i 7 9 
THE LIVING WORLD. 
Having last considered amphibious reptiles, in treating of snakes we will 
first describe some of the species that make their home chiefly in the water, 
among which we find only a single species, the moccasin, that is venomous, 
and another, the anaconda, that is otherwise formidable. 
The AVater Moccasin [Anristrodon pisrivorus) is found distributed over 
a large district of the United States, from the Mississippi valley to the Atlantic 
coast, and from the Gulf to the Northern States. But though many authori¬ 
ties declare it to be a most venomous reptile, without making any distinction, 
I must controvert the assertion and show wherein the error lies. Wood unhesi¬ 
tatingly pronounces all the varieties, including the water moccasin , black moc¬ 
casin , and water viper , as extremely poisonous, but residents along the Missis¬ 
sippi and other rivers and creeks of the North will dissent from this opinion. 
The true moccasin , most commonly called the swamp moccasin , is confined to 
bayous and swamp regions of the South, and is never found in clear running 
water. It is considerably thicker than others of the moccasin species, has a 
broader head, and the skin is lighter in color. Its bite is poisonous, though 
not nearly so dangerous as the rattlesnake or 
copperhead; in fact, it is doubtful if a single bite 
from it ever produced the death of a strong man, 
though the pain following is very severe, and 
does not abate for weeks. 
Of the latter two species, the black moccasin 
and water viper, nothing may be said to their 
discredit, so far as their ability to do any con¬ 
siderable harm is concerned. So far as my obser¬ 
vations go the two are identical; distinction 
being made by some naturalists by reason of 
the fact that the snake does not always keep 
one color, but becomes darker towards midsum¬ 
mer, due probably to its more constant exposure 
to the sun. Having often heard that the snake 
was poisonous, after killing a large one once 
I made a careful examination of its mouth in which there was not 
discoverable either fangs or poison sacs, nor any other of the charac¬ 
teristics which distinguish venomous reptiles. Its teeth were well developed 
and eight on a side, all recurved, which serve the species most admirably 
in taking and retaining its prey, consisting of fish, frogs, young musk¬ 
rats, slugs, or probably any small animal that might venture near its haunts. 
My home when a boy was in a village on the Ohio River, and curving 
half round the town was a creek in which there were fairly myriads of 
moccasins that showed themselves in great profusion during the hot summer 
months, basking on projecting rocks, floating logs, or the limbs of trees over¬ 
hanging the water. They were also frequently found along the river shore, 
though rarely more than one at a time, whereas I have seen a dozen or more 
lying in confusion together on perches near the creek. So little fear was felt 
for these, however, that the boys went freely in bathing regardless of the 
many snakes that had dropped in the water at the approach of the bathers. 
The swamp moccasin rarely reaches a length of more than two feet, while 
the Northern species not infrequently attain a growth of four feet. 
