{"id":4254,"date":"2019-09-24T19:10:30","date_gmt":"2019-09-25T00:10:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lostpineslife.com\/?p=4254"},"modified":"2021-06-11T01:36:57","modified_gmt":"2021-06-11T06:36:57","slug":"all-creatures-great-and-small-water-moccasins-and-hummingbirds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lostpineslife.com\/?p=4254","title":{"rendered":"All Creatures Great and Small–Water Moccasins and Hummingbirds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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All things bright and beautiful
All creatures great and small
All things wise and wonderful
The Lord God made them all…
–Cecil France Alexander, 1848<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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The Great Cottonmouth Water Moccasin<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"Cottonmouth
Cottonmouth Water Moccasin<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When I saw this creature swimming fast, tongue flicking, heading down Piney Creek, I was standing safely on shore. The strangest thing is, the snake was so much bigger than any snake I’ve ever seen that it didn’t occur to me that it was<\/em> a snake. I thought I was seeing an otter at first; then, i just didn’t know what it was. When I downloaded the photos I had snapped, I slowly realized this was a snake. I googled “huge Texas water snake” and found pictures just like mine of fully grown, record-setting Cottonmouth Water Moccasins. These reptiles reportedly grow up to 48″ with exceptions measuring in at 5′ or more. They are unusual in the ability to swim on top of the water displaying their full, astonishing length. I can’t say at what length this fresh-water serpent would measure, but surely 4 or more feet. It’s head was huge! <\/p>\n\n\n\n