Pine snake
Pine snake | ||||||||||||
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Pine snake |
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Systematics | ||||||||||||
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Scientific name | ||||||||||||
Pituophis melanoleucus | ||||||||||||
( Daudin , 1803) |
The pine snake ( Pituophis melanoleucus ), also known as bull snake , is a non-poisonous snake with three subspecies.
description
The diurnal and spirited pine snake reaches a length of 120 to 180 cm. Their basic color ranges from light green tones to gray, the head is brownish. Hexagonal black spots run one behind the other over the entire back and on the flanks.
distribution
The pine snake inhabits prairies, dry pine and oak forests, bushland and rocky desert areas in central North America from southern Canada to northern Mexico.
nutrition
The pine snakes devour large numbers of rodents and thus help agriculture. Many have specialized in gopher rats. Most also eat birds and their eggs.
Hibernation
Depending on the area of distribution, the snakes have a more or less extended hibernation. In northern or higher areas up to about 4 months, in the southern and flatter areas there may be only short breaks due to unfavorable weather. Investigations have shown that the animals mostly hibernate individually. Many pine snakes overwinter in rodent burrows. There are also egg-laying sites in the immediate vicinity of the wintering sites.
Subspecies
- Pine snake, Northern pine snake - Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus
- Florida Pine Snake , Southern Pine Snake - Pituophis melanoleucus mugitus
- Black pine snake - Pituophis melanoleucus lodingi
literature
- Dieter Schmidt: GU animal guide, adders fascinating and exotic . 2005
Web links
- Pituophis melanoleucus in The Reptile Database
- Pituophis melanoleucus inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Listed by: Hammerson, GA, 2007. Retrieved January 5, 2014.