| Drymarchon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Drymarchon couperi, eastern indigo snake | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Colubridae |
| Subfamily: | Colubrinae |
| Genus: | Drymarchon Fitzinger, 1843 [1] |
| Species | |
See text | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
| |
Drymarchon is a genus of large nonvenomous colubrid snakes, commonly known as indigo snakes or cribos, [3] found in the Southeastern United States, Mexico, Central America, and South America.
Indigo snakes are large, robust snakes. They have smooth dorsal scales, and several color variations, including a glossy blue-black color. This snake genus, Drymarchon, means "Lord of The Forest". The species in this genus are sexually dimorphic, with the males being larger than the females. This is thought to be due to intraspecies competition from the males. [4]
Indigo snakes are diurnal and actively forage for prey. They feed on a broad variety of small animals such as rodents, birds, lizards, frogs, toads, and other snakes, including rattlesnakes. Indigo snakes will also eat small gopher tortoises when they are available. [5] They are not aggressive snakes and will bite only when threatened. Typical threat display includes hissing and shaking of its tail as a warning.
The current distribution of D. couperi is reported as extending from the Coastal Plain of southern Georgia to peninsular Florida and the lower Florida Keys west to Southeastern Mississippi. They use a variety of different habitats, including longleaf pine-turkey oak sandhills, pine and scrub flatwoods, dry prairie, tropical hardwoods, freshwater wetlands, and coastal dunes; however, winter survival, especially in northern portions of its range, depends on the availability of appropriate shelters which are primarily Gopher Tortoise burrows. [6] These burrows can be used to hide from predators, fires, and extreme temperatures. [7]
Populations in Alabama, Texas, and South Carolina have been largely lost due to habitat destruction, poaching, and killings. Indigo snakes are currently protected under the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission which makes it illegal to possess, harm, or harass them. Permits are also required in order to keep or transport this species. [8]
The genus Drymarchon was formerly considered to be a monotypic taxon formed by subspecies of D. corais. Currently the genus includes six distinct species recognized by ITIS: [9] One of the species has several subspecies which are recognized as being valid.
Nota bene : A binomial authority or a trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species or subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Drymarchon.
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”.
Plestiodon anthracinus, the coal skink, is a species of lizard which is endemic to the United States.
The gray ratsnake or gray rat snake, also commonly known as the black ratsnake, central ratsnake, chicken snake, midland ratsnake, or pilot black snake, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the genus Pantherophis in the subfamily Colubrinae. The gray ratsnake is one of about ten species within the American ratsnake genus Pantherophis.
Coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be divided into two distinct groups, the Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 27 species of Old World coral snakes, in three genera, and 83 recognized species of New World coral snakes, in two genera. Genetic studies have found that the most basal lineages have origins in Asia, suggesting that the group originated in the Old World. While new world species of both genera are venomous, their bites are seldom lethal; only two confirmed fatalities have been documented in the past 100 years from the genus Micrurus. Meanwhile, snakes of the genus Micruroides have never caused a medically significant bite.
The eastern indigo snake is a species of large, non-venomous snake in the family Colubridae. Native to the southeastern United States, it is the longest native snake species in the country.
The alligator snapping turtle is a large species of turtle in the family Chelydridae. The species is endemic to freshwater habitats in the United States. M. temminckii is one of the heaviest freshwater turtles in the world. It is the largest freshwater species of turtle in North America. It is often associated with, but not closely related to, the common snapping turtle, which is in the genus Chelydra. The specific epithet temminckii is in honor of Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck.
The eastern brown snake, often referred to as the common brown snake, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to eastern and central Australia and southern New Guinea. It was first described by André Marie Constant Duméril, Gabriel Bibron, and Auguste Duméril in 1854. The adult eastern brown snake has a slender build and can grow to 2 m (7 ft) in length. The colour of its surface ranges from pale brown to black, while its underside is pale cream-yellow, often with orange or grey splotches. The eastern brown snake is found in most habitats except dense forests, often in farmland and on the outskirts of urban areas, as such places are populated by its main prey, the house mouse. The species is oviparous. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the snake as a least-concern species, though its status in New Guinea is unclear.
The brown-headed nuthatch is a small songbird endemic to pine forests throughout the Southeastern United States. Genetic analyses indicated low differentiation between northern and southern populations in Florida, but the study also found lower genetic diversity among south Florida populations that may be a result of the increased habitat fragmentation that was documented. The Bahama nuthatch was formerly considered a subspecies (S. p. insularis), has since been reclassified as its own separate species. Two recent studies assessing vocalizations in Bahama and continental nuthatch populations found important differences. One of the studies also demonstrated that continental and Bahama populations did not respond aggressively to calls of the other population. This type of call-response study is often used to help define cryptic species.
The monocled cobra, also called monocellate cobra and Indian spitting cobra, is a venomous cobra species widespread across South and Southeast Asia and listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Drymarchon melanurus erebennus, commonly known as the Texas indigo snake, is a subspecies of large, nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The subspecies is native to Texas in the United States and adjacent Mexico.
The mud snake is a species of nonvenomous, semiaquatic, colubrid snake endemic to the southeastern United States.
The Atlantic Plain is one of eight distinct physiographic divisions of the contiguous United States. Using the USGS physiographic classification system, the Atlantic Plain division comprises two provinces and six sections. The Coastal Plain province is differentiated from the Continental Shelf province simply based on the portion of the land mass above and below sea level.
The unicolor cribo is a Central American subspecies of the cribo snakes. The eastern indigo snake, Drymarchon corais couperi is another species of this genus. Until recently the unicolor cribo was considered a subspecies of the same species as the indigo snake Drymarchon corais unicolor.
The Middle American indigo snake, also known commonly as the blacktail cribo, is a species of large, nonvenomous, snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to the southwestern United States, Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. In addition to the nominate subspecies, it has four other recognized subspecies, including D. m. erebennus, commonly known as the Texas indigo snake.
The Suwannee snapping turtle is a species of very large freshwater turtle in the family Chelydridae. This species is endemic to the southeastern United States, where it only inhabits the Suwannee River basin.
The Apalachicola snapping turtle is a proposed species that lives in the Apalachicola River, United States. The species can as well be found within other panhandle rivers within the states of Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. It has traditionally been included as part of the widespread species M. temminckii, but an analysis in 2014 recommended treating it as distinct. A study published the following year considered this change unwarranted and recommended that M. apalachicolae should be considered a junior synonym of M. temminckii, and this is followed by the Reptile Database, IUCN's Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group, and the Committee On Standard English And Scientific Names. The Apalachicola snapping turtles and other species of snapping turtle have been classified as endangered due to human activity which is causing the destruction to their natural habitats
The indigo snake, also known as the yellow-tail cribo, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. This large colubrid snake is nonvenomous.
The Falcon indigo snake, is a species of non-venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in Venezuela and Colombia.
Centruroides hentzi, the Hentz striped scorpion, is a species of bark scorpion in the family Buthidae. They are native to the southeastern United States including the states of Florida, southwestern Alabama, and in the coastal plain of Southern Georgia including surrounding barrier islands. C. hentzi is present in other states such as North Carolina and South Carolina due to accidental human importations.
