Nowww...... what do we have here? Looks to be a headless, deceased Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon) found in Hueston Woods Metropark on 4/8/2010 just after 2:10 pm under an overcast sky. I don't think the weather did much to influence this poor snake in one way or the other. This snake was found on a small rock island in a fast paced stream just off of Main Loop road. It was a little over 1.5 feet long and was brilliantly patterned. These snakes can grow to be almost 3.5 feet long, depending on the sex of the animal (females are larger) and they are found throughout all the the Northeastern United States down all the way to the northern tip of Georgia. These snakes can be found in all kinds of habitats including slow moving streams, swamps, swift rivers, and wetlands. This particular specimen seems to have been killed, possibly by a human, not too long before we have arrived. There didn't appear to be a large amount of decay near the open area on the neck and the color of the animal was still relatively vibrant. I sure hope this snake died of natural causes.
(Posted by Nick Webber)
No comments:
Post a Comment