Water Moccasin Vs Water Snake Florida
Water moccasins and cottonmouths share one common thing.
Water moccasin vs water snake florida. The cottonmouth or water moccasin is a dark colored heavy bodied snake that can grow to an average of 2 4 feet in length. Some are easy to tell from a water moccasin others almost look identical. Cottonmouths agkistrodon piscivorus sadly harmless snakes are often killed out of fear for the safety of family and pets. The venomous cottonmouth snake is one of the most feared animals in the eastern us and often misidentified and confused with harmless water snakes.
Juvenile cottonmouths are a brown or tan color with darker reddish brown crossbands containing many speckles down the back. The water moccasin has a brownish color but this will also go darker as they age more. Their heads are also much larger than the normal water snake and they have a diamond like shape that almost seems like a large block. There are many harmless watersnakes genus nerodia that are frequently confused with venomous water moccasins a k a.
They are known for their thick bodies and shorter tails compared to the slender water snake. Juveniles also have bright yellow tail tips. Harmless watersnake or venomous water moccasin. There is also the western cottonmouth which is found in the states surrounding and.
The best way to tell these two snake species apart is by observing their heads and looking for the water moccasin s distinct dark band. In this article we ll take a look at water moccasins vs cottonmouths and discern the difference if any. One of the snakes which is easy to confuse with a water moccasin agkistrodon piscivorus is the water snake g enus nerodia. Their are numerous different types of water snakes spread all through the united states.
Venomous snakebites are rare and can usually be avoided. Another way to distinguish the two snakes is by their bodies. However knowing how to respond correctly to venomous snakebites is also important. These include florida cottonmouth which is found in florida and parts of georgia.
Florida s snakes cottonmouth or water moccasin agkistrodon piscivorus venomous. There are three subspecies within this species. The water moccasin or cottonmouth is a venomous pit viper snake species found in southeastern parts of the united states. They re the same snake.
