – stock fish to eat frog eggs and tadpoles, use barn cats or other methods to control mice.
- Use a deterrent such as sulfur.
How bad is a water moccasin bite?
The cottonmouth has a powerful cytotoxic venom that destroys tissue and is considered more toxic than that of the Copperhead. The bite symptoms commonly include severe pain, swelling, ecchymosis, and even though deaths are rare, the cottonmouth bite could leave scars and on occasion lead to amputation.
How far can a water moccasin strike?
Full-grown cottonmouths can approach six feet in length but many are smaller, usually three- to-four feet. The snake characteristically holds its head at an angle of 45 degrees and can detect movement for a distance of at least fifty feet.
How long do you have to live after a water moccasin bite?
Patients presenting after a cottonmouth bite should undergo observation for eight hours post-envenomation. If there are no physical or hematologic signs within eight hours, then the patient can be discharged home.
Are all water moccasins poisonous?
The cottonmouth, also called a water moccasin, is a poisonous (venomous) snake found in southeastern and south central North America. They leave one, two, or three puncture marks on the skin, but you won’t always see any marks.
What do water moccasins do in the winter?
In the north, Water moccasins hibernate during the winter. In the southern parts of their range, hibernation may be short or omitted altogether. For hibernation, these snakes use rocky wooded hillsides, burrows of crayfish, tortoises or other mammals, under rotting stumps or other covers.
Where do water moccasins lay eggs?
It can give birth to 10-20 live young cottonmouth snakes once every three years. Like other pit vipers, water moccasins do not lay eggs. Much like pit vipers, these eggs are stored inside the body of the female till the time they are ready to ‘hatch’ after which the females give birth to live young.
Do water snakes look like Copperheads?
Northern water snakes have a bulb-shaped pattern that widens in the center, whereas the venomous copperhead has an hourglass-like pattern. Michael Salotti says that becoming familiar with the patterns of different species native to a specific area is the most reliable way to identify a snake.
What’s a cottonmouth snake look like?
Description: Cottonmouths are venomous semi-aquatic snakes often referred to as “water moccasins.” They have large, triangular heads with a dark line through the eye, elliptical pupils, and large jowls due to the venom glands.
