Snakes in Missouri
Missouri has 36 snake species on record, each with at least 10 GBIF records in the state, and 1,883 licensed records in all. The most recorded are the ring-necked snake, the northern water snake and the common garter snake. Five of them are venomous.
Rattlesnakes in Missouri
Rattlesnakes are a small part of the snake record here: three species with 3% of records between them. The most recorded is the timber rattlesnake (29), ahead of the pygmy rattlesnake (11).
Copperheads and cottonmouths in Missouri
Copperheads and cottonmouths: two species are listed for Missouri, with 135 records (7% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the northern cottonmouth (70), ahead of the eastern copperhead (65).
Observation records of the northern cottonmouth in Missouri run mostly April through October, peaking in October; most licensed records come from Cape Girardeau County, Perry County and Miller County. Observation records of the eastern copperhead in Missouri run mostly April through September, peaking in September; most licensed records come from Jefferson County, Boone County and Wayne County.
Water snakes and swamp snakes in Missouri
Water snakes and swamp snakes: seven species are listed for Missouri, with 346 records (18% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the northern water snake (202), ahead of the diamondback water snake (57).
Observation records of the northern water snake in Missouri run mostly April through September, peaking in May; most licensed records come from St. Louis County, Texas County and Dent County. Observation records of the diamondback water snake in Missouri run mostly May through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Holt County, Lincoln County and Stoddard County. Most licensed records of the plain-bellied watersnake in Missouri come from Lincoln County, Stoddard County and Butler County.
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes in Missouri
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes: three species are listed for Missouri, with 280 records (15% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the common garter snake (190), ahead of the western ribbon snake (60).
Observation records of the common garter snake in Missouri run mostly March through October, peaking in March; most licensed records come from Holt County, St. Louis County and Jefferson County. Observation records of the western ribbon snake in Missouri run mostly March through October, peaking in March; most licensed records come from Linn County, Lewis County and Cape Girardeau County. Most licensed records of the plains garter snake in Missouri come from Holt County, Buchanan County and Linn County.
Rat snakes and corn snakes in Missouri
Rat snakes and corn snakes: four species are listed for Missouri, with 177 records (9% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the western rat snake (169), ahead of the western foxsnake (4).
Observation records of the western rat snake in Missouri run mostly April through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Franklin County, Texas County and St. Louis County.
Kingsnakes and milksnakes in Missouri
Kingsnakes and milksnakes: three species are listed for Missouri, with 112 records (6% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the prairie kingsnake (45), ahead of the speckled kingsnake (42).
Most licensed records of the prairie kingsnake in Missouri come from St. Louis County, Greene County and Texas County. Observation records of the speckled kingsnake in Missouri run mostly April through August, peaking in April; most licensed records come from Jefferson County, Texas County and Washington County.
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes in Missouri
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes: two species are listed for Missouri, with 98 records (5% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the eastern racer (87), ahead of the coachwhip (11).
Observation records of the eastern racer in Missouri run mostly April through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from St. Louis County, Jefferson County and Washington County.
Gopher snakes, bullsnakes and pine snakes in Missouri
One species of this group is listed for Missouri: the gopher snake, with 1 record (0.1% of the state's snake records).
Hognose snakes in Missouri
One species of this group is listed for Missouri: the eastern hog-nosed snake, with 16 records (0.8% of the state's snake records).
Green snakes in Missouri
One species of this group is listed for Missouri: the rough greensnake, with 35 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the rough greensnake in Missouri come from Phelps County, St. Louis County and Cape Girardeau County.
Small woodland and burrowing snakes in Missouri
Small woodland and burrowing snakes dominate the snake record of Missouri: nine species and 32% of all records. The most recorded is the ring-necked snake (244), ahead of the DeKay's brown snake (122).
Observation records of the ring-necked snake in Missouri run mostly March through October, peaking in April; most licensed records come from Boone County, Jefferson County and Lincoln County. Observation records of the DeKay's brown snake in Missouri run mostly March through November, peaking in March; most licensed records come from St. Louis County, Holt County and Lewis County. Most licensed records of the western worm snake in Missouri come from Jefferson County, Ralls County and Pike County.
Where in Missouri are snakes recorded most?
Holt County leads with 206 records (11%), followed by St. Louis County and Jefferson County; the top five counties hold 35% of the total. 96 of Missouri's 114 counties have at least one licensed snake record.
| # | County | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Holt County | 206 | 10.9% |
| 2 | St. Louis County | 167 | 8.9% |
| 3 | Jefferson County | 135 | 7.2% |
| 4 | Cape Girardeau County | 85 | 4.5% |
| 5 | Texas County | 61 | 3.2% |
| 6 | Boone County | 53 | 2.8% |
| 7 | Franklin County | 52 | 2.8% |
| 8 | Jackson County | 50 | 2.7% |
| 9 | Phelps County | 48 | 2.5% |
| 10 | Pike County | 45 | 2.4% |
| 11 | Dent County | 43 | 2.3% |
| 12 | Lincoln County | 41 | 2.2% |
When do snakes come out in Missouri?
Observation records of snakes in Missouri run mostly March through October, peaking in May with 24% of them. December through February together hold under 2% of the records, so snakes in Missouri are rarely recorded in winter. The sharpest rise comes from March to April.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 1% | 9% | 19% | 24% | 9% | 5% | 6% | 9% | 14% | 3% | 1% |
Snakes: Missouri compared with its neighbors
Missouri ranks 14th of 50 states by the number of snake species listed, level with Arkansas; Texas leads with 86 species.
Of the eight states bordering Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas list more snake species; Arkansas lists as many (Missouri: 36 species; Oklahoma 50, Kansas 44, Arkansas 36, Illinois 33, Tennessee 32, Nebraska 31, Kentucky 24, Iowa 22).
What snakes are in Missouri? All 36 species
Ranked by licensed records in Missouri. Species with a profile page are linked.
| # | Species | Family | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | Colubridae | 244 | 13.0% |
| 2 | Northern water snake Nerodia sipedon | Colubridae | 202 | 10.7% |
| 3 | Common garter snake Thamnophis sirtalis | Colubridae | 190 | 10.1% |
| 4 | Western rat snake Pantherophis obsoletus | Colubridae | 169 | 9.0% |
| 5 | DeKay's brown snake Storeria dekayi | Colubridae | 122 | 6.5% |
| 6 | Eastern racer Coluber constrictor | Colubridae | 87 | 4.6% |
| 7 | Northern cottonmouth venomous Agkistrodon piscivorus | Viperidae | 70 | 3.7% |
| 8 | Eastern copperhead venomous Agkistrodon contortrix | Viperidae | 65 | 3.5% |
| 9 | Western worm snake Carphophis vermis | Colubridae | 61 | 3.2% |
| 10 | Western ribbon snake Thamnophis proximus | Colubridae | 60 | 3.2% |
| 11 | Diamondback water snake Nerodia rhombifer | Colubridae | 57 | 3.0% |
| 12 | Prairie kingsnake Lampropeltis calligaster | Colubridae | 45 | 2.4% |
| 13 | Speckled kingsnake Lampropeltis holbrooki | Colubridae | 42 | 2.2% |
| 14 | Flathead snake Tantilla gracilis | Colubridae | 41 | 2.2% |
| 15 | Plain-bellied watersnake Nerodia erythrogaster | Colubridae | 41 | 2.2% |
| 16 | Rough earthsnake Haldea striatula | Colubridae | 39 | 2.1% |
| 17 | Rough greensnake Opheodrys aestivus | Colubridae | 35 | 1.9% |
| 18 | Eastern wormsnake Carphophis amoenus | Colubridae | 31 | 1.6% |
| 19 | Plains garter snake Thamnophis radix | Colubridae | 30 | 1.6% |
| 20 | Timber rattlesnake venomous Crotalus horridus | Viperidae | 29 | 1.5% |
| 21 | Lined snake Tropidoclonion lineatum | Colubridae | 28 | 1.5% |
| 22 | Eastern milksnake Lampropeltis triangulum | Colubridae | 25 | 1.3% |
| 23 | Graham's crayfish snake Regina grahamii | Colubridae | 22 | 1.2% |
| 24 | Smooth earth snake Virginia valeriae | Colubridae | 19 | 1.0% |
| 25 | Red-bellied snake Storeria occipitomaculata | Colubridae | 17 | 0.9% |
| 26 | Eastern hog-nosed snake Heterodon platirhinos | Colubridae | 16 | 0.8% |
| 27 | Southern watersnake Nerodia fasciata | Colubridae | 12 | 0.6% |
| 28 | Coachwhip Masticophis flagellum | Colubridae | 11 | 0.6% |
| 29 | Pygmy rattlesnake venomous Sistrurus miliarius | Viperidae | 11 | 0.6% |
| 30 | Western massasauga venomous Sistrurus tergeminus | Viperidae | 11 | 0.6% |
| 31 | Green water snake Nerodia cyclopion | Colubridae | 10 | 0.5% |
| 32 | Western foxsnake Pantherophis ramspotti | Colubridae | 4 | 0.2% |
| 33 | Great Plains rat snake Pantherophis emoryi | Colubridae | 3 | 0.2% |
| 34 | Mud snake Farancia abacura | Colubridae | 2 | 0.1% |
| 35 | Eastern rat snake Pantherophis alleghaniensis | Colubridae | 1 | 0.1% |
| 36 | Gopher snake Pituophis catenifer | Colubridae | 1 | 0.1% |
Also recorded in Missouri, fewer than 10 times
Beyond the main list, seven snake species are known from Missouri by only 3 to 9 records each. Some are genuine rarities at the edge of their range; others may be strays, released pets or old misidentifications, so treat them as unconfirmed. Venomous among them: eastern massasauga.
Related pages
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.