Northern watersnakes are rather large, heavy-bodied watersnakes. Individuals vary in coloration and may be gray, reddish, brown, or black. The front section of the body is usually crossbanded, but on the middle and posterior portions of the body, the crossbands break up into three alternating rows of blotches. Northern watersnakes usually darken with age so some older snakes may be uniformly dark. Those found in the salt marshes of the Outer Banks and nearby mainland are a distinct subspecies called the "Carolina watersnake" and are considerably darker than those from inland localities.
Ten Facts about Northern Water Snake
- The diet of northern watersnakes is varied, but consists primarily of fish and amphibians.
- They inhabit a variety of aquatic environments throughout the northern Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and mountains of North Carolina.
- This snake gives birth to 9-45 boldly marked young in late summer and fall.
- When threatened, they will often flatten their bodies and spread their jaws to make themselves appear larger.
- The Northern Water Snake can grow up to 135 cm (4.4 ft) long.
- Northern Water Snakes mate from April through June.
- They are live-bearers, which means they do not lay eggs like most snakes, Instead, they carry them inside their bodies and give birth to baby snakes, each one six to twelve inches long.
- Northern Water Snakes have many predators, including birds, raccoons, opossums, foxes, snapping turtles, and other snakes.
- If they are picked up by an animal, or person, they will bite repeatedly, as well as release excrement and musk.
- They live near lakes, ponds, marshes, rivers, and canals; just about anywhere there is freshwater.
