Diamondback water snake
Not venomous · Nerodia rhombifer
HarmlessNot dangerous to people
Not venomous, but bites readily if handled.
- Lives in
- 12 states
- Size
- 30–48 in
- Open US records
- 10,134
- Group
- Snake
How to identify it
- Dark chain-like net pattern on a brown body
- Round pupils, no heat pit
- Heavy body
Size: 30–48 in (total length). Habitat: Rivers, ponds and swamps of the Mississippi valley and Gulf states.
Where it lives
- Lives here
- Rare records
- Gone
- Not here
When it is out
Look-alikes
- Cottonmouth vs Diamondback Water Snake Cottonmouth: dangerous
State by state
| State | Status | Open records | Counties |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | Lives here | 3,296 | 24 |
| Texas | Lives here | 2,922 | 173 |
| Louisiana | Lives here | 1,644 | 49 |
| Oklahoma | Lives here | 586 | 56 |
| Illinois | Lives here | 374 | 11 |
| Missouri | Lives here | 305 | 14 |
| Kansas | Lives here | 281 | 35 |
| Mississippi | Lives here | 263 | 30 |
| Alabama | Lives here | 172 | 21 |
| Tennessee | Lives here | 137 | 9 |
| Kentucky | Lives here | 87 | 2 |
| Indiana | Lives here | 30 | 5 |
| Iowa | Rare records | 24 | 0 |
| Michigan | Rare records | 3 | 2 |
| California | Rare records | 2 | 1 |
| Arizona | Rare records | 1 | 1 |
| Colorado | Rare records | 1 | 0 |
| Georgia | Rare records | 1 | 0 |
| Nebraska | Rare records | 1 | 1 |
| New York | Rare records | 1 | 1 |
| North Carolina | Rare records | 1 | 0 |
| South Carolina | Rare records | 1 | 1 |
| Utah | Rare records | 1 | 0 |
States not listed have no open records and are outside the range.
Questions
Where does the diamondback water snake live?
In 12 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. Rare records also come from Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa and Michigan and other states.
Is the diamondback water snake dangerous?
Harmless. Not venomous, but bites readily if handled.
How do you identify a diamondback water snake?
Dark chain-like net pattern on a brown body. Round pupils, no heat pit. Heavy body.
When is the diamondback water snake most active?
Most open US records fall in May, August to September.