Snakes

Identification

The photo gallery at the bottom of this page provides information about many of the snakes found in Illinois. Click on snake to go to IDNR’s Wild About Snakes! website for that species. The species distribution map link goes to the Prairie Research Institute’s Illinois Natural History Survey.

Additionally, the Prairie Research Institute’s Illinois Natural History Survey has the Illinois Species page to help people figure out what species of snake they have found. If you don’t know what the species is, click on the text to work through the key. If you see a photo that looks like the species you saw, then you can click on the photo to get information about that particular species.

You can find more information about snakes in Illinois here: SNAKES OF ILLINOIS-2019.

Releasing a Snake

Snakes can be safely removed alive from a site. The easiest way to capture a snake is to put on a pair of gloves, pick the snake up, and release it outside. If you don’t want to come into contact with the snake, you can lay a trash container on its side in front of the snake and gently sweep it into the container. Set the container upright and secure the lid. The broom handle should keep you safely beyond the snake’s striking distance.

Alternatively, the tines of a potato rake or a hoe can be carefully slipped under the center of a snake to quickly lift the snake into a container. Place a lid on the container and secure it. Release the snake outside as soon as possible.

Snakes should be released onto the same property where they were found. The area should be located away from roads, provide sunlit areas that are not frequently mowed, and have areas of cover, such as tall grass, logs, or rocks, under which the snake can hide.

If you have questions about reptiles or amphibians in Illinois, you can contact Scott Ballard, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Southern Region Endangered and Threatened Recovery Species Specialist/Herpetologist, at Scott.Ballard@Illinois.gov or 618-694-3398.

Venomous Snakes

There are four species of venomous snakes found in Illinois—copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus), timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) and massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus). In Illinois, the timber rattlesnake is listed as a threatened species and the massasauga is listed as endangered. The cottonmouth is found only in the very southern tip of the state. The copperhead is found in the southern two-thirds of the state.

Venomous snakes use their venom to kill the birds and small animals that they eat. While snake venom may cause tissue or nerve damage, a venomous snake bite is usually not fatal to humans when proper medical treatment is received. The risk of being bitten by a venomous snake in Illinois is very low since all four species are nonaggressive towards people.

Check out the IDNR’s Wild About Illinois Snakes! website to learn more about these four species.

The Prairie Research Institute’s Illinois Natural History Survey provides a species distribution map and more natural history information about the copperhead, cottonmouth, timber rattlesnake and massasauga.

Nonvenomous Snakes

Several of the nonvenomous snake species are commonly misidentified as one of the four venomous species found in Illinois. Since a number of species of snakes vibrate their tails when they feel threatened, people sometimes mistakenly confuse them for rattlesnakes. The eastern foxsnake (Pantherophis vulpinus) is sometimes confused with the similarly looking massasauga (Sistrurus catenatus). Learn how to distinguish between a fox snake and a massasauga.

“Water moccasin” is a general term used by the public to refer to all seven species of Illinois’ water snakes. Only one species of watersnake, the cottonmouth, is venomous. In Illinois, it is found no farther north than Carbondale, in the southern part of the state.

Both nonvenomous and venomous snakes benefit homeowners and gardeners by eating invertebrates and rodents. They should be left alone so they can provide this important pest service.