Family: Crotalidae (Pitvipers)
Genera: Agkistrodon (American Moccasins), Crotalus (Rattlesnakes), and Sistrurus (Massasauga and Pygmy Rattlesnakes)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Agkistrodon contortrix" text="Eastern Copperhead" termclass='' link="Snake/Agkistrodon contortrix":)
Agkistrodon contortrix
|  Tan with darker brown hourglass-shaped bands. Bands sometimes thinly bordered with white. Belly mostly patternless, but sometimes with lower spots between bands extending onto belly. Heat-sensing pits. Pupils elliptical. Juveniles with bright yellow tail.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Agkistrodon piscivorus" text="Northern Cottonmouth" termclass='' link="Snake/Agkistrodon piscivorus":)
Agkistrodon piscivorus
| ⚠ Aquatic. Black or with dark, obscured patterning. Dark stripe from nostril to neck. ⚠ Labial scales lighter and without vertical bars. Heat-sensing pits. Pupils elliptical. May gape white "cotton mouth" when disturbed. Buoyant swimmer. Juveniles with bold pattern contrast and bright yellowish-green tail.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Crotalus atrox" text="W. Diamond-backed Rattlesnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Crotalus atrox":)
Crotalus atrox
| Mottled brown, tan, and black with large, roughly diamond-shaped ⚠ middorsal blotches. Blotches thinly etched with white except toward tail. Heat-sensing pits. Eyes elliptical and between light, diagonal stripes. "Coon tail" with rattle. 
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Crotalus horridus" text="Timber Rattlesnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Crotalus horridus":)
Crotalus horridus
| Grayish, yellowish, or light brown background with dark, jagged crossbands and rust-colored ⚠ middorsal stripe. Head with darker band from eye to jawline (less obvious in some individuals). Heat-sensing pits. Eyes elliptical. "Velvet tail" with rattle.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Sistrurus miliarius" text="Western Pygmy Rattlesnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Sistrurus miliarius":)
Sistrurus miliarius streckeri
| Smallish. Gray with black crossbands and rust-colored ⚠ middorsal stripe. Crossbands usually incomplete with gaps along sides of body. Head boldly patterned. Heat-sensing pits. Eyes elliptical. Diminutive rattle.
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Family: Elapidae (Coralsnakes, Cobras, and Kraits)
Genus: Micrurus (American Coralsnakes)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Micrurus tener" text="Texas Gulf-Coast Coralsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Micrurus tener":)
Micrurus tener tener
| Rare. Alternating black, red, and yellow bands so that "red touches yellow". Bands extend onto belly. Red bands often with specks of black. Snout all black and stubby with next band being yellow.
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Family: Colubridae (Harmless Egg-Laying Snakes)
Genera: Cemophora (Scarletsnakes), Coluber (North American Racers, Coachwhips, and Whipsnakes), Lampropeltis (Kingsnakes), Opheodrys (Greensnakes), Pantherophis (North American Ratsnakes), Sonora (North American Groundsnakes), and Tantilla (Black-headed, Crowned, and Flat-headed Snakes)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Cemophora coccinea" text="Northern Scarletsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Cemophora coccinea":)
Cemophora coccinea copei
| Rare. Red touches black. Alternating black, red, and light-colored bands or blotches. Light-colored bands vary by individual from gray, to cream, to light orange. Head red. Snout sharply pointed. Belly uniform cream.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Coluber constrictor" text="North American Racer" termclass='' link="Snake/Coluber constrictor":)
Coluber constrictor ssp.
| Long, slender, and speedy. Uniform black, dark gray, or olive (rarely with speckling of lighter scales). ⚠ Labial scales, chin, and neck usually lighter. Belly yellowish, cream, or black and unmarked. Juveniles blotched, fading to uniform olive toward tail.
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Subspecies: Buttermilk Racer (C. c. anthicus)  , Eastern Yellow-bellied Racer (C. c. flaviventris), Black-masked Racer (C. c. latrunculus), and Southern Black Racer (C. c. priapus)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Coluber flagellum" text="Eastern Coachwhip" termclass='' link="Snake/Coluber flagellum":)
Coluber flagellum flagellum
| Long, large, and speedy. Head and 1/3 of body black, changing to brown "leather whip" appearance toward tail (rare individuals are all black). Belly usually pinkish and mostly unmarked. Juveniles with irregular dark crossbars, fading to uniform tan toward tail.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Lampropeltis calligaster" text="Prairie Kingsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Lampropeltis calligaster":)
Lampropeltis calligaster calligaster
| Brown with alternating, dark brown blotches (patterning is obscured in some individuals). Blotches thinly bordered with black. Head smallish. Belly with irregular checkerboard of brown and tan, sometimes with specks of orange. Juveniles like adults but with more contrast.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Lampropeltis gentilis" text="Western Milksnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Lampropeltis gentilis":)
Lampropeltis gentilis
| Southwestern half of state. Red touches black. Alternating black, red, and light-colored bands or blotches. Light-colored bands vary by individual from gray, to cream, to light orange. Head variable but almost never all black. Snout rounded. Belly with checkerboard pattern.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Lampropeltis holbrooki" text="Speckled Kingsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Lampropeltis holbrooki":)
Lampropeltis holbrooki
| Black with yellowish specks (usually one per scale). Belly with black and yellowish checkerboard pattern. Juveniles with more chainlike pattern.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Lampropeltis triangulum" text="Eastern Milksnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Lampropeltis triangulum":)
Lampropeltis triangulum
| Northeastern half of state. Red touches black. Alternating black, red, and light-colored bands or blotches. Light-colored bands vary by individual from gray, to cream, to light orange. Head variable but almost never all black. Snout rounded. Belly with checkerboard pattern.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Opheodrys aestivus" text="Northern Rough Greensnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Opheodrys aestivus":)
Opheodrys aestivus aestivus
| Mostly ⚠ arboreal. Pencil-thin. Uniform green. Long tail. Belly light green, cream, or yellowish.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Pantherophis emoryi" text="Great Plains Ratsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Pantherophis emoryi":)
Pantherophis emoryi
| Grayish-brown with large, alternating, dark brown blotches. Blotches often bordered with black. Spearhead-shaped mark on head. Belly with irregular checkerboard of black and white, similar to maize. Juveniles like adults with black bar through eye extending past jawline onto neck.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Pantherophis obsoletus" text="Western Ratsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Pantherophis obsoletus":)
Pantherophis obsoletus
| Large. Mostly black, often with specks of cream or pink between scales. ⚠ Labial scales, chin, and neck cream. Belly with irregular checkerboard of black and white. Juveniles gray with dark blotches and a black bar that runs through eye to jawline.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Sonora semiannulata" text="Variable Groundsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Sonora semiannulata":)
Sonora semiannulata semiannulata
| Rare with very few vouchered specimens in AR. Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Glade-dweller. Highly variable (uniform tan with faint reddish stripe, or with one neck crossbar, or with dark crossbars running the length of the body, etc.). Belly uniform cream.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Tantilla gracilis" text="Flat-headed Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Tantilla gracilis":)
Tantilla gracilis
| Extremely small. ⚠ Fossorial. Glade-dweller. Uniform tan. Head pointed and darker. Belly salmon-colored.
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Family: Dipsadidae (Rear-Fanged Snakes)
Genera: Carphophis (North American Wormsnakes), Diadophis (Ring-necked Snakes), Farancia (Mudsnakes and Rainbow Snakes), and Heterodon (North American Hog-nosed Snakes)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Carphophis amoenus" text="Midwestern Wormsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Carphophis amoenus":)
Carphophis amoenus helenae
| Rare. Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Uniform brown (grayish-blue during shed cycles). Belly uniform pale pink, extending onto 2 ⚠ dorsal scale rows.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Carphophis vermis" text="Western Wormsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Carphophis vermis":)
Carphophis vermis
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Uniform black (grayish-blue during shed cycles). Belly uniform bright pink, extending onto 2-3 ⚠ dorsal scale rows.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Diadophis punctatus" text="Ring-necked Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Diadophis punctatus":)
Diadophis punctatus ssp.
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Uniform gray or black except for yellow ring around neck. Belly yellow (shifting to red under tail), usually with variable pattern of black dots.
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| Subspecies: Prairie Ring-necked Snake (D. p. arnyi) and Mississippi Ring-necked Snake (D. p. stictogenys)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Farancia abacura" text="Western Mudsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Farancia abacura":)
Farancia abacura reinwardtii
| ⚠ Aquatic. Large-bodied. Black and shiny. Belly with red bands that extend onto sides.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Heterodon platirhinos" text="Eastern Hog-nosed Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Heterodon platirhinos":)
Heterodon platirhinos
| Highly variable, with morphs either "solid" or "blotched". Thick-bodied. Strongly upturned snout. Primitive dark "eye spots" on neck (obscured in darker individuals). Exaggerated defensive display of flattening neck and body, hissing, and finally playing dead. Juveniles always boldly blotched.
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Family: Natricidae (Harmless Live-Bearing Snakes)
Genera: Haldea (Rough Earthsnakes), Liodytes (Swampsnakes), Nerodia (North American Watersnakes), Regina (Crayfish Snakes), Storeria (North American Brownsnakes), Thamnophis (North American Gartersnakes), Tropidoclonion (Lined Snakes), and Virginia (North American Earthsnakes)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Haldea striatula" text="Rough Earthsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Haldea striatula":)
Haldea striatula
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Plain brown. Belly uniform light tan. ⚠ Dorsal scales strongly ⚠ keeled. 5 supralabial scales, 1 postocular scale, and 1 internasal scale.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Liodytes rigida" text="Gulf Swampsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Liodytes rigida":)
Liodytes rigida sinicola
| Rare. ⚠ Aquatic. Plain brown. Belly yellow (extending just onto sides) with 2 rows of dark half-circles.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Nerodia cyclopion" text="Mississippi Green Watersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Nerodia cyclopion":)
Nerodia cyclopion
| Rare. ⚠ Aquatic. Greenish-brown color. Belly with cream half-circles. Subocular scales.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Nerodia erythrogaster" text="Plain-bellied Watersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Nerodia erythrogaster":)
Nerodia erythrogaster
| ⚠ Aquatic. Plain brown, sometimes with faint crossbars. Belly uniform yellow. Juveniles blotched with dark spots on neck alternating with ⚠ dorsal blotches.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Nerodia fasciata" text="Broad-banded Watersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Nerodia fasciata":)
Nerodia fasciata confluens
| ⚠ Aquatic. Broad, irregular, dark crossbands. Background usually orangish. Belly light with irregular checkerboard of redish rectangles.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Nerodia rhombifer" text="N. Diamond-backed Watersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Nerodia rhombifer":)
Nerodia rhombifer rhombifer
| ⚠ Aquatic. Net-like pattern. Belly with dark half-circles.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Nerodia sipedon" text="Midland Watersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Nerodia sipedon":)
Nerodia sipedon pleuralis
| ⚠ Aquatic. Dark ⚠ dorsal bands toward head becoming checkerboard toward tail. Individual variation in band and background color: browns, tans, reds, and yellows. Belly mottled with dark crescents.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Regina grahamii" text="Graham's Crayfish Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Regina grahamii":)
Regina grahamii
| Rare. ⚠ Aquatic. Plain brown with a faint ⚠ middorsal stripe and thick ⚠ lateral stripes. Belly usually uniform cream.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Regina septemvittata" text="Queensnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Regina septemvittata":)
Regina septemvittata
| Rare. ⚠ Aquatic. Plain grayish brown with pale yellow stripe just above belly. Belly with 2 rows of dark spots, more distinct near neck.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Storeria dekayi" text="Dekay's Brownsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Storeria dekayi":)
Storeria dekayi
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Coloration variable (browns, tans, and grays) with short crossbars connecting two rows of dots. Dark spots below eye and on temporal region. Belly cream.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Storeria occipitomaculata" text="Red-bellied Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Storeria occipitomaculata":)
Storeria occipitomaculata ssp.
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Coloration variable (browns, tans, and grays), usually with ⚠ middorsal stripe and rows of fine dots running lengthwise. Pale spots on neck. Belly red (in most individuals).
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| Subspecies: Florida Red-bellied Snake (S. o. obscura) and Northern Red-bellied Snake (S. o. occipitomaculata)
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Thamnophis proximus" text="Orange-striped Ribbonsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Thamnophis proximus":)
Thamnophis proximus proximus
| Three stripes of yellow, orange, or sometimes bluish. Background color black. ⚠ Labial scales uniform cream. White spot just in front of eye. Parietal spots on head large and touching. Belly unmarked.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Thamnophis sirtalis" text="Eastern Gartersnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Thamnophis sirtalis":)
Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis
| Three stripes of yellow or orange. Background color variable and sometimes checkerboard in appearance. Black bars between ⚠ labial scales. Belly mostly patternless, but with some black specks.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Tropidoclonion lineatum" text="Lined Snake" termclass='' link="Snake/Tropidoclonion lineatum":)
Tropidoclonion lineatum
| Rare (known in AR only from one locality in central Benton County). Three light stripes on brown background. Belly with double row of half-circles.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Virginia valeriae" text="Western Smooth Earthsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Virginia valeriae":)
Virginia valeriae elegans
| Small. ⚠ Fossorial. Plain brown with very faint ⚠ middorsal stripe. Belly uniform light yellow. ⚠ Dorsal scales weekly ⚠ keeled. 6 supralabial scales, 2 postocular scales, and 2 internasal scales.
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~ Potential Occurrence ~
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Agkistrodon laticinctus" text="Broad-banded Copperhead" termclass='' link="Snake/Agkistrodon laticinctus":)
Agkistrodon laticinctus
| Likely hybridizes with Eastern Copperhead in AR. Tan with darker brown hourglass-shaped bands. Bands sometimes thinly bordered with white. Belly mostly patternless, but sometimes with lower spots between bands extending onto belly. Heat-sensing pits. Pupils elliptical. Juveniles with bright yellow tail.
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| Rare with no vouchered specimen for AR. Blotched and dusty in appearance. Thick-bodied. Strongly upturned snout. Belly mostly black. Exaggerated defensive display of flattening neck and body, hissing, and finally playing dead.
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| No vouchered specimen for AR. Tan or light gray with dark brown blotches. Elongated dark patches on each side of neck. Pupils elliptical. Belly plain.
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| No vouchered specimen for AR, but confirmed specimens from SW MO. Black with reduced yellowish specks (usually one per scale). Belly with black and yellowish checkerboard pattern. Juveniles with more chainlike pattern.
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⚠ (:gloss term="L Pantherophis slowinskii" text="Slowinski's Cornsnake" termclass='' link="Snake/Pantherophis slowinskii":)
Pantherophis slowinskii
| Rare and with only 2 questionable records for AR. Grayish-brown with large, alternating, dark blotches. Blotches often bordered with black. "Spearhead" mark on head. Belly with irregular checkerboard of black and white, similar to maize.
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| Rare with no vouchered specimen for AR. Very large and powerfully built. Tan to yellowish background with dark blotches. Blotches become more regular and banded toward tail. Dark line from eye to jawline. Can hiss loudly.
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⚠ (:flickrgallery tags="Snake/Unidentified":)
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