A scarlet snake was documented on Sanibel Island for the first time in September.
This sighting follows the first appearance of a scarlet kingsnake on the island since the 1970s.
Both the scarlet snake and scarlet kingsnake are non-venomous look-alikes of the venomous eastern coral snake.
There was some snake news recently in Southwest Florida and it had nothing to do with the invasive Burmese python.
On Sept. 26, the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) posted on its Facebook page that a there was a sighting of a scarlet snake − a first on Sanibel Island. According to the post, the scarlet snake is native to Florida and it can be found throughout Lee County, but it had never before been documented on Sanibel.
A SCCF web story said the snake (Cemophora coccinea) was found by Wes Hatch, an active birder/naturalist who was visiting the island on Sept. 1.
This news comes after the other coral snake look-alike, the scarlet kingsnake, was also sighted on Sanibel in March this year — its first appearance since the 1970s, according to the SCCF. Both the scarlet snake and scarlet kingsnake (Lampropeltis elapsoides)
