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Cottonmouths are found throughout Florida and in every county. They also occur on many nearshore islands including the Upper Florida Keys and several islands in the Gulf of Mexico in Levy (e.g., Cedar Keys) and Franklin (e.g., Dog, St. George, and St. Vincent islands) counties.
The Florida cottonmouth (Agkistrodon conanti) is a species of venomous snake, a pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to the United States, where it occurs in southern Georgia and the Florida peninsula in nearly every type of wetlands in the region, including brackish water and offshore islands.
The cottonmouth, or water moccasin, is a dark-colored, heavy-bodied snake that can grow to an average of 2-4 feet in length. Juvenile cottonmouths are a brown or tan color with darker, reddish brown crossbands containing many speckles down the back.
Size: Usually 2.5–3 ft. (max. ~6 ft.) Identification: Young Cottonmouths are marked with broad, splotched bands that fade with age, and have tails tipped with mustard yellow. Juveniles may be misidentified as Copperheads, which are only found in Florida in a small area of the panhandle.
The Florida cottonmouth is a moderately large, thick-bodied pit viper endemic to the United States. The nocturnal snake is an excellent swimmer and feeds mainly on aquatic species. It has heat-sensing pits between the eye and nostril to detect prey and predators at night.
Learn to identify and safely coexist with the venomous Florida cottonmouth, a wetland pit viper found throughout central Florida's abundant aquatic habitats. This guide covers appearance, behavior, habitat, diet, health risks, and prevention tips for the defensive snake.
There are a few ways you can tell a nonvenomous water snake from a venomous cottonmouth, according to the University of Florida. Water snakes are skinnier and lighter than cottonmouths.