Knox County Hognose

Eastern Hognose Snake (Heterodon platirhinos)

I was walking along the edge of a sandy agricultural field on the floodplain of the Wabash last week. Toads were plentiful. It made me start to think about Hognoses.

Sure enough, I spotted a hognose. It already had its hood spread by the time I saw it, from ten or fifteen feet away. That made me curious if it had spread its hood for another reason.

Besides some pictures, I did not disturb him any more. He was heading for the shade of the nearby woods and out of the hot field.

I enjoy seeing every opportunity I have to see these guys. I thought it was cool how you could see the remnant of his pattern. Some younger individuals can be very strikingly patterned. http://www.cnah.org/taxonDetail.aspx?taxonId=152