Florida Museum of Natural History’s

Comparison of Cottonmouth and Watersnake

Image of top of Cottonmouth head.
Cottonmouth: The eyes cannot be seen from the top of the head.

Image of top of banded watersnake head.
Watersnake: The eyes can be seen from the top of the head.



Image of side of Cottonmouth head.
Cottonmouth: The pupil of the eye is a catlike vertical slit, and there is a pit on the side of the head between the eye and the nostril.

Image of side of banded watersnake head.
Watersnake: The pupil of the eye is round, and there is no pit on the side of the head between the eye and the nostril.



Image of front of Cottonmouth head.
Cottonmouth: The top of the head is relatively flat.

Image of front of banded watersnake head.
Watersnake: The top of the head is relatively rounded.



The watersnake illustrated here is the banded watersnake, Nerodia fasciata.

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Copyright © 1996 Florida Museum of Natural History.