Snakes in Rhode Island

On this page, you can find an overview of snakes in Rhode Island. If you are a Rhode Island resident looking to identify a snake that you encountered, here is the good news first: there are no venomous snakes in Rhode Island. Historically, small populations of the timber rattlesnake were found in Rhode Island. But the snake has been declared extirpated in Rhode Island over 50 years ago and no sightings have occured since.

Every year, there are various reports of alleged sightings of the venomous water moccasin (or cottonmouth) snake in Rhode Island. However, the cottonmouth snake is only found as far north as Virginia and these sightings are exclusively sightings of the harmless and non-venomous similar-looking Northern water snake.

If you have encountered a snake in Rhode Island that you cannot identify yourself, we’ll be happy to identify it for you. Simply take a picture of it and upload your picture, a quick description and the U.S. state where it was found here on our snake identification page. 

List of non-venomous snakes in Rhode Island

There are 12 snake species in Rhode Island and all of them are nonvenomous. The most common snakes are common garter snakes and milk snakes. Just click on any of the images or links below to learn more about each Rhode Island snake.

Thamnophis Sauritus – Ribbon Snake

The ribbon snake, Thamnophis sauritus, is a common non-venomous garter snake species found in the Eastern United States. The snake ...
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Heterodon Platirhinos – Eastern Hognose Snake

The eastern hognose snake is a harmless medium-sized snake found in the Central and Eastern United States. The snake has ...
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Lampropeltis Triangulum – Milk Snake

The milk snake is a nonvenomous snake that can be found in the Eastern and Central United States, in Canada ...
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Opheodrys Vernalis – Smooth Green Snake

The smooth green snake is a relatively small nonvenomous snake found throughout the Northeastern and Central United States. Its body ...
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Pantherophis Alleghaniensis – Eastern Rat Snake

Pantherophis alleghaniensis, commonly called the eastern rat snake or the black rat snake is a large nonvenomous snake found in ...
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Nerodia Sipedon – Common Watersnake

The common watersnake is a nonvenomous snake that is often seen throughout the Eastern United States as well as Southeastern ...
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Storeria Occipitomaculata – Redbelly Snake

Storeria occipitomaculata, the redbelly snake is a small, dark brown , grey or black snake with a red, orange or ...
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Diadophis Punctatus – Ring-Necked Snake

The ring-necked snake, Diadophis punctatus, is a harmless small snake that can be found throughout most of the United States ...
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Carphophis Amoenus – Worm Snake

The worm snake, Carphophis amoenus, is a small nonvenomous snake species that can be found throughout the Eastern United States ...
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Storeria Dekayi – Brown Snake

Storeris dekayi, commonly called the (American) brown snake or Dekay's snake is a small non-venomous snake that can be found ...
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Thamnophis Sirtalis – Common Garter Snake

The common garter snake is the best-known and most widespread species among the garter snakes. It can be found throughout ...
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Coluber Constrictor – Racer

Coluber constrictor, commonly called the eastern racer is a nonvenomous snake species. The species contains eleven subspecies that can be ...
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