Combating Cottonmouths from this afternoon!

It was quite a bit cooler today and apparently the low for tonight is supposed to be as low as 60 degrees here, so I decided to go out and try to get a lifer I've been hoping for since I've been here... I haven't really gone looking for them because of the heat, but today it all worked out... and I didn't just find what I was looking for, I found my target in an incredible situation that I have never had the privilege of witnessing up close with any snake in the wild.

Please forgive the terrible pics, but all I had on me today was my cell phone... and it'll be that way until I get a new camera...

First though, maybe 10 minutes after arriving at my destination, I flipped this little guy...

Nerodia sipedon pleuralis - Midland watersnake

Anyhow, after a lot more walking along the creek and a lot of toads, we were walking along a trail with a rocky hillside on one side and the creek on the other, when we heard some rustling in the leaves amongst the rocks... When I looked over, this is what I witnessed...

Agkistrodon piscivorus leucostoma - Western cottonmouth

I watched two large adult male cottonmouths in combat mere feet away from me for a good ten minutes. It's killing me only having my cellphone camera right now...

Here are a few more crapshots.

Tags: agkistrodon, cottonmouth, fangs, herp, hot, mocassin, piscivorus, reptile, snake, venom, More…venomous, water

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Comment by Vanessa on August 26, 2010 at 3:37pm: Amazing, Mike! I just featured the blog on the main community page and sent out an announcement about it.

Comment by Greg on August 26, 2010 at 3:06pm: That sounds like an awesome outing, Mike! And not bad pictures for a cellphone! Too bad no video camera to capture the fighting! Either way, it compliments Patricia's recent video nicely!

Thanks for posting this!