Not a Cottonmouth
Jun 8, 2018 20:04:30 #
KankRat
Loc: SW Chicago Suburbs
Where I live, just outside of Chicago, most people are convinced that any water snake is the venomous water moccasin, aka "Cottonmouth". Not so. This is the northern watersnake and it's totally harmless unless you are a fish or a frog- in which case it's unlikely that you would be reading this. :-)
I believe this is a female and she is gravid. Like gartersnakes, they are live bearers and do not lay eggs. This snake is about 3-3 1/2 feet long. She resides in a small pond full of goldfish and frogs that is outside a nature center. Snakes in this pond seem to have gotten used to people so it's fairly easy to get close without spooking them.
Hope you like it.
Northern Watersnake by Mark Kasick, on Flickr
I believe this is a female and she is gravid. Like gartersnakes, they are live bearers and do not lay eggs. This snake is about 3-3 1/2 feet long. She resides in a small pond full of goldfish and frogs that is outside a nature center. Snakes in this pond seem to have gotten used to people so it's fairly easy to get close without spooking them.
Hope you like it.
Northern Watersnake by Mark Kasick, on FlickrJun 8, 2018 20:13:08 #
Water snakes may be non-venomous, but they will bite if molested or mishandled, possibly necessitating
tetanus shots.
tetanus shots.
Jun 8, 2018 20:20:43 #
JR45 wrote:
Water snakes may be non-venomous, but they will bite if molested or mishandled, possibly necessitating
tetanus shots.
tetanus shots.
And a northern water snake is one that can contain something in their mouth than when they bite you an infection can occur. Not really dangerous, however. Northern water snakes have also been confused with copperheads. Their body can be somewhat similar, but the head should tell. Most people have a fear of snakes and do not realize what good snakes do. Even the humble garter snake is valuable. I do like the photo. One large park that I go to, near a pond a northern water snake is in the same spot every morning (in warm weather). Just lays in the sun and relaxes. He and I are just about on first name basis.
Jun 8, 2018 20:22:13 #
KankRat
Loc: SW Chicago Suburbs
Yep, and bleeds and itches like crazy, especially from a big one. You can pretty much bet, if you pick one up it's going to bite.
Jun 8, 2018 20:26:32 #
KankRat wrote:
Yep, and bleeds and itches like crazy, especially from a big one. You can pretty much bet, if you pick one up it's going to bite.
I'd raise hell to if I was trying to catch some Z's and some crazy fool tried to pick me up. The true imbeciles are those that attempt to get a selfie with a rattlesnake. That happens far more often than people realize.
Jun 8, 2018 20:35:01 #
KankRat
Loc: SW Chicago Suburbs
This is kind of neat. I just shot this with my phone. I was wading a high quality river, fishing for smallmouth bass when this snake with something in it's mouth came swimming towards me, like dog retrieving a duck. Seriously, it was hilarious. I have a video somewhere. Then it realized I was not a rock or a stump and a convenient place to consume it's dinner- a "molly" or "madtom" as they are called.
I just took this with my phone.
Northern Watersnake with Madtom by Mark Kasick, on Flickr
I just took this with my phone.
Northern Watersnake with Madtom by Mark Kasick, on FlickrJun 8, 2018 20:35:08 #
I live in rural Texas and we have the same problem here. We pretty much all have ponds on our property and all my friends tell me about the cotton mouths they have. I have 3 ponds and in 15 years, thankfully, I have never seen a real cotton mouth. Yellow bellied water snakes, yes, all the time but they too are harmless, except for the very foul smell they emit if you disturb them..
Jun 8, 2018 20:52:30 #
KankRat
Loc: SW Chicago Suburbs
will47 wrote:
I'd raise hell to if I was trying to catch some Z's and some crazy fool tried to pick me up. The true imbeciles are those that attempt to get a selfie with a rattlesnake. That happens far more often than people realize.
You bet. A bite from a venomous snake, you are screwed. Physically and financially. It's an expensive deal and the bite can really, really mess you up.
Jun 8, 2018 21:01:04 #
KankRat
Loc: SW Chicago Suburbs
Okay this one is keeewl....
This is a Queensnake. Another watersnake. These snakes feed almost exclusively on freshly molted crawdads (as I understand it). So a crawdad, aka crayfish, aka yabby, aka mudbug sheds it's skin every now and again and for a short period of time its pretty much defenseless. "Softshells" are prized bait for fishing.
Queensnake Eating a Molted Crayfis by Mark Kasick, on Flickr
This is a Queensnake. Another watersnake. These snakes feed almost exclusively on freshly molted crawdads (as I understand it). So a crawdad, aka crayfish, aka yabby, aka mudbug sheds it's skin every now and again and for a short period of time its pretty much defenseless. "Softshells" are prized bait for fishing.
Queensnake Eating a Molted Crayfis by Mark Kasick, on FlickrJun 9, 2018 07:17:59 #
Great photograph, and I can see why one could mistake it for a cottonmouth! The round eye pupils give it away that it's not poisonous. All snakes can and will bite though if threatened!
Jun 9, 2018 07:30:53 #
Excellent photograph....with the exception of the Coral Snake, its all about the 'shape of the head' in North America. A lot of folks think all water snakes are cottonmouths. When you see a Cottonmouth, its hard to mistake it as non-poisonous. We have black racers in our yard that thankfully keeps the lizard and frog populations in check...
Jun 9, 2018 07:33:48 #
In northern Illinois, be aware of a small rattlesnake called Massasagua. It is not agressive but wil bite if stepped on or cornered.
Jun 9, 2018 08:26:48 #
Jun 9, 2018 09:07:35 #
The Massuasauga is extremel rare and endangered, I have been fortunate to see three in my lifetime. A tweleve guage is not the answer, when this earth cannot support animals, guess what it will not support humans! As with all wild animals, give them space and use common sense, remember, God loved them before mankind! He made them First!
Jun 9, 2018 09:07:48 #
The Massuasauga is extremel rare and endangered, I have been fortunate to see three in my lifetime. A 12 guage is not the answer, when this earth cannot support animals, guess what it will not support humans! As with all wild animals, give them space and use common sense, remember, God loved them before mankind! He made them First!
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