I photographed this Northern Diamond-backed Watersnake on a log at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. The snake basked above the river while a dragonfly perched on the same log below it.
Basking Watersnakes at Sequoyah
Watersnakes often bask on logs and branches over the water at the refuge. If someone approaches, they may drop into the river and swim away.
These snakes use rivers, lakes, ponds, and streams, so they have plenty of places to find food. They eat mainly fish, though they also take frogs, tadpoles, and other small animals. Their dark, connected markings form a chainlike pattern along the body. The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation describes their diet, markings, and basking behavior in its species profile.
Northern Diamond-backed Watersnakes are nonvenomous, though they can bite if someone handles or corners them. People sometimes confuse them with cottonmouths, as the Missouri Department of Conservation explains.
On another visit, I photographed three Diamondback Watersnakes basking together on a clump of grass. I shared that encounter in Sunbathing Snakes at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge.
Photographing a Watersnake on a Log
I spotted this snake around 8:41 a.m. while driving the auto tour road near the Tuff boat ramp. It was to my left, south of the road.
At the intersection, I turned left, heading west, and drove a short distance for a better angle. From that position, I photographed the watersnake on a log with the river around it.
The photograph shows much of the snake’s patterned body stretched across the wood. Below it, the small dragonfly is easy to overlook.
A Watersnake and a Dragonfly Sharing a Perch
The snake was my main subject, but I like having the dragonfly in the frame. Look below the snake, near the lower edge of the log, to find it.
In this photograph, I can see two different animals using the same small patch of wood. The snake takes up most of the perch, while the dragonfly occupies a spot near the water. That small detail gives me another reason to take a closer look at the photograph.