Cottonmouth snakes are carnivorous snakes because they only eat meat and animals for their survival. They can eat fish, lizards, turtles, and small snakes. Cottonmouth venom is potent and it can be deadly dangerous to humans. It is named cottonmouth because of the white color of the inner side of the mouth.

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Cottonmouths can be found in Piedmont locations west of Atlanta, Georgia, but they are restricted to coastal plains. They are found in all freshwater habitats, but they are most common in habitats like heavily vegetated wetlands, river floodplains, swamps, marshes, drainage, ponds, lakes, and streams.

The average size of a cottonmouth is about 30-48 inches in length, but they can grow up to 74 inches. A cottonmouth snake can live for about 10 years.

Insects and animals

Cottonmouths prey on different animals, rodents, and meat for their nutrition. They consume a variety of mammals, aquatic and terrestrial prey. Cottonmouths can eat lizards, small turtles, and amphibians such as frogs, birds, baby alligators, and fish. They can eat small snakes. Adult cottonmouths can eat baby cottonmouths.

Cottonmouths eat insects such as ants, beetles, slugs, worms, and grasshoppers. As they are semi-aquatic, they eat many aquatic insects. Cottonmouths, like other snakes, hide in the bushes and grass and wait for their prey. They hunt them and eat. Cottonmouths can eat crayfish and carrion. Cottonmouths are not picky eaters, they easily eat carrion. Adult cottonmouths can eat eggs and chicken eggs. Large cottonmouths can eat a live chicken and bullfrog.

In the wild, cottonmouths eat small mammals, small water birds, carrion, smaller snakes, and fish. Cottonmouths are more active at night than day, and they mostly hunt and eat at night hours. 

What cottonmouths don’t eat

Cottonmouths don’t eat any plants, grass, fruits, or vegetables. Also, cottonmouths can’t eat animals like owls, hawks, snapping turtles, otters, and raccoons because these animals are the predators of cottonmouths.