#nerodia

[herpsandbirds]

Northern Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon), mating aggregation, family Colubridae, Chatham County, NC, USA

photographs by Kayshawn Arr

[snototter]

An erythristic Northern watersnake (Nerodia sipedon ssp. sipedon) in North Carolina, USA

by Jillian Kern

[davy-jones-yaoi]

jokes on you emily i already know how to do that

bam

[dinoserious]

posting muy snake pics here beclaws my main is functionally dormant And i want you all to look at them

[al0nelybirdsong]

snake profile #7, requested by @snaps-play-pen!

the common water snake, Nerodia sipedon!

size: 24.02”-55.12”(61cm - 140cm) description: darkly colored scales with square blotches down the back and sides; white belly habitat: found near and within any permanent bodies of water(lakes, ponds, streams, rivers). Can be found on land near their aquatic home, sometimes under logs, rocks, and boards behavior: scavengers and carnivores, will eat most small creatures that can be found near water. Known to herd fish towards shores to eat many at a time, and will swallow prey whole instead of constricting or immobilizing first

hope you enjoy!

[faunalregion]

[stranger-nature]

Baby Northern Watersnake (Nerodia sipedon sipedon)

[vandaliatraveler]

Cranberry Glades is a high elevation wetlands complex located in a deep valley cradled by the Yew Mountains, whose cold, draining air creates a natural frost pocket. In some years, the frost-free period in the valley is as short as 81 days. The cool climate allows the sphagnum bogs at Cranberry Glades to support a plant and animal community more typical of Southern Ontario or Maine than the Mid-Atlantic region. Beavers play a key role in shaping the ecology of the Glades; last spring, the industrious rodents succeeded in submerging a section of the boardwalk that loops through one of the bogs. The pond still comes up to the edge of the structure (top photo) and offers up-close interaction with the animals and plants that live in this environment, including the common watersnake (Nerodia sipedon), fire cherry (Prunus pensylvanica), marsh marigold (Caltha palustris), green false hellebore (Veratrum viride); swamp buttercup (Ranunculus septentrionalis); eastern skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus); Canada yew (Taxus canadensis), for which the local mountains are named; and red spruce (Picea rubens), the most important tree in the Central Appalachians and the key to the restoration of the region’s mountain forests following their decimation at the turn of the last century. Cranberry Glades is a short drive off the Highland Scenic Highway and abuts the Cranberry Wilderness, the largest forest service wilderness area in the eastern United States and a state-designated black bear sanctuary.