Venomous Snake I.D. – Part 2

These next two snakes are more commonly encountered than the elusive coral snake, which I described in the previous blog regarding identifying venomous snakes. They are the southern copperhead and the western cottonmouth. In the pit viper family, both species can be active during daylight hours and are frequently found near bodies of water. It is for these reasons that they are arguably the most commonly encountered venomous snakes in the southeast United States; virtually any sizable body of fresh water near a wooded area could be potential habitat for these snakes, whether it is a pond, creek, river...