Snakes in Mississippi
Mississippi has 38 snake species on record, each with at least 10 GBIF records in the state, and 1,855 licensed records in all. The most recorded are the ring-necked snake, the northern cottonmouth and the eastern racer. Five of them are venomous.
Rattlesnakes in Mississippi
Rattlesnakes: three species are listed for Mississippi, with 86 records (5% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the timber rattlesnake (34), ahead of the pygmy rattlesnake (32).
Most licensed records of the timber rattlesnake in Mississippi come from Oktibbeha County, Adams County and Panola County. Most licensed records of the pygmy rattlesnake in Mississippi come from Harrison County, Hancock County and Jackson County.
Copperheads and cottonmouths in Mississippi
Copperheads and cottonmouths: two species are listed for Mississippi, with 197 records (11% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the northern cottonmouth (160), ahead of the eastern copperhead (37).
Observation records of the northern cottonmouth in Mississippi run through most of the year, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Jackson County, Lafayette County and Harrison County. Most licensed records of the eastern copperhead in Mississippi come from Panola County, Forrest County and Lafayette County.
Water snakes and swamp snakes in Mississippi
Water snakes and swamp snakes: nine species are listed for Mississippi, with 419 records (23% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the diamondback water snake (115), ahead of the plain-bellied watersnake (95).
Most licensed records of the diamondback water snake in Mississippi come from Lafayette County, Harrison County and Oktibbeha County. Most licensed records of the plain-bellied watersnake in Mississippi come from Harrison County, Lafayette County and Pontotoc County. Most licensed records of the southern watersnake in Mississippi come from Harrison County, Jackson County and Hancock County.
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes in Mississippi
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes: three species are listed for Mississippi, with 124 records (7% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the eastern ribbonsnake (84), ahead of the common garter snake (26).
Observation records of the eastern ribbonsnake in Mississippi run through most of the year, peaking in February; most licensed records come from Jackson County, Lafayette County and Hancock County.
Rat snakes and corn snakes in Mississippi
Rat snakes and corn snakes: two species are listed for Mississippi, with 100 records (5% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the eastern rat snake (60), ahead of the corn snake (40).
Observation records of the eastern rat snake in Mississippi run mostly February through August, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Lafayette County, Simpson County and Jackson County. Most licensed records of the corn snake in Mississippi come from Harrison County, Adams County and Jackson County.
Kingsnakes and milksnakes in Mississippi
Kingsnakes and milksnakes: five species are listed for Mississippi, with 75 records (4% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the speckled kingsnake (39), ahead of the eastern milksnake (18).
Observation records of the speckled kingsnake in Mississippi run mostly February through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Simpson County, Jackson County and Pearl River County.
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes in Mississippi
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes: two species are listed for Mississippi, with 136 records (7% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the eastern racer (128), ahead of the coachwhip (8).
Observation records of the eastern racer in Mississippi run mostly March through October, peaking in April; most licensed records come from Jackson County, Lafayette County and Harrison County.
Gopher snakes, bullsnakes and pine snakes in Mississippi
One species of this group is listed for Mississippi: the pine snake, with 10 records (0.5% of the state's snake records).
Hognose snakes in Mississippi
One species of this group is listed for Mississippi: the eastern hog-nosed snake, with 34 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the eastern hog-nosed snake in Mississippi come from Lafayette County, Kemper County and Harrison County.
Green snakes in Mississippi
One species of this group is listed for Mississippi: the rough greensnake, with 54 records (3% of the state's snake records).
Observation records of the rough greensnake in Mississippi run mostly March through October, peaking in April; most licensed records come from Jackson County, Lafayette County and Harrison County.
Small woodland and burrowing snakes in Mississippi
Small woodland and burrowing snakes dominate the snake record of Mississippi: nine species and 28% of all records. The most recorded is the ring-necked snake (205), ahead of the rough earthsnake (115).
Most licensed records of the ring-necked snake in Mississippi come from Hancock County, Harrison County and Lafayette County. Most licensed records of the rough earthsnake in Mississippi come from Hancock County, Harrison County and Simpson County. Most licensed records of the DeKay's brown snake in Mississippi come from Marion County, Simpson County and Hancock County.
Where in Mississippi are snakes recorded most?
Hancock County leads with 280 records (15%), followed by Lafayette County and Harrison County; the top five counties hold 52% of the total. 76 of Mississippi's 82 counties have at least one licensed snake record.
| # | County | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hancock County | 280 | 15.1% |
| 2 | Lafayette County | 232 | 12.5% |
| 3 | Harrison County | 205 | 11.1% |
| 4 | Jackson County | 190 | 10.2% |
| 5 | Simpson County | 62 | 3.3% |
| 6 | Adams County | 53 | 2.9% |
| 7 | Oktibbeha County | 52 | 2.8% |
| 8 | Lawrence County | 43 | 2.3% |
| 9 | Perry County | 38 | 2.0% |
| 10 | Stone County | 37 | 2.0% |
| 11 | Pearl River County | 33 | 1.8% |
| 12 | Tishomingo County | 32 | 1.7% |
When do snakes come out in Mississippi?
Observation records of snakes in Mississippi run mostly March through November, peaking in May with 17% of them. Winter (December to February) holds 10% of the records. The sharpest rise comes from February to March.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1% | 4% | 15% | 17% | 17% | 10% | 6% | 7% | 7% | 5% | 4% | 4% |
Snakes: Mississippi compared with its neighbors
Mississippi ranks 13th of 50 states by the number of snake species listed; Texas leads with 86 species.
Of the four states bordering Mississippi, Alabama and Louisiana list more snake species (Mississippi: 38 species; Alabama 44, Louisiana 41, Arkansas 36, Tennessee 32).
What snakes are in Mississippi? All 38 species
Ranked by licensed records in Mississippi. Species with a profile page are linked.
| # | Species | Family | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | Colubridae | 205 | 11.1% |
| 2 | Northern cottonmouth venomous Agkistrodon piscivorus | Viperidae | 160 | 8.6% |
| 3 | Eastern racer Coluber constrictor | Colubridae | 128 | 6.9% |
| 4 | Diamondback water snake Nerodia rhombifer | Colubridae | 115 | 6.2% |
| 5 | Rough earthsnake Haldea striatula | Colubridae | 115 | 6.2% |
| 6 | Plain-bellied watersnake Nerodia erythrogaster | Colubridae | 95 | 5.1% |
| 7 | Eastern ribbonsnake Thamnophis saurita | Colubridae | 84 | 4.5% |
| 8 | DeKay's brown snake Storeria dekayi | Colubridae | 82 | 4.4% |
| 9 | Southern watersnake Nerodia fasciata | Colubridae | 72 | 3.9% |
| 10 | Northern water snake Nerodia sipedon | Colubridae | 67 | 3.6% |
| 11 | Eastern rat snake Pantherophis alleghaniensis | Colubridae | 60 | 3.2% |
| 12 | Rough greensnake Opheodrys aestivus | Colubridae | 54 | 2.9% |
| 13 | Corn snake Pantherophis guttatus | Colubridae | 40 | 2.2% |
| 14 | Speckled kingsnake Lampropeltis holbrooki | Colubridae | 39 | 2.1% |
| 15 | Eastern copperhead venomous Agkistrodon contortrix | Viperidae | 37 | 2.0% |
| 16 | Southeastern crown snake Tantilla coronata | Colubridae | 35 | 1.9% |
| 17 | Eastern hog-nosed snake Heterodon platirhinos | Colubridae | 34 | 1.8% |
| 18 | Timber rattlesnake venomous Crotalus horridus | Viperidae | 34 | 1.8% |
| 19 | Pygmy rattlesnake venomous Sistrurus miliarius | Viperidae | 32 | 1.7% |
| 20 | Common garter snake Thamnophis sirtalis | Colubridae | 26 | 1.4% |
| 21 | Green water snake Nerodia cyclopion | Colubridae | 25 | 1.3% |
| 22 | Smooth earth snake Virginia valeriae | Colubridae | 25 | 1.3% |
| 23 | Mud snake Farancia abacura | Colubridae | 24 | 1.3% |
| 24 | Eastern wormsnake Carphophis amoenus | Colubridae | 23 | 1.2% |
| 25 | Eastern diamondback rattlesnake venomous Crotalus adamanteus | Viperidae | 20 | 1.1% |
| 26 | Eastern milksnake Lampropeltis triangulum | Colubridae | 18 | 1.0% |
| 27 | Red-bellied snake Storeria occipitomaculata | Colubridae | 16 | 0.9% |
| 28 | Pine woods snake Rhadinaea flavilata | Colubridae | 15 | 0.8% |
| 29 | Western ribbon snake Thamnophis proximus | Colubridae | 14 | 0.8% |
| 30 | Crayfish snake Liodytes rigida | Colubridae | 12 | 0.6% |
| 31 | Scarlet snake Cemophora coccinea | Colubridae | 11 | 0.6% |
| 32 | Pine snake Pituophis melanoleucus | Colubridae | 10 | 0.5% |
| 33 | Eastern black kingsnake Lampropeltis nigra | Colubridae | 9 | 0.5% |
| 34 | Coachwhip Masticophis flagellum | Colubridae | 8 | 0.4% |
| 35 | Prairie kingsnake Lampropeltis calligaster | Colubridae | 6 | 0.3% |
| 36 | Graham's crayfish snake Regina grahamii | Colubridae | 5 | 0.3% |
| 37 | Salt marsh snake Nerodia clarkii | Colubridae | 4 | 0.2% |
| 38 | Scarlet kingsnake Lampropeltis elapsoides | Colubridae | 3 | 0.2% |
Also recorded in Mississippi, fewer than 10 times
Beyond the main list, five snake species are known from Mississippi by only 3 to 9 records each. Some are genuine rarities at the edge of their range; others may be strays, released pets or old misidentifications, so treat them as unconfirmed. Venomous among them: eastern coral snake.
Related pages
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.