Types of Snakes & Identification

Most snakes prefer to stay away from people, and only a few U.S. species are venomous. Here are some of the more common snakes you might find on your property:

Common garter snake

(Thamnophis sirtalis)

Appearance

Size: Roughly 46-137 cm long.
Color: Varied - can be olive, black, grey or brown, often with 3 light-colored stripes on back
Head: wider than neck
Body: Females are typically larger than males, but males typically have longer tails

Lifecycle

Garter snakes will begin to reproduce as soon as they emerge from hibernation.
Most female snakes give birth between August and October.
The gestation period is roughly 2-3 months.
In the wild, the average garter snakes live for 2 years.

Habits

Diet: Small rodents, amphibians, snakes, insects and spiders
Habitat: Deciduous forests, forest edges, fields, swamps, streams, rivers, pond edges, overgrown lawns and grassy areas
Visibility: Primarily active during daylight and can survive in many different temperatures

Copperhead snake

(Agkistrodon contortrix)

Appearance

Size: 24-36 inches long
Color: Chestnut with dark brown/greenish bands.
Head: Copper-colored
Body: Thick and heavy

Lifecycle

Breed from spring to fall, but not every year
Give birth from late summer to early fall
Typically produce 4-7 snakes, but can be anything from 1 to 20
Hibernates from mid fall to early spring

Habits

Diet: Small rodents, birds, lizards, snakes, amphibians, and insects.
Habitat: Rocky areas with thick underbrush, vines, vegetation and/or debris, even in heavily populated regions. They often go unnoticed when lying on dead leaves or red clay. In suburban areas, Copperheads hide in stone walls, compost piles, and under decaying stumps, abandoned building debris and flat stones.
Visibility: Can be seen during the day, but in the heat of summer, they’ll stay hidden during the day and only come out at night.

Cottonmouths or Water Moccasins

(Agkistrodon piscivorus)

Appearance

Size: Roughly 2 ft. 8" long
Color: The back is dark olive or black, and the belly is paler
Head: Triangular head with slit-shaped pupils, fangs, and a white lining in its mouth, hence the name “Cottonmouth”
Body: Has crossbands with a distinct border extending all the way around and across the stomach

Lifecycle

Breed in spring and fall
The gestation period can be 3-4 months
Produce a litter of up to 12 young
Hibernate during winter along hillsides and above streams

Habits

Diet: Fish, frogs, lizards, birds, small mammals, and other snakes
Habitat: Semi-aquatic, spending most of their time close to permanent water sources
Visibility: Primarily active at night, but they bask in the sun during the day, often on branches overhanging the water.

Eastern diamondback rattlesnake

(Crotalus adamanteus)

Appearance

Size: Average is 91-183 cm, but it has been reported as large as 244cm, the largest rattlesnake and the heaviest venomous snake in the Americas
Color: Brown/yellow color with dark brown/black diamonds outlined by yellowish scales
Head: has a dark stripe that runs diagonally through the eye
Tail: brownish or grey color and ends in a rattle

Lifecycle

They mate in late summer and fall.
Females usually give birth to an average of 12 young in their shelters.
Young are born approximately 30-36 cm long with markings similar to adults except they have a button at the end of the tail in place of the rattle.
The young only stay with the mother for a couple of days before they go off to hunt for themselves and find their own shelter, so their mortality rate is fairly high.
They can live for over 20 years.

Habits

Diet: They feed on small mammals including mice, birds and rabbits.
Habitat: They favor dry pine forests, sand pine scrub areas and coastal barrier islands as well as wet prairies during dry periods and often inhabit gopher tortoise burrows as their shelters. They are strong swimmers and have been seen crossing water between islands and the mainland.
Visibility: Rattlesnakes usually hide during the day and emerge in the evening or at twilight to hunt for prey.

Rattlesnakes

(Crotalus and Sistrurus - More than 50 different species)

Appearance

Size: Can be as long as 8 feet
Color: Different species of rattlesnake vary significantly in size and markings.
Body: Two enlarged venom fangs fixed to the front of the mouth with solid teeth in both jaws
Tail: Common feature is the ‘rattle’ on the end of their tails

Lifecycle

Rattlesnakes give live birth rather than lay eggs.
Young rattlesnakes are independent and self-sufficient from birth.
Most rattlesnakes mate in the spring.
Newborn rattlesnakes do not have working rattles. It is only after their first skin shedding that their rattles function.
Rattlesnakes shed their skin several times a year and each time they shed a new segment is added to their ‘rattle.’

Habits

Diet: Consists largely of small animals such as rabbits, rats, mice, etc.
Hunting: They kill their prey by injecting them with venom rather than constricting them and can strike without pulling themselves into the ‘S’ shape that most snakes do. They also attack as far as two-thirds of their length away from them. Generally, they only attack humans if cornered or provoked.
Habitat: Typically live in dry savannah and will generally move away from humans they encounter – but not always! Generally, they only attack if cornered or provoked. They are often found in and under boulders and logs as well as sunning themselves in the middle of trails.

Types of snakes & identification

Common garter snake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Copperhead snake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Cottonmouths or Water Moccasins

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Eastern diamondback rattlesnake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Rattlesnakes

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Get in touch

Vegetation management

Types of snakes & identification

Common garter snake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Copperhead snake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Cottonmouths or Water Moccasins

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Eastern diamondback rattlesnake

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

Rattlesnakes

Appearance

Lifecycle

Habits

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Get in touch

Vegetation management