Wildlife advocates say snakes and other wild animals are suffering with heat and drought, and if they come onto someone’s property, they probably are only looking for water.

Karen Inman of St. Johns Wildlife Care, at 5705 County Road 208, said she has been getting at least two calls about snake sightings every day. On Friday, her volunteers released a female indigo snake that had been poisoned with insecticide.

‘‘The woman who called (about the indigo) lives in North Beach and said the snake was so black that it seemed blue,’’ Inman said. ‘‘I knew right away it was probably an indigo. She said that when she hit the snake with a water hose, it sat right up and started drinking the water.’’

Then it just rolled around.

Inman knew from the woman’s description that something was wrong with it.

She contacted Dr. John Rossi, a Jacksonville herpetologist, and Dr. John Yselonia, a veterinarian with Antigua Animal Center in St. Augustine, and they treated the 4-foot-long snake.

Their diagnosis: probably poisoned by insecticide from someone’s lawn.

Rick and Robin Light of St. Augustine, volunteers at Wildlife Care, released the indigo Friday in a marshy area near the Intracoastal Waterway.

Rick Light said indigos look large and threatening, but do not bite.

‘‘They’re also called Indian Runners, because they are incredibly fast,’’ he said. ‘‘They eat other snakes and rodents and are federally protected.’’

Killing one could net someone a $5,000 fine and 10-year prison sentence.

Indigos are an iridescent black, which looks blue in the sun. They have a brown, reddish or pink chin and are generally found between the ocean and the Intracoastal, but some live on the mainland.