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Hi all. I hope this isn't a stupid question. A young boy near here was recently bit by what was said to either be a copperhead or a cottonmouth (Forget which) and I thought it was cottonmouth. He said that the doctor's told him the snake had the OPTION Of poisoning, or not poisoning when biting, depending on the level of threat. This boy was NOT poisoned.

Does anyone know if this is true? I'm doing research for a novel, and thought that would be a fun little tidbit to use in it if it's true, but I cannot find any support for it. For all I know they told him that becuse they didn't think it was a cottonmouth that bit him, but a non poisonous water snake.

A mixture of possibities here.

Statistics vary from 25% - 35% of the VENOMOUS (not poisonous) snake bites are what are known as a dry bite. This refers to the bite as being a defensive bite with no venom having been injected.

Of course the probabilty of the snake being a harmless watersnake is also good. The bite pattern usually makes this id easy.
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Tim Cole
www.Designeratrox.com/
www.AustinReptileService.net
www.AustinReptileExpo.com/
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Conservation through Education

You guys are great, thanks! Dry bite, that's what I was looking for. Is there a place where I can learn a little about this (use for a reference)?

I do know there was someone on the scene, said it was a cottommouth, which is not TOTALLY unheard of in this area, but is not that common. But it occurred in tall grass after ALOT of rain (lots of hurricanes), and this area does tend to hold water alot. I don't believe the copperhead is common in NC is it?

Cottonmouths occur in the eastern half of the state.

Try googling for Dry Bite references. Quite a few are out there.
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Tim Cole
www.Designeratrox.com/
www.AustinReptileService.net
www.AustinReptileExpo.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<
Conservation through Education

We're actually pretty much in the smack dab middle of the state,,,, which is why they aren't the most common around here.

You're sort of both right. Venomous snakes can control how much if any venom they inject and it's not terribly unusual for someone to receive a "dry bite" (no venom injected). On the other hand, probably a majority of "copperheads" and "cottonmouths" people report seeing are watersnakes.

So, in the absence of obvious fang marks, a captured snake or identification on the scene by a competent individual, I would highly suspect a snake reported as a copperhead or cottonmouth that bit but caused no effect to be a watersnake.

Water snakes are also pretty nasty creatures in their own right. They look a lot like cottonmouths to the untrained eye, and they are agressive and have large teeth. They can really inflict a mean bite. I captured a banded water snake a few months ago, and I showed it to my neighbor. He thought it was a cottonmouth and, even after I showed him it wasn't venomous, he was still very uneasy around the snake. If you don't know a lot about snakes, water snakes can be easily confused with cottonmouths, especially when they flatten their heads and strike like crazy, which the ones I've encountered almost always do.

RP

With a water snake bite there is some uncertainty whether it is actually a misidentified venomous or not. With a Moccasin, there is very little doubt. This “dry bite” thing is highly over-rated with a truly venomous reptile. That is almost certainly not going to happen with a snake that has been stepped on or in any other way traumatized or surprised. I think they chomp real hard. A real dry bite might come from a half-dormant snake on a real cool day or a well acclimated less nervous type. Sometimes they will half-heartedly strike or “bump” without even opening their mouths, as if they know the drill- they can’t hurt you. A dry bite might just be a threatening defensive warning to back off. Even with their fangs and poison, they generally greatly fear you.