Snake ID please

FeliciaSmith

9 years ago

Live in coastal South Carolina. Found this snake in my house. Can anyone ID it for me please?

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fhfchrish

4 years ago

last modified: 4 years ago

Kaylyn,

So much of what you posted here is completely false.

If this snake were to bite you it would probably not even break the skin. Even if it did this snake is completely harmless (i.e. produces no venom) so you wouldn't get sick even if you let it chew on you. I have kept and bred cornsnakes and have been bitten by dozens of them.
Catching a kingsnake and letting it loose under your house or in your yard won't do anything to protect you from other snakes. If there were food and appropriate conditions for a kingsnake in your yard, one would already live there. If you released on there, it would just leave.
Saying the only snakes you shouldn't kill are kingsnakes and greensnakes further reinforces the fact that you really know very little about snakes. There are dozens of completely harmless species of snakes in most areas of the country.
Kingsnakes are not normally black with white rings. They are only black with white rings in one small part of their range (i.e. the west coast of the US).
People don't get mad when you kill snakes because they are scared of them. In fact, just the opposite is true. People kill snakes because they are scared of them. Some people get mad when you kill snakes because killing snakes out of fear and ignorance like this serves no purpose. It doesn't make anyone safer. In fact, trying to kill snakes significantly increases your chances of a bite. People are bitten and hospitalized every year in this country by snakes they were trying to kill. If they had just left them alone, the people would have been unharmed.
Lastly, many people come here to learn about snakes so that they won't be afraid and won't need to kill them out of ignorance. When someone posts a question here, they come for information, not old wive's tales.

If you are so pathologically afraid of snakes that you need to kill them, I understand. With a bit of education about the realities of snakes, you can dissipate that fear.

But spreading fear and misinformation here doesn't contribute to the larger cause.

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Comments (8)

fhfchrish
9 years ago
That is (was) a harmless Cornsnake (Pantherophis guttatus). Harmless species that eats mice and rats.

The Cornsnakes from coastal South Carolina are famous for being among the most beautiful North American snakes and are very popular in the pet trade as "Okeetee Corns".

This post was edited by FHFchrish on Fri, Apr 12, 13 at 12:49
danetherton
9 years ago
Why do you post pictures of dead snakes to a forum where people like them? Sort of like posting pictures of a battered kittens to a cat lover site. It is a dead snake. The next one you see will likely be killed, and become a dead snake too. Why bother asking?
I will apologize if I find out that you do not plan on killing any more snakes. Otherwise, see above.
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Definitely not a moccasin. The head is all wrong. I might be willing to agree on the black racer, but the young ones I've seen about this size (basing size on the rubble and debris) usually have more grey and more defined blotches in the pattern. Still, it could very well be one that has started darkening early... Yeah, I'll go with Juvie Racer that needs to lay off of the tanning booth. It's the only thing that really comes to mind looking at him.
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Well, now you all have me completely confused but yet totally facinated about snakes. I have read all 22 pages of postings on this forum and it seems that Rat Snakes are by far the most common backyard snakes (and maybe garter snakes which I was already familiar with). So how do you tell the difference between a Black Rat and a Gray Rat and why do you think this is a Black Rat and not an Intergrade Black/Gray. I also saw another snake the other day, about 4 feet long and just solid black, so I am assuming Black Rat Snake (no camera handy). So, although I'm interested in learning more, I don't think I am ready to try to catch one. I know that they have their proper place in our eco-system and I am happy to leave them be outside as long as they aren't dangerous to me or my little dog (my fish and frogs in my fishpond, however, may not be as lucky?) This looks like a very interesting hobby. We also had a snake a couple of years ago that everytime we saw him he would dive into the fishpond. I haven't seen him lately. So, if I see a snake in the yard, like the Rat Snake, is it more likely he lives here or more likely he's just passing through?
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Probably an Eastern Garter Snake ... their color varies wildly, but the black head and stripes along the body with sort of "checkerboard" patterns between the stripes is one variant. They are not venomous, but they will bite and also release a VERY SMELLY fluid if you handle them. http://www.paherps.com/herps/snakes/garter_snake/
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Call.me-Ino8
9 years ago
Corn snakes are very popular starter snakes and common pets for kids. They're commonly reffered to as "Corn Snakes" although they also go by "Red Rat Snake" A variation of Rat snake. Adults are 4-6 feet and extremely benificial to the ecosystem with their consumption of rats and small mammals. Although commonly confused with Copperheads, the differences are numerous and easy to detect with experiance. These are really docile snakes and a joy to work with. Next time try to leave it alive.

~Ino***
Sharon McKenzie
9 years ago
I don't get this whole mentality of killing a snake and THEN trying to find out what kind it is, like it even matters anymore at that point. It's like shooting a dog and then posting pics of the carcass asking people to ID the breed, seriously. It's not difficult to learn to distinguish venomous from non-venomous snakes if you are in the US. PLEASE educate yourself ,people, on how to do this, so avoid senseless things like this. Most of the people who are on a reptile forum LIKE reptiles, so seeing display of ignorance is really quite disturbing. It's sad that people still insist on acting like it's still the Dark Ages when it comes to reptiles, and snakes in particular. I'm sure that if you own dogs or cats you do not want to go on a dog forum and see picture after picture of dogs that have been bludgeoned, chopped up, shot, etc., for no other reason than they had the misfortune of encountering someone who hated/feared dogs, with those people wanting to THEN know what kind of dog it was! Snakes are animals, just like cats and dogs and bunny rabbits. They feel pain and fear, just like mammals do. The risk to humans from snakes in the US is minimal, far less than the risk to you from animals you probably think of as "cute" or "harmless". There really is no sense in this, in the 21st Century, in a so-called civilized society.
Kaylyn Soles
4 years ago
Corn snake very common in sc and nc
Kaylyn Soles
4 years ago
And kill him if u want. I'll kill it. Bc if it bites u u will get very sick. Kill all snakes but green snake and king snakes. If u see a king snake catch him. Let him lose in ur yard or under ur house. U will not have another snake in ur yard bc it eats all other snakes. Poison or not. And king snakes are normally is black with white rings from head to tail. People get mad if they want to bc u killed a snake but only good snake is a Dead snake tell u the true. The reason people get mad is bc they scared of it. Damn right imma kill that snake soon as I can get to it to kill it. To who ever don't like it well kiss my ass bc I'm goin to wtf u gonna do call the police it's not illegal to kill a snake.
Kaylyn Soles
4 years ago
And post better pics of the head

Snake ID please

fhfchrish

Comments (8)

fhfchrish

danetherton

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