Where Do Snakes Actually Live in the US?
Snakes live in 6 US states and are confirmed absent from 24 more, based on 3,811 verified iNaturalist and GBIF records. This page covers every state at once instead of one near-identical page per state.
By Tim, founder of Easy Street Markets. I maintain the wildlife database and verify every animal and source myself.
The states with the strongest confirmed populations are California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, Ohio and Texas. These are real, verified iNaturalist and GBIF occurrence records, not modeled range estimates.
Snakes have zero confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa and Kentucky, or 14 other states, despite tens of thousands of nationwide observation records for the species. That is a real, checked absence, not a missing page.
A small number of states (20) have only a handful of unverified or vagrant records, too few to confirm snakes as an established population there.
Confirmed states (6)
Not found (24)
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- New Hampshire
- North Carolina
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Vermont
- Wisconsin
Unconfirmed (20)
Only a handful of unverified or vagrant records exist for snakes in Arizona, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, too few to confirm an established population.
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Frequently asked questions
What states do snakes live in?+
Snakes have confirmed wild populations in 6 US states: California, Colorado, Florida, New Mexico, Ohio and Texas.
Where are snakes not found in the US?+
Snakes have no confirmed wild sightings in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont and Wisconsin.
Full snakes guides by state