Nice pic, Tim! We have Nerodia fasciata, the banded water snake, here in SC. When I get called to remove snakes from private property, this is the snake I mostly encounter and oftentimes I hear of them being killed because people mistake them for cottonmouths. --Heavy bodied, keeled scales, dark coloration, and the banding pattern. It's a shame people don't take time to learn the difference. Hey, aside from the round pupils, another way of distinguishing them is to look at the anal scale. Nerodia has a divided anal scale, and copperheads and cottonmouths have singular, undivided scales....if you care to get that close. LOL
That's a beautiful Nerodia, though!
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