Cottonmouth Snake – Pygmy Rattlesnake

I ran across these two snake species on my (last) bugging expedition to Florida. I was lucky to see the cottonmouth before I stepped into the thicket where it lay – I did not know what it was and was horrified later when a local told me what it was.

Pygmy Rattlesnake; these diminutive snakes (8-12″ long) are all over the place near Cedar Key, Florida. Again, I did not know what they were. Come to find out these little guys have all the venom of a full-grown timber rattler – and they bite more people in Florida than any other snake. It did not take long for me to decide I had no business hunting bugs in the Sunshine state!

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