Nerodia erythrogaster
Tuesday, April 2, 2024 – 10:33 a.m.
Conway, Arkansas – Hendrix Creek Preserve
I was birding along the trail between I-40 and the creek. I saw an approaching couple with two boys. They stopped and stared at something along the trail, then continued toward me. I asked what they’d seen, and the woman walked back with me and showed me this snake.
It was coiled in the leaves right along the trail, perhaps three feet from the banks of the creek. I took a couple photos, but when I got too close, it headed through the brush into the water. I saw it floating mid-stream for a short time, then disappear under the surface.
It was perhaps 30 inches long, smooth gray on top and plain yellowish underneath.