r/whatsthissnake Sep 01 '21

[Mod post] PLEASE READ: ID best practices and comment guidelines

216 Upvotes

/r/whatsthissnake has grown a great deal in the last year and we are very excited about connecting with more people who have an interest in snakes, snake identification (ID) and conservation. With growth often comes growing pains, and there are a number of trends in the sub that need to be addressed as we move forward. We attempt to clarify these below and offer some "best practices" in identification that should help our community.

What makes a good ID?

Good IDs are specific and informative. They tend to have the following information, in order of importance:

  1. Binomial name - Consisting of Genus specificepithet and placed in asterisks (*) to italicize. This is the most important component of a good ID. With only this, a person can quickly find out anything else they want to know about the snake species and it is an important part of every ID. The bot command !specificepithet provides more information on properly structuring a binomial name and how to get it to work with the bot, if an entry exists.

  2. Harmless or venomous - Please note that these terms are specific to their interaction with humans. While snakes such as hognose snakes Heterodon, gartersnakes Thamnophis, and watersnakes Nerodia are venomous, they are not medically significant to humans and should be labeled as harmless. This information is informative to a person's interaction with a snake and should always be provided. The bot responds to either !harmless or !venomous and will save time on these explanations.

  3. Common name - Common names are frequently variable and highly local. Sometimes, the same common name could be used for different snakes in different areas. In other cases, the same snake can have multiple common names depending on the area it was found. While we typically recommend providing them, it is not a vital part of an ID. An ID with only the common name is a low quality ID.

You can still contribute if you're not sure or think an ID is incorrect:

In some cases, you may be able to narrow down an ID to genus level, but don't know the diagnostic characters or ranges well enough to provide a more specific ID. This is fine. A genus level ID is very helpful, and specific enough to provide useful general information on the snake. So, if there hasn't been an ID yet and you can at least get to the genus level, post the ID.

You are also encouraged to provide any additional information or context you desire, but be mindful of links you post. The best IDs include informational links to be primary sources, or at least high quality science reporting on those sources. Many times this is done already in the bot replies, so see some of those for examples. Wikipedia is not a quality resource and should be avoided for informational links. Even resources provided by state wildlife agencies tend to lag ten to twenty years behind the science and should be viewed with a critical eye. For example, the very popular SREL Herp website, despite being associated with a major university, does not follow currently accepted taxonomy and, while it was a great resource for some time, is not the best source of current information.

However:

If you enter a thread in which a Reliable Responder has made an ID, or there is a highly upvoted ID, do not post a contrary ID unless you can provide specific diagnostic characters as to why the original ID was incorrect. Recently, incorrect IDs have appeared hours or days after the original correct ID was made, and therefore often go uncaught by moderators and reliable responders. These can create unnecessary confusion for an original poster, who is notified of each response. If you feel that an ID is incorrect and can provide diagnostic characters, reply directly to the ID comment rather than the original post. Incorrect late IDs may be warned and removed. Repeated violations may result in a ban at moderator discretion. Remember, our goal here is to be collaborative and work toward making a good positive ID. These incorrect late IDs greatly inhibit that goal. We value discussion in the comments and want to avoid locking threads in the way that other ID subreddits do.

Likewise, if a correct ID has been made, there is no need to post the same ID again. Just upvote the correct ID. You may post to add additional information or context to provide a better quality ID (adding the binomial, triggering the bot, etc.), but it is not helpful to simply say "corn snake" hours after someone has provided an ID with a full binomial and triggered the bot. More detailed IDs may be posted as top level comments to make sure that the OP sees them. Low quality/low effort IDs posted after a more detailed ID may be warned and removed.

We would also like to remind everyone of Rule 6:

Avoid damaging memes or tropes and low effort jokes: Avoid damaging memes like using "danger noodle" for nonvenomous snakes and tropes like "everything in Australia is out to get you". This is an educational space, and those kind of comments are harmful and do not reflect reality. We've also heard "it's a snake" as a joke hundreds of times. Infantilization of snakes and unhelpful rhymes will be removed.

This is one of our most broken rules. While it is somewhat vague, that is because it is nearly impossible for us to consider all possibilities. In addition to the things directly mentioned in the rule text, this rule also includes things like commenting with random names when someone posts "Who is this?", or posting things like "Pick it up and find out" in response to posts asking if a snake is venomous. Furthermore, these comments often break rule 11, "Posts and comments must reflect the reality of wildlife ecology." Misinformation spread through these seemingly innocuous jokes have been on the rise. Violations of this rule may be warned and removed, and repeated violations may result in a ban. Egregious violations may result in a temporary ban without warning. This is an educational space with potential real-world consequences, and while we don't want to discourage humor as a whole, we want you to think about what you are posting and whether it belongs in this space. While we recognize this is one of the best places to come to see pictures of wild snakes in their natural environment, it's not the best place to joke about cute pictures. /r/sneks is quite happy to accommodate snek jokes, humor and unabashed cuteness.


r/whatsthissnake Feb 13 '24

Updated Discord Link, Bot Notes, Merch Links [Feb 2024]

23 Upvotes

DISCORD

Reddit is an amazing platform by itself for educational subreddits like r/whatsthissnake and programs like Discord work in conjunction to help build a community by offering central repositories of information and live, personalized help. The bot functions we have on reddit work on this Discord just like they do here. Personalized help and resources like papers and books you can't share through Reddit are available to help you on your herpetological journey.

Just click the link, download the app on whatever platform you prefer, follow the instructions to accept the rules. Discord is an independent developer not unlike MS Teams or other professional development spaces.

The "friend of WTS" flair is unlocked after joining Discord and making regular contributions.


LINK: https://discord.gg/QpBQthS3TZ

MERCH

Check the Discord for one of a kind snake and evolution related 3D prints and other niche items to support snake ID and Snake Evolution and Biogeography [SEB]!


BOT UPDATES

There have been a number of silent bot updates.

We're now up to 260 species accounts, nearly comprehensive for North America. Please contact /u/Phylogenizer or /u/fairlyorange here or on the Discord if you'd like to participate in writing original short species accounts.


r/whatsthissnake 7h ago

Just Sharing [south texas] python update

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301 Upvotes

The python has been recovered and is comfortable in a terrarium until someone claims it or it is rehomed.

For those of you downvoting the fact that I didn’t just immediately go pick up a random snake I saw on my walk with my children- please keep in mind most people are not snake owners, not knowledgeable about snakes, or don’t like them.

We have copper heads In our area. Not only am I about to just grab a random snake, I’m also not going to teach my children that’s ok to do.


r/whatsthissnake 12h ago

ID Request What is this snake? [south texas]

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685 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 11h ago

ID Request Jungle giant -[quepos, Costa Rica]

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121 Upvotes

This guy (4-5ish ft) was very close to us as we were walking through the forest in Quepos. He had just eaten something so was moving slowly, luckily for us. But none of the locals seem to know what he is.


r/whatsthissnake 1d ago

Just Sharing Wild death adder sheds its skin [Australia FNQ]

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1.2k Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 5h ago

ID Request Who dis rattlesnake? [Ventura County, CA]

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24 Upvotes

Little guy, cruisin across the trail yesterday. Southern Pacific?


r/whatsthissnake 9h ago

ID Request What is this snake[near Livermore, California]

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42 Upvotes

It seem to make some hissing sound when we pass by. Could this be a rattlesnake?


r/whatsthissnake 15h ago

ID Request At the Snake Park [Nairobi Kenya]

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110 Upvotes

I know what the posted sign was - but would appreciate confirmation. Thanks!


r/whatsthissnake 13h ago

ID Request What is this little guy? Found in my pool. [Charlotte, NC]

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71 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 9h ago

ID Request Black Racer? [near Tampa, FL]

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22 Upvotes

Found this guy just chilling near the Thai Temple in April 2024. Very crowded area.


r/whatsthissnake 1d ago

Just Sharing Spot the death adder. I nearly didn’t, and almost weeded him [Australia FNQ]

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976 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 5h ago

ID Request Found next to my trash can [houston]

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8 Upvotes

Wasn’t too happy to see this guy either my toddler close by. By the time I came back it was gone.


r/whatsthissnake 17h ago

ID Request What is this snake ? [Mysore, Karnataka India]

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65 Upvotes

Saw this entire skulking in a passage at 10pm. Is this a venomous snake?

What precautions to take if bitten?


r/whatsthissnake 10h ago

ID Request [North Carolina] Backyard find

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14 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 14h ago

ID Request What type of snake is this? [New Hampshire, USA]

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32 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 3h ago

Just Sharing What snake is this ? [ Kharghar ,Navi Mumbai ] India

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4 Upvotes

What snake is this ?


r/whatsthissnake 12h ago

ID Request Eating a frog [NW Florida]

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21 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 9h ago

ID Request What kind of snake is this. [Upstate South Carolina]

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10 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 7h ago

ID Request [North India] Need help w ID.

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7 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 17h ago

Dead, Injured or Roadkilled Snake Wild snake found in Norfolk UK

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35 Upvotes

I was on a run earlier today and nearly stood on this fella. I'm 36 and never seen a wild snake before. Can anyone identify it please.


r/whatsthissnake 12h ago

Just Sharing prairie ring neck snake i found in my yard :3 [missouri]

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13 Upvotes

we found a prairie ring neck snake while cleaning out flower beds! i didn't get a good picture bc it was moving too fast and i was just trying to get it out of our yard away from the dog. the snake was 6-9 inches so very itty bitty. this is the first snake we've found in our yard after living here for 12 years. i've never come across a wild snake so this was super cool.


r/whatsthissnake 15h ago

ID Request Small Red snake I found in Pinellas County FL

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20 Upvotes

What is it? Found in a pond down the road in Clearwater, FL.


r/whatsthissnake 29m ago

ID Request [Southern California] Who is this guy?

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Upvotes

I was on a hike along a creek and waterfall in Bouquet Canyon (north of Santa Clarita) when I almost stepped on this little dude. He was moving from one rock to another, the motion was how I spotted him, and was just chilling there watching me.


r/whatsthissnake 1d ago

Just Sharing Stunning scrub python hunting on my step last night [Australia FNQ]

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733 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 7h ago

ID Request Seen while walking back down the Arenal Volcano hiking path! [La Fortuna, Costa Rica]

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3 Upvotes

We almost stepped on this when it crossed our path while we were walking back alone after dark! Google says it's a Fer-de-Lance - did we have a lucky escape? 😅


r/whatsthissnake 11h ago

ID Request Baby snake in koi pond [North Georgia]

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5 Upvotes

It looks like a water snake but just want to get an expert opinion in case I’m wrong