Snake ID Test.

1eyefishing

...just joking, seriously.
Yes. I see the bright bands and think water snake. The dull gray one on the bottom is my idea of a cottonmouth.
Learn something new everyday!
Do they swim with their heads up?
 

Nicodemus

The Recluse
Staff member
Yes. I see the bright bands and think water snake. The dull gray one on the bottom is my idea of a cottonmouth.
Learn something new everyday!
Do they swim with their heads up?


Most every one I`ve ever seen does. The body of a cottonmouth floats high in the water. So does a rattlesnake in the water.
 

1eyefishing

...just joking, seriously.
I've seen a rattlesnake on the water. Unmistakable and surprisingly ON TOP of the water. Not even a little bit under.
 

1eyefishing

...just joking, seriously.
I think the speed of its flagellations kept it from breaking the surface of the water.
 

Nicodemus

The Recluse
Staff member
I've seen a rattlesnake on the water. Unmistakable and surprisingly ON TOP of the water. Not even a little bit under.



During the 94 flood, I waded out to catch a big canebrake that you could see from over 100 yards away. It didn`t even try to get away, just went into a coil on top of the water and commenced to shaking those rattles. Being wet they didn`t make a sound. I learned something that day. :)
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
Good lesson...
I thought I had never seen a water moccasin that wasn't dull gray, dull black, or black.
Makes me wonder about all those water snakes that I weren't scared of. Seen a few that were aggressive enough to chase my fishing lures back towards the boat...:hair:

Yes. I see the bright bands and think water snake. The dull gray one on the bottom is my idea of a cottonmouth.
Learn something new everyday!
Do they swim with their heads up?

Cottonmouths are variable in color. What few I've seen in the wild (they don't live up here,) have varied from vividly patterned, almost like a copperhead, to almost no bands at all. Usually the older they get, they duller colored they get. They are closely related to copperheads, and their bands usually have that same general hourglass shape as the ones on a copperhead. Real young ones have a chartreuse tail tip like a young copperhead.
 

redneck_billcollector

Purveyor Of Fine Spirits
I was going to ask how you got them so close together and I see I was beat to it....I wonder how he got the moccasin to keep its mouth closed.....I seldom see them in the same area, either lots of water snakes or lots of cottonmouths. Of course the water snake tends to be more aggressive, at least that is my experience with them.
 
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