Snakes and spiders in Hays County, Texas
Hays County, home of San Marcos, has 21 snake and 54 spider species on record, from 376 licensed snake and 400 spider records. Venomous species here: the Texas coral snake, the western diamondback rattlesnake, the northern cottonmouth, the brown recluse, the southern black widow, the western black widow and the brown widow.
Are there venomous snakes or spiders in Hays County?
Yes. The Texas coral snake: 24 licensed records, 4% of all Texas records of it. The western diamondback rattlesnake: 19 licensed records, 1% of all Texas records of it. The northern cottonmouth: 9 licensed records, 1% of all Texas records of it. The brown recluse: 5 licensed records, 4% of all Texas records of it. The southern black widow: 2 licensed records, 1% of all Texas records of it. The western black widow: 1 licensed record, 1% of all Texas records of it. The brown widow: on record, no openly licensed records to count.
What snakes are in Hays County?
In all, 21 snake species are on the Hays County list. The most recorded are the plain-bellied watersnake (45), the western ribbon snake (36) and the Texas blind snake (33).
| # | Species | Records | Share of Texas records |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Plain-bellied watersnake Nerodia erythrogaster | 45 | 2% |
| 2 | Western ribbon snake Thamnophis proximus | 36 | 1% |
| 3 | Texas blind snake Rena dulcis | 33 | 3% |
| 4 | Western rat snake Pantherophis obsoletus | 29 | 2% |
| 5 | Flathead snake Tantilla gracilis | 24 | 3% |
| 6 | Texas coral snake venomous Micrurus tener | 24 | 4% |
| 7 | Western diamondback rattlesnake venomous Crotalus atrox | 19 | 1% |
| 8 | Rough earthsnake Haldea striatula | 17 | 1% |
| 9 | Diamondback water snake Nerodia rhombifer | 15 | 1% |
| 10 | Coachwhip Masticophis flagellum | 14 | 1% |
| 11 | DeKay's brown snake Storeria dekayi | 14 | 1% |
| 12 | Checkered garter snake Thamnophis marcianus | 13 | 1% |
| 13 | Western ground snake Sonora semiannulata | 13 | 1% |
| 14 | Blackneck garter snake Thamnophis cyrtopsis | 12 | 3% |
| 15 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | 10 | 2% |
| 16 | Northern cottonmouth venomous Agkistrodon piscivorus | 9 | 1% |
| 17 | Rough greensnake Opheodrys aestivus | 9 | 1% |
| 18 | Eastern hog-nosed snake Heterodon platirhinos | 6 | 1% |
| 19 | Striped whipsnake Masticophis taeniatus | 6 | 2% |
| 20 | Great Plains rat snake Pantherophis emoryi | 2 | 0% |
| 21 | Texas patch-nosed snake Salvadora lineata | 2 | 2% |
When are snakes out in Hays County?
Observation records of snakes in Hays County run mostly March through November, peaking in May with 22% of them; across Texas the peak is April.
What spiders are in Hays County?
In all, 54 spider species are on the Hays County list. The most recorded are Tayshaneta coeca (21), Tayshaneta archambaulti (19) and Cicurina varians (18). Hays County holds more than half of all Texas records of Tayshaneta coeca and Tayshaneta archambaulti.
Related species: Cicurina arcuata
| # | Species | Records | Share of Texas records |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tayshaneta coeca | 21 | 81% |
| 2 | Tayshaneta archambaulti | 19 | 100% |
| 3 | Cicurina varians | 18 | 4% |
| 4 | Black-and-yellow argiope Argiope aurantia | 17 | 1% |
| 5 | Rabid wolf spider Rabidosa rabida | 12 | 1% |
| 6 | Bold jumper Phidippus audax | 11 | 1% |
| 7 | Hogna antelucana | 9 | 1% |
| 8 | Giant lichen orbweaver Araneus bicentenarius | 8 | 5% |
| 9 | Texas brown tarantula Aphonopelma hentzi | 8 | 2% |
| 10 | Nursery web spider Pisaurina mira | 7 | 2% |
| 11 | Triangulate bud spider Steatoda triangulosa | 7 | 2% |
| 12 | Twin-flagged jumping spider Anasaitis canosa | 7 | 1% |
| 13 | Brown recluse venomous Loxosceles reclusa | 5 | 4% |
| 14 | Furrow orbweaver Larinioides cornutus | 5 | 4% |
| 15 | Green lynx spider Peucetia viridans | 5 | 1% |
| 16 | Sixspotted fishing spider Dolomedes triton | 5 | 2% |
| 17 | Spotted orbweaver Neoscona crucifera | 5 | 1% |
| 18 | Phidippus arizonensis | 4 | 4% |
| 19 | Spiny-backed orbweaver Gasteracantha cancriformis | 4 | 1% |
| 20 | Euagrus chisoseus | 3 | 8% |
| 21 | Falconina gracilis | 3 | 2% |
| 22 | Humpbacked orbweaver Eustala anastera | 3 | 3% |
| 23 | Banded fishing spider Dolomedes vittatus | 2 | 4% |
| 24 | Banded garden spider Argiope trifasciata | 2 | 1% |
| 25 | Colonus hesperus | 2 | 7% |
| 26 | Dotted wolf spider Rabidosa punctulata | 2 | 2% |
| 27 | Habronattus fallax | 2 | 5% |
| 28 | Southern black widow venomous Latrodectus mactans | 2 | 1% |
| 29 | Striped lynx spider Oxyopes salticus | 2 | 0% |
| 30 | Teminius affinis | 2 | 6% |
| 31 | Arabesque orbweaver Neoscona arabesca | 1 | 0% |
| 32 | Carolina jumping spider Phidippus carolinensis | 1 | 1% |
| 33 | Cribellate spider Metaltella simoni | 1 | 0% |
| 34 | Gladicosa pulchra | 1 | 2% |
| 35 | High eye-lashed jumping spider Phidippus mystaceus | 1 | 2% |
| 36 | Naphrys acerba | 1 | 2% |
| 37 | Orange ant-mimic sac spider Castianeira amoena | 1 | 3% |
| 38 | Orchard orbweaver Leucauge venusta | 1 | 1% |
| 39 | Pantropical jumper Plexippus paykulli | 1 | 0% |
| 40 | Phidippus texanus | 1 | 1% |
| 41 | Scytodes atlacoya | 1 | 1% |
| 42 | Southwestern trapdoor spider Eucteniza relata | 1 | 2% |
| 43 | Tuftlegged orbweaver Mangora placida | 1 | 1% |
| 44 | Western black widow venomous Latrodectus hesperus | 1 | 1% |
| 45 | Western spotted orbweaver Neoscona oaxacensis | 1 | 0% |
| 46 | Brown widow venomous introduced Latrodectus geometricus | — | — |
| 47 | Cardinal jumper Phidippus cardinalis | — | — |
| 48 | Common Hentz jumping spider Hentzia palmarum | — | — |
| 49 | Familiar jumping spider Platycryptus undatus | — | — |
| 50 | Lined orbweaver Mangora gibberosa | — | — |
| 51 | Mecaphesa dubia | — | — |
| 52 | Peppered jumper Pelegrina galathea | — | — |
| 53 | Three-lined maevia Paramaevia poultoni | — | — |
| 54 | Unbanded wolf spider Hogna baltimoriana | — | — |
When are spiders out in Hays County?
Observation records of spiders in Hays County run mostly March through November, peaking in October with 22% of them; across Texas the peak is April.
What stands out in Hays County
Species for which Hays County holds a large share of all Texas records: Tayshaneta coeca, 81% (21 of 26).
Common in Texas, not on the Hays County list
Among the snakes most recorded across Texas, these do not reach the county list: the gopher snake (1,440 statewide) and the eastern copperhead (1,188 statewide). Few records here can mean the species is rare in the county, or that few people have looked.
Harmless lookalikes in Hays County
No copperheads reach the county list, but the eastern copperhead and the broad-banded copperhead are on the Texas list: treat any snake like them as venomous until identified. Harmless species often taken for them here: the plain-bellied watersnake and the eastern hog-nosed snake. Cottonmouths are on the county list, and so are harmless species often taken for them: the plain-bellied watersnake and the diamondback water snake. Rattlesnakes are on the county list, and so are harmless species often taken for them: the eastern hog-nosed snake and the Great Plains rat snake. Widow spiders are on the county list, and so are harmless species often taken for them: the triangulate bud spider.
Hays County among Texas counties
By licensed snake records Hays County ranks 28th of 254 Texas counties with any.
Other Texas counties with their own page: Travis County, Brewster County, Harris County, Brazos County, El Paso County, Jeff Davis County, Val Verde County and Bexar County.
The whole state: venomous species in Texas, all snakes, all spiders.
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.