Snakes in Connecticut
Connecticut has 14 snake species on record, each with at least 10 GBIF records in the state, and 1,163 licensed records in all. The most recorded are the common garter snake, the northern water snake and the ring-necked snake. Two of them are venomous.
Rattlesnakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the timber rattlesnake, with 64 records (6% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the timber rattlesnake in Connecticut come from Litchfield County, Middlesex County and Hartford County.
Copperheads and cottonmouths in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the eastern copperhead, with 82 records (7% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern copperhead in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Fairfield County and Hartford County.
Water snakes and swamp snakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the northern water snake, with 152 records (13% of the state's snake records).
Observation records of the northern water snake in Connecticut run mostly April through September, peaking in May; most licensed records come from New Haven County, Middlesex County and Litchfield County.
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes in Connecticut
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes dominate the snake record of Connecticut: two species and 30% of all records. The most recorded is the common garter snake (310), ahead of the eastern ribbonsnake (44).
Observation records of the common garter snake in Connecticut run mostly April through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from New Haven County, Litchfield County and Hartford County. Most licensed records of the eastern ribbonsnake in Connecticut come from Middlesex County, New Haven County and Hartford County.
Rat snakes and corn snakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the eastern rat snake, with 44 records (4% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern rat snake in Connecticut come from Middlesex County, New Haven County and Fairfield County.
Kingsnakes and milksnakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the eastern milksnake, with 94 records (8% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern milksnake in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Fairfield County and Litchfield County.
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the eastern racer, with 68 records (6% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern racer in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Middlesex County and Hartford County.
Hognose snakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the eastern hog-nosed snake, with 48 records (4% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern hog-nosed snake in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Middlesex County and Fairfield County.
Green snakes in Connecticut
One species of this group is listed for Connecticut: the smooth green snake, with 20 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Small woodland and burrowing snakes in Connecticut
Small woodland and burrowing snakes: four species are listed for Connecticut, with 231 records (20% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the ring-necked snake (124), ahead of the DeKay's brown snake (64).
Observation records of the ring-necked snake in Connecticut run mostly May through September, peaking in May; most licensed records come from New Haven County, Fairfield County and Middlesex County. Most licensed records of the DeKay's brown snake in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Fairfield County and Middlesex County. Most licensed records of the eastern wormsnake in Connecticut come from New Haven County, Middlesex County and Fairfield County.
Where in Connecticut are snakes recorded most?
New Haven County dominates: 38% of the state's licensed snake records come from it alone, and the top five counties hold 86%. 8 of Connecticut's 8 counties have at least one licensed snake record.
| # | County | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Haven County | 446 | 38.3% |
| 2 | Middlesex County | 177 | 15.2% |
| 3 | Litchfield County | 158 | 13.6% |
| 4 | Fairfield County | 119 | 10.2% |
| 5 | Hartford County | 99 | 8.5% |
| 6 | New London County | 73 | 6.3% |
| 7 | Tolland County | 55 | 4.7% |
| 8 | Windham County | 36 | 3.1% |
When do snakes come out in Connecticut?
Observation records of snakes in Connecticut run mostly April through October, peaking in May with 22% of them. December through February together hold under 2% of the records, so snakes in Connecticut are rarely recorded in winter. The sharpest rise comes from April to May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 0% | 2% | 11% | 22% | 18% | 11% | 14% | 10% | 8% | 3% | 0% |
Snakes: Connecticut compared with its neighbors
Connecticut ranks 37th of 50 states by the number of snake species listed, level with Delaware; Texas leads with 86 species.
Of the three states bordering Connecticut, New York lists more snake species (Connecticut: 14 species; New York 17, Massachusetts 13, Rhode Island 10).
What snakes are in Connecticut? All 14 species
Ranked by licensed records in Connecticut. Species with a profile page are linked.
| # | Species | Family | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Common garter snake Thamnophis sirtalis | Colubridae | 310 | 26.7% |
| 2 | Northern water snake Nerodia sipedon | Colubridae | 152 | 13.1% |
| 3 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | Colubridae | 124 | 10.7% |
| 4 | Eastern milksnake Lampropeltis triangulum | Colubridae | 94 | 8.1% |
| 5 | Eastern copperhead venomous Agkistrodon contortrix | Viperidae | 82 | 7.1% |
| 6 | Eastern racer Coluber constrictor | Colubridae | 68 | 5.8% |
| 7 | DeKay's brown snake Storeria dekayi | Colubridae | 64 | 5.5% |
| 8 | Timber rattlesnake venomous Crotalus horridus | Viperidae | 64 | 5.5% |
| 9 | Eastern hog-nosed snake Heterodon platirhinos | Colubridae | 48 | 4.1% |
| 10 | Eastern rat snake Pantherophis alleghaniensis | Colubridae | 44 | 3.8% |
| 11 | Eastern ribbonsnake Thamnophis saurita | Colubridae | 44 | 3.8% |
| 12 | Eastern wormsnake Carphophis amoenus | Colubridae | 31 | 2.7% |
| 13 | Smooth green snake Opheodrys vernalis | Colubridae | 20 | 1.7% |
| 14 | Red-bellied snake Storeria occipitomaculata | Colubridae | 12 | 1.0% |
Related pages
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.