The Hoop Snake
In American frontier tales, a snake takes its tail in its mouth and rolls after you down a hill like a wheel. Its sting can kill a tree.
What was reported
The hoop snake is a creature of American tall tales, told from the 1700s onwards. When it wants to chase something, it grips its own tail in its mouth and rolls along like a hoop, faster than a person can run. The only escape is to jump through the hoop, which confuses it.
Its tail has a venomous sting. In the stories, a hoop snake that misses its target and stings a tree instead makes the tree swell up and die within a day.
Explanations offered
No snake can roll like a hoop. The tale may have been inspired by real snakes that coil up or form loops, such as mud snakes. It became a favourite story of American folklore, alongside Paul Bunyan.
- When
- Told since the 1700s
- Where
- The Appalachians, Tennessee, USA
- Witnesses
- American frontier folklore
- Status
- Tall tale
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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