10/11/2026
🐍 NO, THIS SNAKE IS NOT GOING TO KILL YOU!
Meet the Eastern Hognose Snake — quite possibly one of the biggest drama queens in the snake world!
When frightened, a hognose may flatten its head and neck, hiss loudly, puff itself up, mock-strike and put on a pretty convincing “I’m dangerous!” performance. If that doesn’t work… it may literally roll over and play dead.
Despite the performance, Eastern Hognose Snakes are not considered dangerous to people. They do possess a mild, rear-fanged venom primarily used to help subdue prey such as toads, but it is not considered medically significant to humans. Bites are also extremely uncommon.
⚠️ Please don’t mistake one for a copperhead and kill it.
These snakes are an important part of our local ecosystem here on the Delaware & Maryland Eastern Shore.
📍 MARYLAND: All native snake species are protected under Maryland’s Nongame and Endangered Species Conservation Act. Killing a snake simply because you encounter it can violate state wildlife protections.
📍 DELAWARE: Eastern Hognose Snakes are native Delaware wildlife and are covered by state reptile regulations. Leave them alone and allow them to move along rather than attempting to capture or kill them.
See the turned-up little “hog nose”? That’s where they get their name, and they use that shovel-like snout for digging.
Scary looking? Maybe.
Dangerous to you? No.
Deserving of being killed because of fear or mistaken identity? Absolutely not.
🐍 Please educate before you eliminate. If you’re unsure what kind of snake you’re looking at, keep your distance and have it properly identified.
