ACTIVE DIURNAL SNAKES

<< Previous Page

Among the most frequently seen land snakes are the racers, "runners", garter, ribbon and green, or grass, snakes. These snakes are most often encountered in open fields, yards, or cut-over areas. All are harmless, although most will deliver a bite when captured. Coachwhips suffer from the mistaken belief that they can inflict painful lashings to humans, but this is not physically possible. Although they thrash when pursued or captured, the force of a blow necessary to "whip" a person would dislocate the snakes vertebrae or break its back, and the snakes lack the muscular strength to deliver a forceful blow. Green snakes feed on insects, especially spiders and caterpillars, while the other species seek a wide range of prey that may include earthworms and grasshoppers, other snakes, frogs, and/or mice.

Rough Green Snake, Opheodrys aestivus

Click to enlarge. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

• Identification: 16-42 inches. Bright green above and yellow below; scales keeled and in 17 rows.
• Habits: Green snakes conceal themselves in vegetation, especially willows and shrubby growth adjacent to marshes or at forest margins. They lay from 3-10 eggs.
• Distribution: Throughout the state.

Western Ribbon Snake, Thamnophis proximus

Click to enlarge.

• Identification: 16-42 inches. Slender black or brown snakes with a white, yellow or orange stripe down the back and a pale stripe on each side covering the 3rd and 4th scale rows above the ventral plates; underside whitish; scales keeled and in 19 rows. Unlike the eastern ribbon snake, the white parietal spot on top of the head is distinct, and there is no brown coloration on the outer edges of the ventral plates.
• Habits: Western ribbon snakes occur in grassland and woodland habitats, often in the vicinity of water sources, around swamps and in marshes. Areas with ample sunlight are preferred. They give birth to 4-34 young.
• Distribution: Throughout Louisiana except Washington and northern St. Tammany parishes.

Eastern Ribbon Snake, Thamnophis sauritus

Click to enlarge.

• Identification: 16-35 inches. Slender brown snakes with a dull white to pale tan stripe down the back and pale stripe on each side covering the 3rd and 4th scale rows above the ventral plates; underside whitish; scales keeled and in 19 rows. The white parietal spot tends to be small and divided, and there is a brown or coppery wash on the outer edges of the ventral plates.
• Habits: Eastern ribbon snakes inhabit open pine woods and mixed pine-hardwood forest, especially in the vicinity of stream bottoms and boggy ground. They give birth to 3-26 young.
• Distribution: Distribution: The Florida Parishes from the upper Amite River area eastward.

Common Garter Snake, Thamnophis sirtalis

Click to enlarge.

• Identification: 15-45 inches. Sides tan to dark brown overlain by rows of black spots that may make the upper sides appear black; some individuals with red markings or distinct checkerboard pattern on sides; usually a prominent white, yellow or orange stripe down the back and a pale stripe on each side on the 2nd and 3rd scale rows above the ventral plates; underside dull white or pale tan to pale green with a row of black dots on each side; scales keeled and in 19 rows.
• Habits: Garter snakes occur in most habitats, including suburban areas. Garter snakes will often flatten their heads into a diamond shape and spread their bodies to show the pattern of spots when agitated. They give birth to 9-38 young.
• Distribution: Most of Louisiana but known from very few localities west of the Red River and Atchafalaya Basin; absent from the marshes.

Racer, Coluber constrictor

Click to enlarge. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons

• Other common names: Black runner, blue runner, black snake.
• Identification: 20-65 inches. Racers are shiny black with white throats in the Florida Parishes. Racers in the Mississippi Valley and low areas of the southeastern part of the State are gray with black masks and whitish undersides. Those in the southwestern part of the state are tan to olive with whitish or yellow bellies, and snakes from the uplands of central and northern Louisiana are slate-gray or blue-gray with pale spots and white bellies. Juvenile racers are pale gray with a row of reddish brown spots down the back and smaller spots on the sides, but lose this pattern during their second year. The scales are smooth and in 17 rows.
• Habits: Racers prefer open country and partially open woodlands, but occur in forests as well. They readily climb shrubs and low trees. Racers bite vigorously when captured and are often territorial in early spring, so much so that they have been known to stand their ground rather than flee when confronted by humans. They lay from 6-29 eggs.
• Distribution: Throughout Louisiana.

Coachwhip, Coluber flagellum

Click to enlarge.

• Identification: 25-90 inches. Usually dark brown or black anteriorly, becoming tan or reddish on the body or tail; some individuals entirely black above; underside dirty white or pink. Juveniles are tan with narrow, irregular black crossbars on the body. The scales are smooth and in 17 rows.
• Habits: Coachwhips are fast-moving snakes that inhabit dry, open pinelands and mixed woods. They climb trees and shrubs readily, and bite vigorously when captured. Coachwhips receive their name from the braided appearance created by the pattern of the scales on the tail. They lay from 4-24 eggs.
• Distribution: Upland portions of the Florida Parishes, upland parts of central and northern Louisiana, and the pine flatwoods west of Lake Charles.

<< Previous Page