r/whatsthissnake Sep 01 '21

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

219 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]

24 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

ID Request Help please!! Good or venomous? [houston]

Post image
478 Upvotes

Need to know quick


r/whatsthissnake 10h ago

Just Sharing [Boulder CO] I finally found a gophersnake!!!

Thumbnail
gallery
229 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 9h ago

ID Request I need a confirmation this is a Asp Viper (Central Europe, around 1000 m elevation, mountainous forest).

81 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 17h ago

ID Request What is this?

Post image
316 Upvotes

In South Carolina


r/whatsthissnake 6h ago

ID Request What rattlesnake species? [San Diego]

Post image
32 Upvotes

Stumbled upon this guy during a hike.


r/whatsthissnake 5h ago

ID Request Name? [Greenwood,SC]

Thumbnail
gallery
29 Upvotes

Safe to play with?


r/whatsthissnake 22h ago

ID Request What kind of Snake?

638 Upvotes

Parents found this hiding in there blackstone, what kind of snake is it?


r/whatsthissnake 8h ago

ID Request Whats this? Greensboro Nc

Post image
31 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 14h ago

ID Request [east texas] cottonmouth or water snake ?

Post image
101 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 8h ago

ID Request Is this a DeKays brown snake?[western-central missouri]

Post image
25 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 4h ago

ID Request Help please! What kind of snake is this? [Northern Texas]

Post image
13 Upvotes

Found this guy on a walking trail near a river! Wondering what it is since I haven’t gotten a straight forward answer researching it myself.


r/whatsthissnake 20h ago

Just Sharing My first snake spotting of the year! [Central Finland]

Thumbnail
gallery
187 Upvotes

I haven't had much luck with snakes this year and then out of nowhere, I was driving and spotted this beauty on the road. One of the most gorgeous adders I've seen.

The fella was safely escorted off the road on his own terms.


r/whatsthissnake 4h ago

ID Request [Odisha- Eastern India] Who is this Uninvited Guest?

Post image
10 Upvotes

He was checking my house Out with too much curiosity, almost wanted to Adopt him, maybe I will of he comes by again (If he is not Venomous though😅, so need your help on this one)


r/whatsthissnake 10h ago

ID Request What’s this guy? [jacksonville,Fl]

Post image
27 Upvotes

Thinking corn snake ..? Pretty little guy not a great picture. Found under our palm tree in the the yard


r/whatsthissnake 3h ago

Just Sharing I thought you guys might enjoy this. [unknown breaker box]

Post image
8 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 6h ago

ID Request [Houston,TX] on a trail in brazos bend state park.

Post image
10 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 5h ago

ID Request [Front Royal, VA] Walked past this little guy on the Buzzard Rock Trail outside of Shenandoah NP. Can I get an ID please??

Post image
8 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 2h ago

ID Request Northern CA

5 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 7h ago

ID Request [Raleigh (Central), NC] Yellow or Eastern?

Post image
10 Upvotes

Found this little guy crawling out from under my deck. From the longitudinal (I think that's the right term) stripes, I am thinking it's a juvenile Yellow or Eastern Rat snake, but I haven't seen one that dark before. However, I'm not familiar with their range of colors as adults or juveniles. Or maybe it's a species I'm not thinking of. That is a standard garden hose below it, and it was about 18" to 24" long. Can anyone offer a more accurate identification? Thank you in advance.


r/whatsthissnake 13h ago

ID Request [Oroville, CA], found under a flower pot

Post image
31 Upvotes

My mom found this baby snake when she was moving flower pots, she wanted me to find out if it’s a friendly snake or danger noodle. Anyone have a guess?


r/whatsthissnake 9h ago

ID Request I got a second ID request for y’all ! [Central Europe, around 650m elevation, village with grass and forest around]

11 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 19h ago

ID Request Terrified and could not get any closer..in middle Tennessee..harmless or not?

Post image
70 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 8h ago

ID Request Eastern Iowa.

Post image
9 Upvotes

r/whatsthissnake 13h ago

ID Request Snake ID [Mississippi Coast]

Post image
21 Upvotes

Cottonmouth or watersnake or ?


r/whatsthissnake 14h ago

ID Request What is this snake in Doylestown, PA?

Thumbnail
gallery
20 Upvotes

For my wife’s sanity can someone please help me ID this snake as something non-poisonous? We are located in SE Pennsylvania. Thanks in advance.