Coluber constrictor anthicus

Coluber constrictor anthicus
buttermilk racer
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Colubrinae
Genus: Coluber
Species: C. constrictor
Subspecies: C. c. anthicus
Trinomial name
Coluber constrictor anthicus
(Cope, 1862)
Synonyms
  • Bascanium anthicum Cope,1862

Coluber constrictor anthicus, commonly known as the buttermilk racer, is a subspecies of racer, a nonvenomous, colubrid snake, endemic to the southern United States.

Description

The buttermilk racer is a thin-bodied snake, capable of attaining a total length of 1.52 m (60 inches). Its color is a unique pattern of black, greens, yellows, greys, and even sometimes blues, flecked with white or yellow. Their underside is white or cream-colored.

Geographic range

The buttermilk racer is found only in the United States, in southern Arkansas, Louisiana, and southern and eastern Texas.

Common names

Other common names for Coluber constrictor anthicus include the following: ash snake, blue racer, brown racer, Louisiana black snake, spotted black snake, spotted racer, variegated racer, and white oak racer.[1]

Behavior

Racers are diurnal, active predators. They are fast moving, and are often quick to bite if handled. They generally eat rodents, lizards, and frogs, but as juveniles they will also consume various kinds of soft bodied insect. They are fairly nervous snakes, and as such, do not typically fare well in captivity. For protection, they release a foul-smelling scent when caught to deter predators. They also thrash around to escape, and can unknowingly injure themselves.

References

  1. Wright, A.H. and A.A. Wright. 1957. Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Comstock. Ithaca and London. 1106 pp. (Coluber constrictor anthicus, pp. 136-138, Figure 43., Map 16.)

Herper dot com


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, October 01, 2013. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.