Timber Rattlesnake, Canebrake Rattlesnake.

David Auth photo (left) and Kenneth Wray photo (right).

Scientific name: Crotalus horridus

Description: Average adult size is 36-60 inches (76-152 cm), record is 74.5 inches (189 cm). Can be a large, heavy bodied snake. The reddish brown stripe running down the center of the back is disrupted by a series of large, black, chevron-like crossbands on the pinkish gray or tan body. The tail is uniform black. The head is large and sometimes with a dark diagonal line through the eye or just behind the eye. The pupil is vertical (catlike) and there is a facial pit between the nostril and the eye. The tail ends in a rattle.

Juveniles resemble adults, but with a single rounded button at the tip of the tail.

Timber Rattlesnake: Top of the head (notice, except for the scales over the eyes, there are no large scales on the top of the head).

Timber Rattlesnake: Left to right: Side of the head (notice the facial pit between the eye and the nostril); Front (face view) of the head.

Range: This snake has a very limited range in our state, found in only 8 or 9 counties in north Florida. It ranges as far south as Alachua and Dixie Counties and as far west as Hamilton and Suwannee Counties. There are verbal reports that this snake occurs in a few northern counties of the panhandle, but there are no verified records.

Habitat: Timber rattlesnakes in Florida prefer low bottomlands where it is fairly damp, river beds, hammocks pine flatwoods, swamps, and cane thickets.

Comments: This snake was once very common and still is in some parts of its range. Throughout the past it, as well as other rattlesnakes, has been persecuted by in rattlesnake roundups, skin shops, and in senseless killings. The rattlesnakes and other snakes, are one of our best allies in the fight to control rodents. They should be respected, not feared.

This snake should be given a wide berth and left alone. Because of its cryptic coloration (camouflage), it can be easily overlooked, especially if it does not rattle.

Kenneth Krysko photo.

Scientific name: Sistrurus miliarius barbouri

Description: Average adult size is 12-24 inches (30-61 cm), record is 31 inches (79 cm). This is a small snake, but very thick for its size. The top of the triangular shaped head is covered with 9 large scales. The body color is light to dark gray. A longitudinal row of black or charcoal, transverse blotches disrupts a reddish brown stripe running down the middle of the back. Dark spots on the side line up with the blotches. The tail is slender and ends in a miniature rattle (see photo above). The belly is heavily mottled with black and white. The pupil of the eye is vertical (catlike), and there is a deep facial pit between the nostril and the eye.

Juvenile coloration is like that of the adults, but the tip of the tail is yellowish-green.

Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnake: Left to right: Top of the head (notice the large plate-like scales on the top of the head); underside of the head (chin and throat).

Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnake: Left to right: Side of the head (notice the facial pit between the eye and the nostril); front (face view) of the head.

Range: The Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnake is found throughout the state of Florida. The species extends north to eastern North Carolina and west to eastern Texas and southern Missouri.

Habitat: This snake is common in lowland pine flatwoods, prairies, around lakes and ponds, and along the borders of many freshwater marshes and cypress swamps. Possibly the habitat in which Dusky Pygmy Rattlesnakes are most frequently encountered, at least in south Florida, is the banks of canals running through marshes and prairies.

Comments: This small snake has a reputation for being very aggressive. Its bite, while usually not life threatening, is extremely painful and can result in the loss of a digit. Some cases can be fatal. It feeds primarily on frogs and mice.

The rattle is so small it is seldom heard. When it is heard, it sounds like an insect buzzing.

Florida’s two hognose snakes occasionally are confused with the Pygmy Rattlesnake. However, it is easy to distinguish between the harmless hognose snakes and the Pygmy Rattlesnake. The harmless hognose snakes defend themselves against potential predators by spreading (flattening) their heads and necks. If this does not scare the threat away, the hognose snakes will turn onto their backs and play dead. The hognose snakes have upturned noses and round pupils, and they also have no facial pits or rattles.

Eastern Coral Snake, Coral Snake.

Barry Mansell photo.

Scientific name: Micrurus fulvius fulvius

Description: Average adult size is 20-30 inches (51-76 cm), record is 47.5 inches (121 cm). Body ringed with black, yellow, and red; narrow yellow rings separating the wider red and black rings. The rings continue across the belly of the snake. From tip of snout to just behind the eye the head is black. The tail is black and yellow, without any red rings. The red rings usually contain black flecks or spots. The pupil is round.

The color pattern of the young is the same as the adults.

Coral snake: Left to right: Top of the head; underside of the head.

Coral snake: Side of head.

Range: The Coral Snake occurs throughout the entire state including the northern keys. The species extends north to southeastern North Carolina and west to eastern Texas and northeastern Mexico.

Habitat: This snake occupies a variety of habitats, from dry, well-drained flatwoods and scrub areas to low, wet hammocks and the borders of swamps. They are quite secretive and are usually found under debris and in the ground, but occasionally they are found in the open, and have even been seen climbing the trunks of live oaks. Good numbers of them are turned up when pine flatwoods are bulldozed, particularly in south Florida.

Comments: Because they also are ringed with red, black, and yellow or white, two harmless snakes in Florida, the Scarlet Kingsnake and the Scarlet Snake, often are confused with the Coral Snake. Both of these mimics (look-a-likes) can be distinguished from the Coral Snake by their red snouts and red on their tails. In addition, the red bands of the Scarlet Kingsnake and the Scarlet Snake never touch the yellow bands (the red and yellow are separated by the black). Also, on both the Coral Snake and the Scarlet Kingsnake the rings go all the way around the body, but not on the Scarlet Snake which has a white belly. Both the Scarlet Kingsnake and the Scarlet Snake are beneficial and should not be harmed

If you have difficulty separating the harmless mimics from the Coral Snake, the following mnemonic rhymes will identify the Coral Snake for you: ‘If red touches yellow, it can kill a fellow,’ and ‘If its nose is black, it’s bad for jack.’

Because the Coral Snake is a relative of the cobras, people believe its bite nearly always is fatal. While its bite is serious and should receive immediate medical attention, statistics suggest that the bite of the Coral Snake is less threatening than the bite of a Diamondback Rattlesnake.

Coral Snakes feed on lizards, other snakes, and frogs.

 

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