Kenneth L. Krysko photo.
Scientific name: Nerodia clarkii .
The following key will separate the three subspecies of salt marsh snake that are found in Florida. If you are not sure about the color patterns referred to in the key below, you can probably identify the subspecies by geographic location.
| 1a | Back gray with prominent stripes on neck and body; northwest Florida Gulf coast west to eastern Texas. | Gulf
salt marsh snake, Nerodia clarkii clarkii |
| 1b | Uniform colored or stripes confined to neck or anterior part of body. | 2 |
| 2a | Back color variable from olive to brown to rust to black, some with stripes on neck, some with faint crossbands on body; from the Florida central Gulf coast south through the Keys and up the east coast to Brevard County. | Mangrove
salt marsh snake, Nerodia c compressicauda |
| 2b | Back grayish-tan with dark stripes on front half of body that break into blotches on back half; Florida east coast from Brevard to Flagler County. | Atlantic
salt marsh snake, Nerodia clarkii taeniata |
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