''Drymarchon'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

of large nonvenomous

colubrid Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from la, coluber, 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest species of the family date back to the Oligocene epoch. Colubrid snakes are found on ever ...

snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more ...

s, commonly known as indigo snakes or cribos, found in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the south ...

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, and

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sou ...

. Reaching or more in length, they are among the world's largest colubrid snakes.

Description

Indigo snakes are large, robust snakes which can reach a total length (including tail) of over . They have smooth

dorsal scales In snakes, the dorsal scales are the longitudinal series of plates that encircle the body, but do not include the ventral scales. Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publ ...

, and several color variations, including a glossy blue-black color. This snake genus, Drymarchon, means "Lord of The Forest". This is a sexually dimorphic species so the males are larger than the females. This is thought to be due to intraspecies competition from the males.

Behavior and diet

Indigo snakes are diurnal and actively forage for prey. They feed on a broad variety of small animals such as

rodents Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

lizards Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia altho ...

frogs A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" '' Triadobatrachus'' is ...

toads Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands. A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scienti ...

, and other

snakes Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...

, including

rattlesnakes Rattlesnakes are venomous snakes that form the genera '' Crotalus'' and '' Sistrurus'' of the subfamily Crotalinae (the pit vipers). All rattlesnakes are vipers. Rattlesnakes are predators that live in a wide array of habitats, hunting small an ...

. They are not aggressive snakes and will bite only when threatened. Typical threat display includes hissing and shaking of its tail as a warning.

Habitat

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. These burrows can be used to hide from predators, fires, and extreme temperatures.

Threats

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.

Species and subspecies

The genus ''Drymarchon'' was formerly considered to be a

monotypic taxon In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group ( taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unis ...

formed by

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all specie ...

of ''D. corais''. Currently the genus includes six distinct species recognized by

ITIS The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagen ...

: One of the species has several subspecies which are recognized as being valid. * Indigo snake, yellow-tailed indigo snake — ''

Drymarchon corais The indigo snake (''Drymarchon corais'') is a species of snake of the family Colubridae. This large colubrid snake is nonvenomous Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means ...

'' * Falcon indigo snake — ''Drymarchon caudomaculatus'' * Eastern indigo snake — ''Drymarchon couperi'' * Margarita indigo snake — ''Drymarchon margaritae'' * Middle American indigo snake — ''Drymarchon melanurus'' **Black-tailed cribo — ''Drymarchon melanurus melanurus'' ** Texas indigo snake — ''Drymarchon melanurus erebennus'' **Orizaba indigo snake — ''Drymarchon melanurus orizabensis'' **Mexican red-tailed indigo snake — ''Drymarchon melanurus rubidus'' **Unicolor cribo — ''Drymarchon melanurus unicolor'' ''

Nota bene (, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well". It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atte ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bo ...

or a trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species or subspecies was originally described in a genus other than ''Drymarchon''.

References

External links

The Indigo Snake Systematics Page: A New Species of Indigo Snake (''Drymarchon'') from Venezuela, and a Reclassification of the Genus

"Black Snakes": Identification and Ecology
- University of Florida fact sheet. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2363493 Colubrids Reptiles of the United States Reptiles of Central America Reptiles of South America Snake genera Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger