The Northern Water Snake is a large species on non-venomous Water Snake that is native to parts of North America.
These snakes are often referred to as the Common Water Snake and share much of their range with the venomous Cottonmouth.
Due to similarities in appearance with the Cottonmouth, the Northern Water Snake is unfortunately sometimes filled out of fear.
Other names you might hear associated with this snake include the Black Water Snake, the Brown Water Snake and the Common Northern Water Snake.
Northern Water Snake Taxonomy
In the Animal Kingdom, Taxonomy is used as the science and practice of classifying different species and sub-species based on their biological and genetic makeup.
Family
The Northern Water Snake belongs to the Colubridae or Colubrid family of snakes. This is the largest family of Snakes in the world consisting of many popular species such as Pine Snakes and Milk Snakes.
With around 250 different genera of Colubrids, these snakes can be found on every continent except Antarctica which also makes them the most widely distributed family of snake in the world.
The vast majority of Colubrid snakes are non-venomous, or at least contain a venom that isn’t considered to be medically significant to humans.
However, there are a number of species of Colubrid snakes that contain venom capable of killing humans. This includes species from the Boiga and Rhabdophis genera as well as other snakes such as the Boomslang.
Genus
The genus that the Northern Water Snake belongs to is called Nerodia. This genus contains nine species of Water Snakes that are all native to North America.
Some of the other species in this genus include the Green Water Snake, the Plainbelly Water Snake and the Banded Water Snake.
Species
The scientific name for this species is Nerodia sipedon and there are currently four recognised sub-species.
The sub-species are the Lake Erie Water Snake, the Midland Water Snake, the Carolina Water Snake and the nominate sub-species is simply known as the Northern Watersnake.
The species was first described in 1758 by a Swedish taxonomist named Carl Linnaeus.
Linnaeus is credited for formalising binomial nomenclature which is the modern system of naming organisms. He has described a large number of reptiles including the Yellow Footed Tortoise, the Common Slow Worm, the Green Ameiva, the Eastern Copperhead, the Mediterranean House Gecko and the Banded Water Snake.He also described the Ringneck Snake, the Blunthead Three Snake, the Rainbow Lizard, the Greek Tortoise, the Surinam Horned Frog, the Desert Horned Viper and the Nile Monitor.
Northern Water Snake Description
The Northern Water Snake is large species of snake that can typically grow to 4-5 feet in length with females typically growing larger than males.
They are a dark-colored snake that is usually brown, tan or greyish.
They typically have square shaped blotches along their back and sides. These can sometimes merger to create a banded pattern.
As the snake ages, they can lose much of this patterning and darken in color. It is not uncommon to find adults that look almost completely brown or even black in color.
They typically have a white, yellowish, or orangish colored belly with dark half-moon-shaped black edges.
Natural Habitat and Distribution
The Northern Water Snake is native to parts of the United States. They can also be found in a small part of Southern Canada.
In the United States, these snakes can be found from Maine to as far South as Georgia and Louisiana.
In the Northern parts of their range, they can be found as far West as Minnesota while further South, their range extends into the Central United States as far as places such as Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska.
These snakes can be found in a variety of different aquatic habitats such as rivers, streams, lakes and ponds.
They can also be found in and around other sources of water such as bogs, marshes and swamps.
They are mainly found around slow-moving water where there are open areas that they can utilise to bask in the sun.
These snakes will spend the majority of their time in water and when they do venture onto land, they never stray too far from their comfort zone.
Northern Water Snake Behaviour
The behaviour of a Northern Water Snake varies throughout the year. In the warmer months, these snakes are solitary animals.
However, during the cooler months they are often found in groups coiled together in “basking sites”.
These snakes are mostly active during the day and can often be seen on walkways close to water or on overhanging branches sunning themselves.
They can become very defensive if they feel threatened but they are non-venomous and harmless to humans.