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So, you've got yourself a case of the old ophidiophobia, have you? Ophi...what, you ask? Ophidiophobia: A fear of snakes. Don't worry — you're not alone. Studies have shown that while only around 3% of the population manifests a full-blown phobia of these slithery critters, a whopping 50% feel anxiety towards the reptilians. And there's plenty to be anxious about in America, it seems, since the country counts a whopping 100 individual species of snakes, of which over 20 are considered venomous. Yikes.
That's the bad news. The good news is that there are two states in the Lower 48 where you can go to enjoy a venomous-snake-free getaway. Sorry, the Sunshine State isn't among them — Florida's got snake-packed waters aplenty. And, nope, you'll have to steer clear of California, where it's actually totally illegal to kill endangered red diamond rattlesnakes! Instead, consider heading east to New England, where the states of Maine and Rhode Island count zero native deadly snake species whatsoever.
Of course, that's not to say that they have zero snakes, period. They most certainly do. It's just that you can feel pretty confident that there's not a snake between the two territories that's capable of doing major damage. Feel free to put that ophidiophobia (it's the word of the day!) on the back burner and enjoy what's on offer, whether that's walking tours of the grandiose Newport Mansions in Rhode Island or the legendary leaf-peeping and harvest fests in Maine.
Read more: Rick Steves Says To Always Do These Things Before Traveling
Are there really no venomous snakes in Maine and Rhode Island?
There might not be any killer snakes in Rhode Island today, but it wasn't always that way, and there are always exceptions to the rule. (Even if a species isn't native to the area, a straggler or two can still slither over.) For example, a population of the deadly timber rattlesnake was found congregating around the cozy New England coast town of Tiverton back in the 1970s. More pointedly, a 2016 case report in the Rhode Island Medical Journal described the envenomation of a man by a copperhead snake, a type of viper that's known to live in neighboring Connecticut and Massachusetts.
It's a similar story in the Pine Tree State, where there's a bit of a question mark over proceedings. For one, it's accepted that the timber rattler also used to make its home here, but they've since been eradicated from the whole territory. Occasionally, you'll see a rumor of a deadly snake sighting pop up on Reddit. For example, one user recently posted a picture of what appeared to be a rattlesnake, although another user offered the following in reply: "Best left alone. I doubt this was found in maine [sic]. They follow the mountains yea but their range doesnt [sic] really go that far up."
On that note, it's also good to remember that there are plenty of non-venomous snakes in both these areas, too, many of which look a whole lot like their more fatal compadres. Take the common watersnake. It's all over the southern and central parts of Maine, but is often mistaken for the cottonmouth, a species that typically lives across the southeastern United States and carries a super-dangerous bite that can kill a human.
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Read the original article on Islands.
