| Coluber constrictor anthicus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Buttermilk racer | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Colubridae |
| Genus: | Coluber |
| Species: | |
| Subspecies: | C. c. anthicus |
| Trinomial name | |
| Coluber constrictor anthicus (Cope, 1862) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Coluber constrictor anthicus, commonly known as the buttermilk racer, is a subspecies of the eastern racer, a nonvenomous colubrid snake, endemic to the southern United States.
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.
The buttermilk racer is found only in the United States, in southern Arkansas, Louisiana and southern and eastern Texas.
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]
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 insects. 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.
Pantherophis obsoletus, also known commonly as the western rat snake, black rat snake, pilot black snake, or simply black snake, is a nonvenomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to central North America. There are no subspecies that are recognized as being valid. Its color variations include the Texas rat snake. Along with other snakes of the eastern United States, like the eastern indigo snake and the eastern racer, it is called “black snake”.
The Piney Woods is a temperate coniferous forest terrestrial ecoregion in the Southern United States covering 54,400 square miles (141,000 km2) of East Texas, southern Arkansas, western Louisiana, and southeastern Oklahoma. These coniferous forests are dominated by several species of pine as well as hardwoods including hickory and oak. Historically the most dense part of this forest region was the Big Thicket though the lumber industry dramatically reduced the forest concentration in this area and throughout the Piney Woods during the 19th and 20th centuries. The World Wide Fund for Nature considers the Piney Woods to be one of the critically endangered ecoregions of the United States. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines most of this ecoregion as the South Central Plains.
Masticophis flagellum is a species of nonvenomous colubrid snake, commonly referred to as the coachwhip or the whip snake, which is endemic to the United States and Mexico. Six subspecies are recognized, including the nominotypical subspecies.
Coluber constrictor flaviventris, commonly known as the eastern yellow-bellied racer, is a subspecies of the eastern racer, non-venomous colubrid snake. It is endemic to North America.
The eastern racer is a species of nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to North America and Central America. Eleven subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, are recognized, which as a group are commonly referred to as the eastern racers. The species is monotypic in the genus Coluber.
Opheodrys aestivus, commonly known as the rough green snake, is a nonvenomous North American colubrid. It is sometimes called grass snake or green grass snake, but these names are more commonly applied to the smooth green snake. The European colubrid called grass snake is unrelated. The rough green snake is docile, often allowing close approach by humans, and seldom bites. Even when bites occur, they have no venom and are harmless.
The southern black racer is one of the more common subspecies of the nonvenomous Coluber constrictor snake species of the Southeastern United States. The subspecific name priapus refers to the proximal spines of the hemipenes being much enlarged into basal hooks, which is characteristic of this subspecies. These snakes are quite active during the day, which increases the chance of sightings. They eat almost any animal they can overpower, including rodents, frogs, toads, and lizards. Members of this species generally do not tolerate handling – even after months in captivity – and typically strike and flail wildly every time they are handled, often defecating a foul-smelling musk, a common defense against predators in snakes. Adults of the species are usually thin with a jet black dorsal side with a grey belly and white chin. They are quite fast, giving them the name "racer".
Coluber constrictor oaxaca, commonly known as the Mexican racer, is a nonvenomous colubrid snake, a subspecies of the eastern racer.
Coluber constrictor etheridgei, commonly known as the tan racer, is a subspecies of nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae, a subspecies of the eastern racer. The subspecies is native to the southern United States.
Pantherophis emoryi, commonly known as the Great Plains rat snake, is a species of nonvenomous rat snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to the central part of the United States, from Missouri to Nebraska, to Colorado, south to Texas, and into northern Mexico.
The California whipsnake, also known as the striped racer, is a colubrid snake found in habitats of the coast, desert, and foothills of California.
Black Racer may refer to:
Coluber constrictor foxii, commonly known as the blue racer, is a subspecies of Coluber constrictor, a species of nonvenomous, colubrid snake commonly referred to as the eastern racer.
The bullsnake is a large, nonvenomous, colubrid snake. It is a subspecies of the gopher snake. The bullsnake is one of the largest/longest snakes of North America and the United States, reaching lengths up to 8 ft.
Pantherophis alleghaniensis, commonly called the eastern rat snake, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to North America.
The northern black racer is a subspecies of the eastern racer, a nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. Their geographic range extends from southern Maine to northern Georgia and westward to central Kentucky and eastern Ohio. Their occupancy is dependent on the availability of large patches of open habitats.
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