Posted by theresa Mandeville on May 11, 2008

Q: we found a snake in our yard underneath leaves and dirt, we live next to a stream and we have seen the snake swimming in it. He is at least 24" long, brown maybe 3-4" circumference he may have some faint black spots but the snakes head is black and arrow shaped, I have a good pic of it.

Habitat: suburban/yard

State: New Jersey

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: Thanks for your photos, very helpful. From what I can tell, I believe your animal is a Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon). Although the young and many individuals do have bands along their body, your snake looked very homogeneous in color/pattern - older water snakes lose much of their banding. Your animal did look quite light in color (adult water snakes are often quite dark) which makes me think it was preparing to shed its skin. Check online to see if you can find a match to your animal. Northern Water Snakes are quite common, definitely non-poisonous, but do vary in their appearance which can throw people off on making an ID. This species is very active in water and feeds to a great extent on fish. Hope this helps.

John Wiessinger ( May 11, 2008)

A: The more I think about the photos you shared, the more I keep coming back to the Yellow-bellied Water Snake (Nerodia erythrogaster). Unfortunately, this species is not supposed to be found in NJ. This species is found in Deleware though - close by. So...did want to alert you to this species too. If it was this species, it should have a red, yellow, or orangish belly. So you now have two different species to think about.

John Wiessinger ( May 11, 2008)