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  1. #1
    Registered User Wise Old Owl's Avatar
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    Default Might be a good idea to recognize a Cotton Mouth

    Deanna & I were on "a nearby" trail that banked a stream. at 68 degrees the snakes were out.... I spotted one in the grass and other people came up to see what I was taking a picture of. One guy offered to pick it up and I said no... you don't have gloves or tools and I haven't identified it yet... In a fraction of a second the snake was gone into the water or the bank, too fast for anyone to react and I thought about it - it was a Cotton Mouth.... I am no expert - but does anyone have a different opinion?

    Here is the photo of the second one. This is three feet away. - Folks had walked the trail all day and never saw this one.

    head.JPGThat's the head. Click on it and it will go full size
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    Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    Woo

  2. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by Wise Old Owl View Post
    ... I am no expert - but does anyone have a different opinion?
    Yes.

    RainMan

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    [I]ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: ... Defile not therefore the land which ye shall inhabit....[/I]. Numbers 35

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  3. #3
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    Default

    What's the local?

  4. #4
    Registered User Whiskyjo's Avatar
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    The eyes are oval so most likely it is one.

  5. #5
    Registered User moytoy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rain Man View Post
    Yes.

    RainMan

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    Agree.. that does not look like a pit viper head.
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  6. #6
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    imgres.jpg note the triangular head shpe of this cottonmouth, i believe that your snake was a common brown water snake

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Adair View Post
    imgres.jpg note the triangular head shpe of this cottonmouth, i believe that your snake was a common brown water snake
    Would you bet your hand on it?

  8. #8
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    Here's a fat one on the FT.

    I'm not really a hiker, I just play one on White Blaze.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by kidchill View Post
    Would you bet your hand on it?
    yes, i would bet my hand on this one

  10. #10
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    i would not bet my hand on gray blazers post though

  11. #11
    Registered User Papa D's Avatar
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    Woo = I think your snake was a brown water snake - - the belly isn't at all yellow and there is no distinct border. I imagine that with climate change, cottonmouths might be creeping out of their historic "range" which in the US is mostly swampy areas of Florida, GA, SC, etc. (and I don't know where you were) but it would be most doubtful to see one on the AT. Here is a link that shows the range of the cotton-mouth:

    www.srelherp.uga.edu/snakes/agkpis.htm

  12. #12
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    Looks like a
    Northern water snake.

  13. #13
    Registered User moytoy's Avatar
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    Unless you want to get bit do not try to pickup a brown water snake. They are mean and will bite at the least provocation.
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  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Trail Bug View Post
    Looks like a
    Northern water snake.
    My guess would also be the Northern water snake. What amazes me is the variety of color variation. Look at all the different shades of the snake at this wiki link

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Water_Snake

    The article says they are often misidentified as cottonmouths.

  15. #15

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    Ya'll northerns better watch out, with climate change coming we're going to start releasing our gators on you, it's just getting too warm down here for them





  16. #16
    Registered User vamelungeon's Avatar
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    A LOT of people see water snakes and call them cottonmouths or water moccasins, but they are pretty difficult to identify. I think I can safely say that you won't normally see a cottonmouth on the AT, but it's best to respect all snakes and especially the ones you can't ID. I like to see them from a distance but I don't bother them and they don't bother me. I've found nature treats me better when I live by that philosophy.
    "You're a nearsighted, bitter old fool."

  17. #17
    Registered User Wise Old Owl's Avatar
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    Thanks - guess we need a mod to change the title... I agree no yellow belly and its just outside of it's range....thanks - this was an interest of mine and Its good to learn a little.
    Dogs are excellent judges of character, this fact goes a long way toward explaining why some people don't like being around them.

    Woo

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    Unless it bit you, who cares? But just for the same of argument, I can tell you it's not a cotton mounth because it doesn't have a faint dimaondback pattern or a triangular head.


    You only need to know the kind of snake that bit you (so the doctor will know which anti-venin to give you), and that's pretty easy. If it's there are two holes and it hurts like hell, it was a pit-viper. If it was black, it was a cottonmouth. If it was rattling, it was a rattler. If not either of those, it was a copperhead. If you were in the deep south and it had red, black, and yellow stripes, it was probably a king snake but might have been a coral snake. You'll know which one by the time you make it to the doctor.

  19. #19
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    100% not a cotton mouth, im a florida boy and have seen plenty. Everytime someone sees a snake near water they assume its a cottonmouth. There are several speciecs of water snakes from the carolinas south. In SC and GA the northern water snake resemble the CM. down in FL the banded water snake is VERY similar. Truth is, the cotton mouth is probably overlooked 100 to 1 because its way more camoflauged than the water snakes and it will stay still when u get close. Water snakes are jumpy, aggressive, and FULL of teeth... several rows as compared to other non-venomos.

  20. #20

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    All the poisonous snakes in the US, with the exception of the coral snake, have eliptical pupils like a cat. If it isn't a coral snake and it has round pupils it isn't poisonous. You may not want to get close enough to see the pupils however.

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