Snakes of Virginia

by Donald W. Linzey, Michael J. Clifford

The classic field guide to snakes found in the Old Dominion, now available in paperback.

Genres: Biology

176 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 1981

Reviews

[Barbara]

I reserved Snakes of Virginia at our local library because we are new residents of Virginia and had a snake in our yard, I was wondering what kind of snake it was and how many snakes we could expect to show up in our yard. Although the book is old, published in 1981, it contains a lot of very useful information.

Pros: I liked the introduction and the general diagrams of the body parts of snakes. It was a good overview. The individual descriptions of each snake species included a county map with dots indicating the counties where that snake could be found. That made it possible for me to focus on the snakes found in our area. I also liked the 53 color plates of the different snakes. All of the information was readable for me, even though I know little about snakes. The appendix contained more information and an extensive bibliography.

Cons: The book is old. I wasn’t sure all of the information from 1981 was up to date and accurate for 2020, especially where the snakes could be found. I think it’s possible that the growth in Virginia has affected the habitats and range of snakes, as well as other animals. I also would have liked to have more individual photos included beside the descriptions each snake species. Finally, the writing was somewhat dry., although still readable for someone looking for information about snakes in Virginia.