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December 3, 2018
Monday Morning Mystery 120318
Luisa Gallego-Zuluaga, a student at William Paterson University, photographed this snake in High Mountain's Franklin Clove in September.
Can you ID it? What's the best way to tell if a snake is venomous?
(Thanks to Pat W. for catching my poor wording! I had written "poisonous" when I meant "venomous.")
Rule of thumb: If you can't I.D. a snake, give it a really wide berth.
2 comments
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Generally, round eye-not venomous…slit eye or cats eye venomous. Not sure? Give a wide birth.
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Great photo. Thanks for sharing it.
I think it’s a slobovian vampire snake, but the real issue here is the difference between poisonous and venomous. A snake is considered poisonous if one will be poisoned by eating its flesh. A snake is considered venomous if it will inject poison into one’s flesh if it bites. Not all venomous snakes are poisonous (rattlesnake meat can safely be consumed by humans) and not all poisonous snakes are venomous. Sorry to play the word nerd card so early on a Monday morning. 🙂 https://www.britannica.com/story/whats-the-difference-between-venomous-and-poisonous
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2 comments
Pete Burger
Generally, round eye-not venomous…slit eye or cats eye venomous. Not sure? Give a wide birth.
Pat W
Great photo. Thanks for sharing it.
I think it’s a slobovian vampire snake, but the real issue here is the difference between poisonous and venomous. A snake is considered poisonous if one will be poisoned by eating its flesh. A snake is considered venomous if it will inject poison into one’s flesh if it bites. Not all venomous snakes are poisonous (rattlesnake meat can safely be consumed by humans) and not all poisonous snakes are venomous. Sorry to play the word nerd card so early on a Monday morning. 🙂 https://www.britannica.com/story/whats-the-difference-between-venomous-and-poisonous