Scarlet snake
| Scarlet snake | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scarlet Snake ( Cemophora coccinea ) |
||||||||||||
| Systematics | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Cemophora | ||||||||||||
| Cope , 1860 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Cemophora coccinea | ||||||||||||
| ( Blumenbach , 1788) |
The scarlet snake ( Cemophora coccinea ) is a non-toxic snake from the southeastern United States . The species is the only one of the genus Cemophora and is divided into three subspecies.
description
Scarlet snakes are a relatively small species of snake with a size of 36 to 51 cm. They are light gray and have red spots on the back that are framed in black. Your belly is evenly light gray. Since its spots partially extend to the lower body and thus stripes are formed, it can easily be confused with the coral viper or the red king snake .
Way of life
Cemophora are nocturnal and generally spend their day under leaves and tree trunks. They only come out of their hiding place in the evening to look for food. Their diet includes lizards, small rodents, reptile eggs, and other snakes. The animals reproduce during spring. In summer they usually lay 3–8 eggs, from which the small adders hatch in early autumn.
Subspecies
- Cemophora coccinea coccinea ( Blumenbach , 1788)
- Cemophora coccinea copei Jan , 1863
The Texas scarlet snake ( Cemophora lineri ( Williams , Brown & Wilson , 1966)), which was previously classified as a subspecies of the scarlet snake , is now classified as a separate species.
Web links
- Cemophora coccinea in The Reptile Database
- Cemophora coccinea inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2015.4. Listed by: Hammerson, GA, 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2016.