The heavy body is cylindrical in cross section, and the short tail has a terminal spine.

[8] F. abacura inhabits the edges of streams and cypress swamps, among dense vegetation or under ground debris, using wet conditions to burrow itself into the mud.

It is almost fully aquatic and rarely leaves the water, except to lay eggs, hibernate, or during drought to escape drying wetlands.

[9][10] After heavy rain fall, its home range may increase to take advantage of new food sources.

It preys mostly on giant aquatic salamanders in the genera Siren and Amphiuma, but it also eats other amphibians.

Enlarged teeth occur at the rear of the upper jaw, which presumably help to hold slippery prey.

Upon being disturbed, mud snakes will sometimes tuck their head beneath their coils and expose the red underside on the tail as a warning display.

[20] The mud snake is found in the southeastern United States, in the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.