Quote:
Originally Posted by La lamy
Are there venomous snakes in our midst in TV? If so, what are they called or look like?
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Central Florida has all four kinds of venomous snakes in the USA: rattlesnake, water moccasin (aka cottonmouth), copperhead, and coral snake. The most likely habitat for these snakes around TV is natural settings such as the woods, ponds, and marshy areas. If you are around these kinds of areas, there is a chance of coming across one. Hikers and golfers looking for their ball around a pond are the mostly likely people around TV to come across any of them. Assuming one’s house is not close to a pond or marshy area, I believe there is only a very remote chance that you will come across a venomous snake around a house in TV with a rattlesnake being the most likely among those four kinds.
You can recognize the four kinds of venomous snakes relatively easily. The rattlesnake, water moccasin, and copperhead have triangular heads. The coral snake can be recognized by its colors and color pattern. The tricky part with coral snakes is their coloring is similar to the non-venomous king snake. The way I remember the difference between these two snakes is that coral snakes have their red and yellow bands touching each other whereas the king snake does not. I remember the red and yellow combination as a traffic light.
Black racer snakes are relatively common around TV. The venomous snake closest in coloring to black racers is the water moccasin. Both are mostly black. You can distinguish these two snakes by their head and body dimensions. As noted, the water moccasin has a triangular head and proportionately wider body whereas the black racer has a smaller head and thinner body. Black racers will likely slither away fast from a human. Water moccasins will often stand their ground and have a bad disposition. When hiking around TV, I am more worried about a bad outcome from a water moccasin than an alligator.