Snakes of NC - Egg Bearing Non Venomous

Southeastern Crowned Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 8-12in Habitat: Most of North Carolina in pine flatwoods, maritime forests, sandhills and wooded slopes Food: Centipedes (may also eat beetle larvae and other soft-bodied arthropods) Time of Day: Day underground and on the surface at night *Have a weak venom to subdue prey. Harmless to humans

Eastern Worm Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 7.5-13in Habitat: Forested habitats, especially moist locations (under logs, rocks, etc.) Food: Earthworms Time of Day: Stay under cover during the day, surface activity at night *Excellent burrowers

Pine Woods Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 10-15in Habitat: Lower Coastal Plain in pine flatwoods and ecotones between sandhills and bottomland Food: Frogs and lizards Time of Day: Nocturnal *Have enlarged rear teeth in the upper jaw that secrete a weak venom that immobilizes the small prey it feeds on. It is harmless to humans

Ring-necked Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 10-20in Habitat: Forested habitats, especially moist locations (under logs, rocks, etc.) Food: Earthworms and salamanders (also will eat frogs, lizards and small snakes) Time of Day: Stay under cover during the day, surface activity at night *Easy to ID by the bright yellow or orange collar

Southern Hognose Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 13-29in Habitat: Coastal Plain and Sandhills, found in sand ridges, pine and wiregrass flatwoods, sandy old fields, and areas with xeric coarse sands or loamy soils Food: Toads (will also eat other amphibians and lizards) Time of Day: Diurnal (daytime) although they spend a lot of time burrowing *When provoked for long enough they will roll onto their backs and feign death, although less enthusiastically than the Eastern Hognose Snake

Scarlet Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 14-26in Habitat: Piedmont and Coastal Plain in oak and pine forests in sandy soil. Usually stays underground Food: Reptile eggs (also will eat lizards, snakes and other small animals) Time of Day: Daylight hours underground, on the surface mostly on warm nights *Red blotches enclosed by black margins separated by white or yellow, can be confused with other snakes, however the marks on back are blotches, not rings that encircle the body

Scarlet Kingsnake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 14-27in Habitat: Pine flatwoods in the Coastal Plains Food: Lizards (primarily skinks), small snakes, small mammals Time of Day: Nocturnal (very secretive) *May be confused with the venomous Eastern Coral Snake

Eastern Hognose Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 20-47in Habitat: Most common in Coastal Plains in sandy or loamy soils. Can be found throughout the state Food: Toads (will also eat other amphibians as well as small animals or lizards) Time of Day: Diurnal (daytime) *When provoked for long enough they will roll onto their backs and feign death

Rough Green Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 22-36in Habitat: Forested areas throughout most of the state Food: Spiders, grasshoppers, crickets, caterpillars and other soft-bodied arthropods, small snails Time of Day: Diurnal (day) *When caught may gape its mouth showing the black interior

Eastern Milk Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 24-45in Habitat: Woodlands, grassy balds and meadows Food: Lizards, small snakes, small mammals Time of Day: Day or night but spend a lot of time under cover *More common in the mountains

Mole Kingsnake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 30-46in Habitat: Range from sandhills and pine flatwoods to open fields and upland hardwood forests Food: Small mammals, lizards and snakes Time of Day: Day or Night *Accomplished burrowers

Corn Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 30-72in Habitat: Pine and wiregrass flatwoods and sandhills Food: Small mammals (also will eat birds and their eggs, frogs and lizards) Time of Day: Day or night but are most active at night in hot weather *Popular as pets

Black Racer

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 36-66in Habitat: Mountains common in valleys and low elevations. Everywhere else in the state can be found in brushy dunes, maritime forests, rocky hillsides, upland meadows, forests Food: Insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and their eggs and small mammals Time of Day: Diurnal (daytime) *Fastest and most agile snake

Rainbow Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 36-66in Habitat: Coastal Plains: rivers, large creeks, cypress swamps, lakes, canals, large ditches, and fresh and brackish marshes Food: American Eels (juveniles will feed on amphibians) Time of Day: Nocturnal *Very secretive snake, like the Mud Snake, has a harmless tip it will press up against a captor

Eastern Kingsnake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 36-69in Habitat: Banks of rivers and canals, river floodplains, edges of old fields and forest. Although found in the Piedmont, most common in the Coastal Plain Food: Turtle eggs, lizards, birds, small mammals, and other snakes including venomous ones Time of Day: Day or night although frequently hiding *When first caught they usually expel copious quantities of musk

Mud Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 40-73in Habitat: Coastal Plains and lower Piedmont in cypress swamps, sluggish lowland streams, ditches and other heavily vegetated aquatic habitats Food: Amphiumas and Sirens (will also eat other amphibians) Time of Day: Nocturnal *If caught will press its pointed tail tip against the captor's skin. The tip is harmless

Pine Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 42-72in Habitat: Sandhills with pines and scrub oaks, and sandy flatwoods Food: Small mammals, birds and their eggs and lizards Time of Day: Diurnal (day) and fossorial (underground) *This is a threatened species in NC

Rat Snake

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 42-85in Habitat: Upland hardwood forests, pocosins, river swamps, lowlands, fields, barns and buildings Food: Small mammals, birds and their eggs (frogs and lizards by young snakes) Time of Day: Diurnal (daytime) *Excellent climbers and can climb to considerable distance above ground

Eastern Coachwhip

Live Birth: No (egg-laying) Venomous: No Size: 48-94in Habitat: Sandhills and Coastal Plains found in sandy flatwoods, maritime forests, sandhills with pines, scrub oaks and wiregrass Food: Lizards, snakes, birds and their eggs, and small mammals Time of Day: Diurnal (day) *Extremely active snake that frequently prowls with its head and neck raised well above the ground