Common Myths

Hoop Snakes

Myth: When frightened, hoop snakes will bite their tails and roll downhill like a wagon wheel.
Reality: Anatomically, snakes are not well equipped for rolling and there are no reliable accounts of this ever occurring. The hoop snake myth may have been associated originally with mud snakes found in the southern United States. Mud snakes will occasionally lie in a loose coil shaped like a hoop, but they slither away from danger like other snakes.

Swallowing Young

Myth: When confronted with danger, mother snakes swallow their young, spitting them out later once danger has passed.
Reality: Parental care is not very well developed in snakes and there is no evidence that mother snakes protect their young in this way. The myth may result from the fact that some snakes eat young snakes of their own species or of other species, though usually not their own brood.

Charming Snakes

Myth: Snakes have the ability to charm prey, especially birds, so they cannot flee.
Reality: There is no evidence that snakes charm their prey. Small animals may become "frozen with fear" when confronted by snakes but they are not charmed. Birds may flutter about in front of a snake in an attempt to lure it away from their nests; occasionally a bird may actually be captured by the snake, giving the impression that it was charmed. The fact that snakes never blink may also have played a role in this myth's origin.

Sucking Milk

Myth: Milk snakes are so named because of their ability to suck milk directly from the udders of cows.
Reality: Although milk snakes are common around barns that house cows, they completely lack the anatomy necessary to suck milk (or anything else for that matter). Barns are attractive to milk snakes because they provide abundant food in the form of small rats and mice.

Poisonous Breath

Myth: Puff adders (hognose snakes) mix poison with their breath and can kill a person at a distance of twenty-five feet.
Reality: Although the bite of a hognose snake can produce swelling and a burning sensation, these snakes rarely bite people and are not considered venomous. When confronted, they do puff themselves up and hiss, but their breath is harmless.

Cottonmouths in New England

Myth: Swimmers in New England are advised to watch out for venomous cottonmouths, also known as water moccasins.
Reality: Simply put, there are no water moccasins in New England. The cottonmouth, or water moccasin, is a venomous snake of the southeastern United States that occurs no farther north than the Great Dismal Swamp of Virginia. Many people mistake non-venomous water snakes for water moccasins.