Water Moccasin? Cottonmouth?

As some of you know I'm an animal control officer for Okaloosa County Florida. With the recent heavy rain we've been having we are getting a lot more calls for snakes. We usually kinda let nature take it's course unless the snake is it the house. This call was for a friend of mine.
http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...s/100_2615.jpg
http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...s/100_2614.jpg
http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...100_2617-1.jpg
http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...100_2619-1.jpg


Now I told him it was a cottonmouth. He says it's a water moccasin? I told him they are the same. Who's right.

They are the same (though old timers seem to refer to the banded as cotton mouth and the brown ones - seen mostly in the water as water moccasins :rolleyes:)...that appears to be a dark phase adult.

looks like a feisty one....

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Originally Posted by Kagez28

looks like a feisty one....

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I missed a couple really good shots of him with his mouth wide open staring down the camera. He was PO'ed.

looks like a moccasin to me. i use to catch those all the time.. never see em anymore.

I didn't know they were the same thing. Was the inside of his mouth white? That is why they are called Cottonmouths. Cool pics. Sounds like a fun job.

There are more of these water moccasin's around then you think. We had a pond cleaned out in Oldsmar Florida on a saturday. The dirt was put in a dump truck and bough up near the road and dumped to dry out. There must have been 20 or more birds there eating water moccasin's :O, they were pulling them out of the mud.

Richard

I dont think i would want to be pulling them out of the mud he looks a little ticked off.

I know Im a little late on this.... but yes a Cottonmouth and Water Moccasin are the same animal. Depending on who you talk to depends on what the call it.

But its actual name is Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus)

Wow, I didn't know that. Cool looking snake.

Does anybody know if they're native to SW Ohio? Seems like I remember being warned about them while camping somewhere fairly close.