Snake Habitats Around the World
Everywhere but the coldest places
Snakes live on every continent except Antarctica. Ireland, Iceland, New Zealand and some other islands have no native land snakes, largely due to isolation and past glaciation.
Tropical rainforests
The richest snake habitats on Earth. Tree boas, vine snakes, pit vipers and huge pythons and anacondas thrive in warm, humid forests of the Amazon, Congo Basin and Southeast Asia.
Deserts
Sidewinders, horned vipers and sand boas cope with heat by being active at night and burrowing into cool sand.
Grasslands and savannas
Abundant rodents support rattlesnakes in North American prairies and mambas, puff adders and pythons in African savannas.
Wetlands and rivers
Water snakes, cottonmouths and anacondas hunt fish and amphibians along rivers, marshes and swamps.
Oceans
Around 70 species of sea snakes live in warm Indian and Pacific waters. Most give birth to live young at sea.
Cold climates
The common European adder (Vipera berus) ranges north of the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia, surviving long winters by hibernating (brumation).