Snakes and spiders in Sarasota County, Florida
Sarasota County, home of Sarasota, has 14 snake and 36 spider species on record, from 143 licensed snake and 514 spider records. Venomous species here: the pygmy rattlesnake, the eastern diamondback rattlesnake and the brown widow.
Are there venomous snakes or spiders in Sarasota County?
Yes. The pygmy rattlesnake: 1 licensed record, 0% of all Florida records of it. The eastern diamondback rattlesnake: on record, no openly licensed records to count. The brown widow: 14 licensed records, 10% of all Florida records of it.
What snakes are in Sarasota County?
In all, 14 snake species are on the Sarasota County list. The most recorded are the eastern racer (40), the corn snake (19) and the southern watersnake (15).
| # | Species | Records | Share of Florida records |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eastern racer Coluber constrictor | 40 | 2% |
| 2 | Corn snake Pantherophis guttatus | 19 | 3% |
| 3 | Southern watersnake Nerodia fasciata | 15 | 1% |
| 4 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | 8 | 2% |
| 5 | Brahminy blindsnake introduced Indotyphlops braminus | 6 | 3% |
| 6 | Eastern ribbonsnake Thamnophis saurita | 6 | 1% |
| 7 | Florida green water snake Nerodia floridana | 6 | 1% |
| 8 | Coachwhip Masticophis flagellum | 5 | 3% |
| 9 | Scarlet snake Cemophora coccinea | 5 | 2% |
| 10 | Rough greensnake Opheodrys aestivus | 2 | 1% |
| 11 | Pygmy rattlesnake venomous Sistrurus miliarius | 1 | 0% |
| 12 | Eastern diamondback rattlesnake venomous Crotalus adamanteus | — | — |
| 13 | Pine woods snake Rhadinaea flavilata | — | — |
| 14 | Scarlet kingsnake Lampropeltis elapsoides | — | — |
When are snakes out in Sarasota County?
Observation records of snakes in Sarasota County run through most of the year, peaking in March with 13% of them, the same peak as Florida as a whole.
What spiders are in Sarasota County?
In all, 36 spider species are on the Sarasota County list. The most recorded are Leucauge argyrobapta (33), the gray wall jumper (29) and the spiny-backed orbweaver (29). Sarasota County holds more than half of all Florida records of the wetland giant wolf spider and the brush-legged split wolf spider.
| # | Species | Records | Share of Florida records |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leucauge argyrobapta | 33 | 5% |
| 2 | Gray wall jumper Menemerus bivittatus | 29 | 7% |
| 3 | Spiny-backed orbweaver Gasteracantha cancriformis | 29 | 3% |
| 4 | Greater leucauge Leucauge argyra | 20 | 4% |
| 5 | Green lynx spider Peucetia viridans | 20 | 4% |
| 6 | Black-and-yellow argiope Argiope aurantia | 19 | 5% |
| 7 | Wetland giant wolf spider Tigrosa helluo | 17 | 68% |
| 8 | Brush-legged split wolf spider Schizocosa ocreata | 16 | 76% |
| 9 | Magnolia green jumper Lyssomanes viridis | 15 | 4% |
| 10 | American golden orb weaver Trichonephila clavipes | 14 | 1% |
| 11 | Brown widow venomous introduced Latrodectus geometricus | 14 | 10% |
| 12 | Arabesque orbweaver Neoscona arabesca | 12 | 6% |
| 13 | Slender nursery web spider Pisaurina undulata | 12 | 16% |
| 14 | Heptagonal orbweaver Gea heptagon | 10 | 20% |
| 15 | Tropical orb weaver Eriophora ravilla | 9 | 3% |
| 16 | Blacktailed red sheetweaver Florinda coccinea | 7 | 13% |
| 17 | Brown spitting spider Scytodes fusca | 7 | 29% |
| 18 | Southern house spider Kukulcania hibernalis | 7 | 11% |
| 19 | Bowl and doily spider Frontinella pyramitela | 4 | 10% |
| 20 | Huntsman spider Heteropoda venatoria | 4 | 4% |
| 21 | Peppered jumper Pelegrina galathea | 4 | 15% |
| 22 | Tuftlegged orbweaver Mangora placida | 4 | 5% |
| 23 | Twin-flagged jumping spider Anasaitis canosa | 4 | 2% |
| 24 | Banded garden spider Argiope trifasciata | 3 | 3% |
| 25 | Box spider Crossopriza lyoni | 3 | 5% |
| 26 | Cyclosa turbinata | 3 | 10% |
| 27 | Emblyna florens | 3 | 18% |
| 28 | Common Hentz jumping spider Hentzia palmarum | 2 | 2% |
| 29 | Sixspotted fishing spider Dolomedes triton | 2 | 1% |
| 30 | Spotted orbweaver Neoscona crucifera | 2 | 6% |
| 31 | Global tentweb weaver Cyrtophora citricola | 1 | 2% |
| 32 | Regal jumper Phidippus regius | 1 | 0% |
| 33 | Tigrosa annexa | 1 | 1% |
| 34 | Difoliate orbweaver Acacesia hamata | — | — |
| 35 | Habronattus brunneus | — | — |
| 36 | Selenops submaculosus | — | — |
When are spiders out in Sarasota County?
Observation records of spiders in Sarasota County run through most of the year, peaking in March with 16% of them; across Florida the peak is April.
What stands out in Sarasota County
Species for which Sarasota County holds a large share of all Florida records: the brush-legged split wolf spider, 76% (16 of 21); the wetland giant wolf spider, 68% (17 of 25); the heptagonal orbweaver, 20% (10 of 49); the slender nursery web spider, 16% (12 of 77).
Common in Florida, not on the Sarasota County list
Among the snakes most recorded across Florida, these do not reach the county list: the Burmese python (8,141 statewide), the common garter snake (547 statewide), the Florida cottonmouth (461 statewide) and the black swamp snake (431 statewide). Few records here can mean the species is rare in the county, or that few people have looked.
Harmless lookalikes in Sarasota County
No copperheads reach the county list, but the eastern copperhead is on the Florida list: treat any snake like it as venomous until identified. Harmless species often taken for them here: the corn snake. No cottonmouths reach the county list, but the Florida cottonmouth and the northern cottonmouth are on the Florida list: treat any snake like them as venomous until identified. Harmless species often taken for them here: the southern watersnake and the Florida green water snake. No coral snakes reach the county list, but the eastern coral snake is on the Florida list: treat any snake like it as venomous until identified. Harmless species often taken for them here: the scarlet snake and the scarlet kingsnake. Recluse spiders are not on the Florida list, but GBIF holds 1 recluse spider record of any license in Florida (brown recluse 1): treat any spider like this as venomous until identified. Harmless species often taken for them here: the southern house spider.
Sarasota County among Florida counties
By licensed snake records Sarasota County ranks 24th of 67 Florida counties with any.
Other Florida counties with their own page: Miami-Dade County, Collier County, Alachua County, Monroe County, Broward County, Lee County, Orange County and Marion County.
The whole state: venomous species in Florida, all snakes, all spiders.
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.