The Snow Snake, also called Aestatesomnus hiemepericulosus, is an elusive cryptid snake that is said to live in the cold snowy regions of Bering Strait.
| Cryptid Name: | Snow Snake |
| Location: | Siberia, Bering Strait, North America, Canada |
| Category: | Folklore Cryptid |
| Description: | Pink-eyed, white-bodied, venomous serpents with deadly venom. Active in winter, hibernating in summer, and nearly invisible due to their pure white color. |
| Size: | Varies. |
| Behavior/Characteristics: | Coils on low drifts, strikes quickly, often invisible to prey due to their white color. |
| Diet: | Unknown. |
| Habitat/Environment: | Arctic environments, including snowy and icy regions. |
| Evidence: | There is no scientific evidence to support its existence. |
| Sightings and Encounters: | Sightings and encounters are reported in folklore. |
| Skepticism/Explanations: | Widely regarded as a mythical creature and is not considered a real species by the scientific community. |
What Does The Snow Snake Look Like?
The Snow Snake is described as having pink eyes with a long white body that blends in perfectly with the cold snowy environments where it lives. It is said to have deadly venom and because it is so well camouflaged it can be incredibly dangerous. It however is only active in the winter months as it hibernates in the summer.
Unlike known snakes which are found in warm areas and rely on external heat sources to regulate their body temperature, the snow snake is exclusively found in cold, snowy, and frigid environments where other snakes cannot survive.
The Snow Snake Legend
The legend of the Snow Snake can be found in a book called, “Fearsome Critters” by Henry Tryon which shares the lumberjack folklore of the Northern United States and Canada.
During the year of the Two Winters, when the July temperature dropped to -62°, these pink-eyed, white-bodied, savage serpents crossed over from Siberia via Bering Strait. They are bad actors; the venom is deadly, with a speed of action second only to that of the Hoop Snake or the Hamadryad.
Hibernating in summer but becoming active in winter, the Snow Snake coils on a low drift where its pure white color makes it wholly invisible to its prey. One strike is sufficient. Mankind is not often bitten as he makes too big a mouthful. But sometimes a Snake will get over-ambitious. When this does happen, tanglefoot oil is the only known remedy.
“I was treed by a Snow Snake” is still a much-used explanation of a late home-coming.
Fearsome Critters
Similar Cryptids
- Tsuchinoko – Japan
- Slide-Rock Bolter (Mountain Whale)- Colorado
- The Hodag – Wisconsin
- The Squonk – Pennsylvania
