A copperhead from the western edge of their range in Texas.
Copperheads in Texas
Tag: Texas
Northern Cat Eyed Snake in Texas
Northern Cat-eyed Snake from late last year. This animal is found in thornscrub and tropical forest habitat throughout much of Central America, and just barely makes it into the United States, in south Texas.
Speckled Racer in the United States
A Speckled Racer (Drymobius margaritiferus) from a visit to South Texas last year. This species is found throughout Central America and just a bit into South America, ranging north to just barely enter the United States.
Texas Indigo Snake at Sunset
A pretty young Texas Indigo Snake we found on a visit to friends in South Texas last year.
Cat-eyed Snakes of Texas
A common sight around waterways south of the US are the cat-eyed snakes; mildly venomous, cat-eyed snakes (Leptodeira sp.). However, they do make it into the country in one small area of extreme south Texas. We found this Northern Cat-eyed Snake (Leptodeira septentrionalis) there several years ago. For friends in Arizona, these are most closely related to the nightsnakes (Hypsiglena sp.), both in form and lineage.
Vidal, N., Dewynter, M., & Gower, D. J. (2010). Dissecting the major American snake radiation: A molecular phylogeny of the Dipsadidae Bonaparte (Serpentes, Caenophidia). Comptes Rendus Biologies, 333(1), 48–55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crvi.2009.11.003
Northern Cottonmouth Defensive Behavior
A Northern Cottonmouth from a quick trip to Texas in 2024. In about 6 hours, I lost count of how many there were. These are large, interesting snakes with complex social behavior, which are unfortunately well stuck in the monster that is the American urge to believe in nonsense.
All of them, as did every one of the hundreds of cottonmouths I’ve ever seen, did one of three things:
- – Nothing at all
- – Escaped ASAP
- – Coiled, rattled its tail, and gaped like this
This pretty one was near my vehicle after I wrapped up a walk through the forest, followed by another just seconds later. I’ll be back for sure.
Broad Banded Copperhead
I found this Broad Banded Copperhead in west Texas back in 2014. I got enough caffeine and gas station burritos to last a full night of slow-driving empty roadways, and needed all of it. After not seeing a single-scaled animal the entire night, I finally spotted this beautiful snake crossing the road with the day’s first sun on the horizon.
