Unsuspecting Florida beachgoers stumbled across an unpleasant surprise this week on a white, sandy beach in the Panhandle -- a cottonmouth snake.

“It's not every day we see a snake or an alligator on the beach, but it's not uncommon," Corey Dobridnia, a Walton County deputy, told Northwest Florida Daily News.

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The 4-foot venomous water moccasin was spotted at Grayton Beach  in Walton County.

The deputy said he was able to transport the reptile after persuading it to coil around a broomstick.

Snakes aren’t usually found on beaches in the state, but this cottonmouth, could have found its way there through a nearby fresh water source, like a stream.

Alligators are usually a bigger problem in Florida, but the state has its share of snakes, too. In fact, Florida has been battling a python problem for the past couple of years after residents began releasing their pet pythons outside.

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