Watch: Maryland beachgoers shocked when snake emerges from ocean surf
Eastern hognoses are native to North America, and like to live in habitats with sandy soil, so it's not unusual to find them on beaches, the DNR said.
Watch: Large snake slithers along Maryland beach
Beach visitors in Ocean City, Maryland, got a surprise Saturday when a snake slithered across the beach.
OCEAN CITY, Md.– A snake materializing from the ocean isn't typical for a beach visit in Maryland, but that was the case last weekend.
On Saturday, beachgoers in Ocean City were shocked when a large black snake slithered onto the beach from the waves.
Video taken by Roxanne Fanagan showed the reptile slithering through the sand.
A snake crawls toward the ocean in Ocean City, Maryland.
(Roxanne Flanagan / FOX Weather)
Flanagan said she and a coworker took their kids to the beach on Saturday after attending a local event.
She was in the parking lot, talking to her friend's mom, while Flanagan's mom took her children to dip their feet in the water.
Flanagan said she took off running toward the beach when she heard her daughter screaming.
"I hear her scream, 'It's a snake! It's a snake!'" Flanagan said.
A snake that slithered onto a beach in Ocean City, Maryland.
(Roxanne Flanagan / FOX Weather)
She assured her daughter it was probably just a stick until it started moving.
Flanagan told her two kids to get back as the snake started approaching them from the water.
While she and others called local officials to get the snake removed from the beach, Flanagan waited in the area and watched the snake, just in case it bothered other beachgoers.
Another video captured by Flanagan showed the snake slithering back into the ocean as people watched.
Snake slithers back into ocean on Maryland beach
Video shows a snake that emerged from the Ocean in Maryland returning to the water.
According to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the snake appears to be an Eastern hognose snake.
Eastern hognoses are native to North America, and like to live in habitats with sandy soil, so it's not unusual to find them on beaches, the DNR said.
The DNR said Eastern hognose snakes don't pose a threat to the public.