Water Moccasin Information
The water moccasin or cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus) is a large, venomous aquatic snake native to the United States. These snakes belong to the pit viper family, the same family of snakes that includes rattlesnakes and copperheads; their venom is destructive to tissue and can be potentially fatal in some cases.
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Identification
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Water moccasins are large, heavy-bodied snakes. They can weigh up to nearly 60 oz., and average lengths of about 30 inches. Water moccasins can vary in color, from brown or olive to nearly black. Juvenile water moccasins have a yellow or light green tail. These snakes have crossbands across their backs that are generally darker than their base color, though in some individuals these bands are indistinct, giving the appearance of a solid colored snake. The inside of the mouth is lined with white.
Geography and Habitat
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Water moccasins inhabit a geographic range in the United States that stretches from Virginia to western Missouri, south to Texas and the Florida Keys. These snakes are semi-aquatic and prefer swamps, freshwater streams, sloughs, lakes and ditches. Water moccasins also reside on land in moist, low-lying forests near streams or other bodies of water.
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Diet
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The diet of the water moccasin varies, but generally consists of fish and small mammals. In addition to fish, water moccasins will consume frogs, eggs, other snakes, birds and even carrion, according to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. Water moccasins kill their food by biting and injecting a potent venom from their fangs into the prey.
Behavior
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Water moccasins are solitary and nocturnal, and they tend not to stray far from a water source. When cornered on land without an adjacent body of water to flee to, water moccasins can become aggressive. Before striking, water moccasins will coil into a circle and vibrate its tail quickly. If this warning goes unheeded, water moccasins will open their mouths to display the white lining. Water moccasins will bite readily to defend themselves, and will typically release a foul-smelling musk from their cloaca as well.
Misconceptions
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As with many species of venomous snakes, myths have sprung up about the water moccasin. Tom R. Johnson, author of "The Amphibians and Reptiles of Missouri" dispels the popular notion that water moccasins cannot bite while under water; in fact, because their diet is in part made up of fish, water moccasins are able to bite and inject venom while under water. Not all dark snakes found near or in a body of water are water moccasins. Nonvenomous water snakes are often confused with the venomous water moccasin and needlessly killed.
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References
- Photo Credit water moccasin image by Earl Robbins from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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when I was a kid, I got bit on my foot by a snake that left 2 puncture holes in my foot I did see the snake but have no idea what kind it was, I live in va, i can still see the 2 scars where the fangs went into my foot, was it possible I got bit by a venomous snake and didn't get any poison into my body?
