Northern water snake The belly also varies in color. It can be white, yellow, or gray. Usually it also has reddish or black crescents. The northern water snake is nonvenomous and harmless to humans, but superficially resembles the venomous cottonmouth and is often killed unnecessarily as a result of this mistaken identity. The two can be easily distinguished by morphological traits: the water snake has a longer, more slender body and a flattened head the same width as the neck, round pupils, and no heat-sensing pits. The cottonmouth has a fatter body, a wedge-shaped head with prominent venom glands that are wider than
Golden-crowned snake Golden-crowned snake The golden-crowned snake ("Cacophis squamulosus") is a small species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to Australia. Like other "Cacophis" species, the golden-crowned snake is a forest specialist, particularly rainforest. It prefers deeper forested areas, particularly rainforest on mountain slopes, however it can show up in suburbs near waterways and moist environments with ground cover and shelter. "C. squamulosus" is only mildly venomous, however it will bluff and mock bite if threatened, rearing into an S-shape to display the bright orange ventral pigmentation. Bites from larger individuals may present a health risk, however