ea snakes are not supposed to inhabit the Gulf of Mexico.
That simple fact is what makes a series of reports I have collected over the years so intriguing.
The story began when a man I know who breeds snakes came to my office to bring me a kingsnake. While there, he noticed a photograph of a banded sea krait on my wall and made a statement that immediately got my attention.
He said he had seen one.
He described kayaking to an offshore rig near High Island, Texas, where he encountered what he believed was a banded sea krait swimming around the structure. He described a four- to five-foot animal with distinctive banding and a paddle-like tail.
See the full video investigation here.
This wasn’t proof that a sea krait had somehow reached Texas waters, but the report was difficult for me to simply dismiss. The witness was familiar with snakes and believed he recognized what he had encountered.
More importantly, his story reminded me of another report.
Two anglers I know had encountered a long, bluish-white and black-striped snake swimming at the surface near the 18-Mile Light on Sabine Bank. They estimated the animal at around five feet long and also specifically described a paddle-like tail.
The two encounters occurred in the same general region of the northwestern Gulf.
Since then, I have received other reports from along the Gulf Coast, including Alabama and Florida. Some may have fairly conventional explanations. Native snakes and remarkably snake-like marine fishes such as eels have to be considered.
But the reports raise an interesting wildlife question.
If an exotic marine snake ever did appear in Gulf waters, how could it get here?
International shipping and the movement of marine organisms through ballast water have transported nonnative species around the world. Whether that could explain any of these particular observations is another question entirely, but it is one of the possibilities I examine in my new video.
“Venomous Sea Snakes in the Gulf? Investigating the Reports” looks at eyewitness testimony, sea snake biology, potential mistaken identities and possible pathways for an exotic animal to reach Gulf waters.
I am not claiming sea snakes have been confirmed in the Gulf of Mexico. They haven’t.
But when multiple people report unusual animals, I believe the right response is neither automatic belief nor automatic dismissal.
It’s investigation.
Chester Moore
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