Northern Cottonmouth: a two-minute wildlife lesson

Reptiles of America · day 2 of 7

Five facts

1. When threatened, a cottonmouth shakes its tail, throws its head back and flashes a startling white mouth.
2. That open white mouth gave the snake its names: cottonmouth and gaper.
3. Cottonmouth venom is stronger than that of its cousin the copperhead, and it damages body tissue.
4. Cottonmouths live in the eastern US, from the Great Dismal Swamp in Virginia south through the Florida peninsula.
5. Female cottonmouths give birth to live babies, from 1 to 16 at a time. Litters of 6 to 8 are the most common.

The quiz

1. What does a threatened cottonmouth flash?

• A bright red tongue
• A colourful belly
• A white mouth interior (correct)
• A spiked tail

When threatened, a cottonmouth shakes its tail, throws its head back and flashes a startling white mouth.

2. Which names come from the open white mouth?

• Cottonmouth and gaper (correct)
• Copperhead and gaper
• Swamp and cottonmouth
• Whitejaw and gaper

That open white mouth gave the snake its names: cottonmouth and gaper.

3. How does cottonmouth venom compare with its cousin the copperhead's?

• It is weaker
• It is exactly the same
• It is stronger (correct)
• It is completely harmless

Cottonmouth venom is more toxic than the copperhead's.

4. How far south does the cottonmouth's range reach?

• Into Brazil
• Into Argentina
• Into Chile
• Through the Florida peninsula (correct)

Its range runs from Virginia's Great Dismal Swamp south through the Florida peninsula.

5. What litter size is most common for a cottonmouth?

• 1 to 3
• 6 to 8 (correct)
• 10 to 14
• 20 to 25

Females have 1 to 16 babies, and litters of 6 to 8 are the most common.

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