Tennessee is home to 34 species of snakes, only 4 of which are venomous. Please take the time to learn more about these interesting and beneficial residents of our state. Below is a list of snake species native to Tennessee.
Amphibian and Reptile Checklist for each of the Grand Divisions of Tennessee
County Map by www.tn.gov
List of Scientific names Venomous or Not?
Snakebite statistics Avoiding snakes & Preventing Snakebite
Living with Snakes in Tennessee (.pdf) Is it a Cottonmouth? (.pdf)
A great library of PDF manuals at fmanuals.com for free.
reptile review (.pdf)
Tennessee’s Non-venomous Snakes
(sometimes called chicken snake)
(also called red ratsnake, cornsnake)
In Tennessee, it is illegal to harm, kill, remove from the wild, or possess native snakes taken from the wild without the proper permits.
Please help the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) to protect our native snakes. Do not remove snakes from the wild or release snakes that have been captive into the wild.
Once-captive snakes often don’t survive in the wild and can introduce harmful diseases and parasites into the wild.
Tennessee’s Venomous Snakes
Photo by Lisa Powers, Froghaven Farm
Ring-necked Snake
Diadophis punctatus
Tennessee Herpetological Society
Snakes are important to the environment and help to keep nature in balance.
Recommended Guides:
All three of these are available from Bookstores