Southern hognose snake

Southern Hognose Snake (University of Georgia Savannah River Ecology Lab)
Southern hognose snakes were historically found in the Coastal Plain of the eastern United States from southern North Carolina to southern Mississippi and in most parts of Florida. However, this species has declined in recent years and is now only found in scattered locations in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.

Southern Hognose Snake (Woods for Wildlife NC)
This snake inhabits dry upland forests in North Carolina’s sandhills, sand ridges, dry pine-oak-wiregrass associations, oak hammocks and occasionally coastal dunes. The Southern Hognose Snake is a small, stout-bodied snake with an upturned snout. It has patterns to dark brown blotches on a tan or light gray background and its belly is whitish and usually mottled with gray or dark brown.

Amphibians and Reptiles of North Carolina – Southern Hognose Snake Profile
Southern hognose snakes snakes are found in sandy fields and woods of the Coastal Plain and Sandhills region. They are active primarily during the day and eat primarily toads and other amphibians.

Southern Hognose Snake (Outdoor Alabama)
The Southern Hognose Snake occurs in the Coastal Plain from southern Mississippi to southeastern North Carolina and historically in the Ridge and Valley region of central Alabama. Sightings are infrequent and populations appear to be in decline throughout its range. In Alabama, the snake has not been observed in more than 20 years.

Southern Hognose Snake (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
Hognose snakes are known for their defensive displays – hissing, flattening of their necks, and feigning death. These “theatrics” have earned them nicknames like hissing adder, blow viper, puff adder, spreading adder, and hissing sand snake. southern hognose snakes will hiss and flare their necks when threatened like other hognose snakes but tend to be less theatrical than the other species.

Southern Hognose Snakes (UNC Charlotte Urban Institute)
Because they spend a lot of time underground, they are not a well understood species, and it is believed that invasive fire ants have contributed to their decline, but certainly the loss of the longleaf pine ecosystem has played a huge role as well.