< Back | Name: | Cottonmouth Snake | | Family: | Venomous Snakes | | Scientific Name:
| Agkistrodon piscivorus | | Description: | Pit viper, keeled scales. Heavy-bodied, dark olive-brown to black. Indistinct dark crossbands, except when animal is wet. White upper lip, black stripe from snout onto neck. Belly mottled with black-, brown- and cream-colored blotches. Young are brightly banded like copperhead, turning darker with age; tail tip yellow or greenish yellow. Adults average 24-36 inches in length. | | Range: | Statewide; uncommon in upland streams of Ozark Highlands and Ouachita mountains. | | Habits and Habitat: | Occurs in variety of wetland habitats: swamps, oxbow lakes, sloughs, drainage ditches and streams. Active April-November; active at night in hot weather. Two to 15 young born August-September. Eats fish, amphibians, lizards, snakes, birds and rodents. Opens mouth – exposing white lining – when threatened. |
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Click Photo to Enlarge Suzanne Collins |
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