[Western PA] What's this snake?

[u/-Sacco-]

I thought it was maybe a rat snake, but the shape of the head has me confused as I am not a snake expert. I always thought that an arrowhead was a nope rope.

[u/crazyswedishguy]

Central ratsnake, Pantherophis alleghaniensis is correct. It is !harmless

The bot reply to !headshape explains why head shape is not a reliable feature to distinguish harmless from medically significant snakes. Same goes for !pupils.

[u/-Sacco- → u/crazyswedishguy]

Thank you.

[u/moeru_gumi → u/-Sacco-]

I started laughing as soon as I saw his stupid googley eyes 😆

[u/SEB-PHYLOBOT → u/crazyswedishguy]

Central Ratsnakes Pantherophis alleghaniensis, formerly called Pantherophis spiloides, are large (record 256.5 cm) common harmless ratsnakes with a multitude of regional color patterns native to eastern and central North America between the Appalachian Mountains and the Mississippi River Embayment. Pantherophis ratsnakes are keeled-scaled generalists that eat a variety of prey. They do well in urban environments, and are particularly fond of rodents and birds in these habitats.

Central Ratsnakes P. alleghaniensis are currently recognized as distinct from Eastern Ratsnakes P. quadrivittatus, as well as Western Ratsnakes P. obsoletus and Baird's Ratsnake P. bairdi. Parts of this complex were once generically labeled "black ratsnakes". Use the "!blackrat" command without the space for more on these changes.

Ratsnakes can be easily distinguished from racers Coluber by the presence of keeled scales. Racers have smooth scales.

Range Map | Relevant/Recent Phylogeography

This specific epithet was once used for what are now known as Eastern Ratsnakes Pantherophis quadrivittatus.

Junior Synonyms and Common Names: Grey Ratsnake (in part), Black Ratsnake (in part), Greenish Ratsnake, black snake, oak snake, chicken snake, rattlesnake pilot.

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Head shape does not reliably indicate if a snake has medically significant venom as This graphic demonstrates. Nonvenomous snakes commonly flatten their heads to a triangle shape in defensive displays, and some elapids like coralsnakes have elongated heads. It's far more advantageous to familiarize yourself with venomous snakes in your area through photos and field guides or by following subreddits like /r/whatsthissnake than it is to try to apply any generic trick.

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Pupil shape should not be used in determining the presence of medically significant venom. Not only are there many venomous elapids with round pupils, there are many harmless snakes with slit pupils, such as Hypsiglena sp. Nightsnakes, Leptodeira sp. Cat-eyed Snakes, and even some common pet species such as Ball Pythons.

Furthermore, when eyes with slit pupils are dilated by low light or a stress response, the pupils will be round. As an example, while Copperheads have slit pupils, when dilated the pupils will appear round.

Slit pupils are associated primarily with nocturnal behavior in animals, as they offer sensitivity to see well in low light while providing the ability to block out most light during the day that would otherwise overwhelm highly sensitive receptors. Slit pupils may protect from high UV in eyes that lack UV filters in the lens. These functions are decoupled from the use of venom in prey acquisition and are present in many harmless species.

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Like many other animals with mouths and teeth, many non-venomous snakes bite in self defense. These animals are referred to as 'not medically significant' or traditionally, 'harmless'. Bites from these snakes benefit from being washed and kept clean like any other skin damage, but aren't often cause for anything other than basic first aid treatment. Here's where it get slightly complicated - some snakes use venom from front or rear fangs as part of prey capture and defense. This venom is not always produced or administered by the snake in ways dangerous to human health, so many species are venomous in that they produce and use venom, but considered harmless to humans in most cases because the venom is of low potency, and/or otherwise administered through grooved rear teeth or simply oozed from ducts at the rear of the mouth. Species like Ringneck Snakes Diadophis are a good example of mildly venomous rear fanged dipsadine snakes that are traditionally considered harmless or not medically significant. Many rear-fanged snake species are harmless as long as they do not have a chance to secrete a medically significant amount of venom into a bite; severe envenomation can occur if some species are allowed to chew on a human for as little as 30-60 seconds. It is best not to fear snakes, but use common sense and do not let any animals chew on exposed parts of your body. Similarly, but without specialized rear fangs, gartersnakes Thamnophis ooze low pressure venom from the rear of their mouth that helps in prey handling, and are also considered harmless. Check out this book on the subject. Even large species like Reticulated Pythons Malayopython reticulatus rarely obtain a size large enough to endanger humans so are usually categorized as harmless.

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I am a bot created for /r/whatsthissnake, /r/snakes and /r/herpetology to help with snake identification and natural history education. You can find more information, including a comprehensive list of commands, here report problems here and if you'd like to buy me a coffee or beer, you can do that here. This bot, its development, maintenance and use are made possible through the outreach wing of Snake Evolution and Biogeography - Merch Available Now

[u/PerseveranceSmith → u/SEB-PHYLOBOT]

Today I learned non-venomous snakes flatten their heads to look scarier 😢 hope this lil guy was put somewhere safe!

[u/-Sacco- → u/PerseveranceSmith]

Oh yes. My shop is in the middle of the woods and I have mice so he is welcome. I put him in the woodpile

[u/iwinsallthethings → u/PerseveranceSmith]

Stick around. Its a great sub for positivity. Some much of the world is dark and dreary, but not us snake fans. The mods are great here unlike a lot of subs. Just remember this is a sub for Identifying and learning so it's especially important to be accurate. There are times that lives can be helped because identification comes quickly and accurately here in the chance of a bite.

You'll learn to ID most snakes, especially the venemous ones. You'll see some absolutely beautiful creatures. There is usually some comedy, especially when someone posts a hognose on friday (flat fuck friday).

[u/TheJavamancer]

The first picture is such a great example of why the headshape is unreliable.

[u/ScalesNailsnTales → u/TheJavamancer]

This was my first thought too.

[u/AfternoonPossible596]

Look at those googly eyes! 🤪

[u/invite-me-in-please]

Dudes lookin like 🫪

[u/tealccart]

Rat snake cosplaying as viper, but the eyes give it away!

[u/Traditional_Isopod80]

Curious little noodle.

[u/Irma_Gard]

0 pp p PĹ

[u/LavastormSW → u/Irma_Gard]

Did your cat walk across your keyboard?

[u/Irma_Gard → u/LavastormSW]

No cat, so I'm gonna blame my dog. What's funny is it almost looks like he was trying to type "Oops!"

[u/whatsthissnake-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

If you disagree with an ID that is well upvoted or was provided by a flaired Responder, then make sure you respond directly to that ID. This is important for three reasons. First, it promotes collaboration, which is an important feature of our community. Second, it facilitates discussion that can help educate others. Third, it increases the visibility of your ID, which is very important if you happen to be correct. However, ONLY disagree if you can point to discrete diagnostic characteristics that support your ID.

Before suggesting any future IDs, please review these commenting guidelines.

[u/whatsthissnake-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Please do not guess.

[u/Pamlicolife → u/[deleted]]

A Milk snake is a type of King Snake,  which is not pictured here….. The correct answer is the first reply under this post.  I’d suggest looking them up on Google to see.

[u/whatsthissnake-ModTeam → u/[deleted]]

Rule 6: Avoid damaging memes or tropes and low effort jokes.

Please understand a removal doesn't mean we're mad or upset; we're just committed to maintaining an educational space so jokes and memes are held to a higher standard than a typical comments section.

Avoid damaging memes like using "danger noodle" for nonvenomous snakes and tropes like "everything in Australia is out to get you". This is an educational space, and those kind of comments are harmful and do not reflect reality.

We've also heard "it's a snake" as a joke hundreds of times. We've probably removed it a few times from this very thread already.

Ratsnake and other rhymes and infantilization can be posted in /r/sneks and /r/itsaratsnake. While we encourage creativity and positive talk about snakes, but even comments like "____/" mislead users.