Mexican garter snake

Mexican garter snake
	Mexican garter snake (juvenile specimen)
Systematics
Subordination :	Snakes (serpentes)
Superfamily :	Adder-like and viper-like (Colubroidea)
Family :	Adders (Colubridae)
Subfamily :	Water snakes (Natricinae)
Genre :	Garter Snakes ( Thamnophis )
Type :	Mexican garter snake
Scientific name
	Thamnophis eques
	( Reuss , 1834)
Subspecies
	South Mexican garter snake ; ( Thamnophis eques eques ; ( Reuss 1834)); Thamnophis eques carmenensis ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques cuitzeoensis ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques diluvialis ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques insperatus ; Conant , 2003; Northern Mexican garter snake ; ( Thamnophis eques megalops ; ( Kennicott , 1860)); Thamnophis eques obscurus ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques patzcuaroensis ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques scotti ; Conant , 2003; Thamnophis eques virgatenuis ; Conant , 1963;

The Mexican Garter Snake ( Thamnophis eques ) is one of over 30 known species of the Garter Snake genus with currently ten subspecies .

features

The Mexican garter snake can grow to just over 120 cm long. Males generally stay smaller.

Like all Thamnophis species, it is viviparous .

It eats fish and frogs , but also worms , leeches , lizards and rodents .

Thamnophis eques is a clear example of the constantly changing species description and allocation within the genus Garter Snakes . So far unknown Thamnophis representatives are discovered again and again. The species classification of these widespread animals is also being redesigned with the help of modern genetic analyzes . As recently as 2003, seven new subspecies of the Mexican garter snake were described. The former subspecies Thamnophis eques cyrtopsis was assigned its own species status.

distribution

The natural habitat of the Mexican garter snakes stretches from southern Arizona and New Mexico in the USA to Mexico (there near the Pico de Orizaba northwest over Sonora and Chihuahua ). Isolated populations have also been found in the Mexican states of Oaxaca and Nuevo León .

In the US, the Mexican garter snakes are endangered, especially since the spread of the bullfrog , the competitor for food and also predator (predator) is the garter snakes.

literature

Thomas Bourguignon: Garter Snakes. Origin, care, species. DATZ terrarium books, 2002, ISBN 3-8001-3591-4

Martin Hallmen, Jürgen Chlebowy: Garter Snakes . Natur und Tier-Verlag, 2001, ISBN 3-931587-49-5

WP Mara: garter snakes in the terrarium. Bede Verlag, 1995, ISBN 3-927997-79-X

Frank Mutschmann : The garter snakes. Biology, dissemination, attitude. Westarp-Verlag, 1995, ISBN 3-89432-427-9

Web links

Photo Mexican garter snake

Information & Photo for Thamnophis eques megalops

Information on the Mexican Garter Snake (English)

Thamnophis eques in The Reptile Database

Thamnophis eques inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2013.1. Posted by: Hammerson, GA, Vazquez Díaz, J. & Quintero Díaz, GE, 2007. Retrieved September 21, 2013.