Some friends of mine had this guy find its way into their house last night. Unfortunately, this is the best picture I have. Any ideas what it is?

4/4/2012 1:48:13 PM

4/4/2012 1:51:22 PM

northern water snake

4/4/2012 1:52:49 PM

forgot to mention. this was in fayetteville in a home away from any lakes/rivers/streams.

Don't know much about snakes, but it doesn't seem likely its a northern water snake. Thanks for the idea, though.

4/4/2012 1:55:54 PM

any water nearby at all? lowland area with possibility of swampy places?

poke it with a stick and see if it's a cottonmouth

[Edited on April 4, 2012 at 2:02 PM. Reason : ask umop-apisdn]

4/4/2012 2:01:35 PM

Maybe the snake is lost?

Paging upside down

4/4/2012 2:02:28 PM

Northern water snake or a water moccasin (aka cottonmouth). I'd guess water snake due to the size and shape of the head, but I certainly wouldn't rule out moccasin by that picture alone. They should be able to tell by the snakes aggression level and actions whether it was a Moccasin though. Did it flash it's "cottonmouth" at them?

"Northern" is a misnomer. It's one of the more popular snakes in this region. Any other reason you wouldn't expect it to be a northern?

[Edited on April 4, 2012 at 2:05 PM. Reason : s]

4/4/2012 2:03:14 PM

yeah, moccasins are pissy little bastards

4/4/2012 2:05:32 PM

Kill it with fire.

4/4/2012 2:44:34 PM

well, i was just going off the wikipedia article that shows it living in/near water up north. I'll have to ask them if it was aggressive. Thanks for the help!

4/4/2012 4:05:02 PM

More than likely a brown water snake, but it could be a cottonmouth.

4/4/2012 4:07:23 PM

WHAT SNAKE IS THIS???
Picks it up and puts it on kitchen table.

4/4/2012 6:15:40 PM

black mamba

4/4/2012 6:19:05 PM

it is clearly not impressed with your candles

[Edited on April 4, 2012 at 6:35 PM. Reason : and with the mild/wet winter we had, expect to see plenty more]

4/4/2012 6:31:26 PM

^^^ i LOL'd at the same thing

4/4/2012 7:33:36 PM

Time to get a mongoose?

4/4/2012 8:20:34 PM

looks like an anaconda to me

4/4/2012 8:37:38 PM

wowwwwww on the rikki tikki tavi reference

4/4/2012 9:01:24 PM

I don't know but its probably tasty if you kill it skin it and roast it over a fire.

4/4/2012 9:50:41 PM

There's no way you get that snake on the table for a picture if it's a cottonmouth, plus the body size looks atypical for a viper.

I'm going with a male water snake. Assuming it's not venomous, pick the thing up and it should readily musk/shit on you. If it smells extra foul with fishy undertones, even more proof it's a water snake.

4/5/2012 12:23:12 AM