Educational Resources. Be Nature-Safe. Texas Natural Regions. Watching Wildlife. Get Outside. Hunter Education.
Project WILD. Water Education. Pollinator BioBlitz. Pit Vipers Pit vipers are venomous snakes that have an opening on each side of the head between the eye and the nostril. Copperhead snake Copperheads Agkistrodon contortrix Copperheads have chestnut or reddish-brown crossbands on a lighter colored body. Cottonmouth Snake Cottonmouths Agkistrodon piscivorous The Latin name piscivorous means 'fish eating,' indicating its dietary characteristics.
Rattlesnakes There are two groups of rattlesnakes: the more primitive forms belong to the genus Sistrurus. Texas has two: Massasauga Snake Western massasauga Sistrurus catenatus tergeminus , light gray, with brown oval blotches along the middle of the back and smaller blotches along each side. They are two feet in length and found through the middle of the state in grasslands, marshy and swampy areas. Desert massasauga S.
Western Diamondback Snake The more advanced forms of rattlesnakes belong to the genus Crotalus and Texas is home to six: Western diamondback Crotalus atrox , Brown, diamond-shaped markings along the middle of the back and alternating black and white rings on the tail. Average length is about three feet and its found in the grassy plains of the western third of the state North American Cobras Coral Snakes Coral Snake Micrurus fulvius tener The brightly colored Texas coral snake is the state's only member of the Elapidae family, which includes the cobras of Asia and Africa.
Precautions and Responses How to Avoid Learn to recognize the snake species that are likely to be in the area. Keep the lawn around your home trimmed low. Remove any brush, wood, rock or debris piles from around the residence - they make great hiding places for snakes and their prey - rodents. Always wear shoes while outside and never put your hands where you cannot see them. Be careful when stepping over fallen logs and rock outcroppings.
Take care along creek banks and underbrush. Scientific Name: Micrurus fulvius. Type: Reptiles. Diet: Carnivore. Group Name: Bed, knot. Size: 20 to 30 inches. Size relative to a 6-ft man:. Least concern. Least Concern Extinct. Current Population Trend: Stable. Share Tweet Email. Go Further. Animals Wild Cities This wild African cat has adapted to life in a big city. Animals This frog mysteriously re-evolved a full set of teeth.
Animals Wild Cities Wild parakeets have taken a liking to London. Animals Wild Cities Morocco has 3 million stray dogs. Meet the people trying to help. Coral snakes are slender and small, typically between 18 and 20 inches long 45 to 50 centimeters , with some species reaching 3 feet 1 meter. They use this characteristic to fool attackers by burying their heads in their coiled bodies and raising their tails — which look quite similar to their heads.
When provoked, coral snakes will sometimes make a popping sound by expelling air from their cloaca, a single opening for the urinary, reproductive and intestinal tract, to startle the threat. According to researcher Joseph F. Gemano Jr. Scientists disagree about the behavior's purpose. Some have speculated that it is a mating call, but Gemano said that in his research, the fart was always associated with an aggressive-defensive behavior.
The most distinctive physical characteristics of coral snakes are their brightly colored and patterned bodies, short, fixed fangs and potent venom, according to Viernum. While only some species have elements of coral coloring, all species have eye-catching patterns and colors: red bands flanked by yellow bands. Because of the coral snake's dangerous reputation, many nonpoisonous snakes disguise themselves as coral snakes by having similar body patterns.
For example, Viernum said, the nonvenomous shovel-nosed snakehas yellow bands that touch black bands. The best way to identify a coral snake is by its head, which is blunt and black to behind the eyes, and its bands that completely circle the body instead of breaking at the belly.
Coral snakes are in the Elapidae family, as are cobras, sea snakes and black mambas. There are about 70 species of New World coral snakes and about 15 species of Old World coral snakes. Species : The following are descriptions of the most typical or impressive coral snakes:.
According to the Florida Museum of Natural History , its body is entirely covered in bright bands of black, red and yellow. Narrow bright yellow rings separate wider red and black rings.
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