The western ground snake (''Sonora semiannulata'') is a species of small, harmless colubrid snake. The species is endemic to North America. It is sometimes referred to as the common ground snake or variable ground snake, as its patterning and coloration can vary widely, even within the same geographic region. Another common name is miter snake referring to the head marking which suggests a bishop's

miter The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in t ...

; the synonym "''episcopus'' " (Latin for "bishop") is a similar allusion.

Geographic range

''S. semiannulata'' is native to the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, Ne ...

, in Arizona, Nevada, California, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, New Mexico,

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

, Oregon, Texas, and Utah, as well as northern Mexico, in

Chihuahua Chihuahua may refer to: Places *Chihuahua (state), a Mexican state **Chihuahua (dog), a breed of dog named after the state **Chihuahua cheese, a type of cheese originating in the state **Chihuahua City, the capital city of the state **Chihuahua Mun ...

Coahuila Coahuila (), formally Coahuila de Zaragoza (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Coahuila de Zaragoza), is one of the 32 states of Mexico. Coahuila borders the Mexican states of N ...

Durango Durango (), officially named Estado Libre y Soberano de Durango ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Durango; Tepehuán: ''Korian''; Nahuatl: ''Tepēhuahcān''), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico, situated in ...

Nuevo León Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...

, and

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

Description

The western ground snake can grow to a total length (including tail) of 8 to 19 inches (20.3 to 48.3 cm). The color and pattern can vary widely. Individuals can be brown, red, or orange, with black banding, orange or brown striping, or be solid-colored. The underside is typically white or gray. It has smooth dorsal scales, a small head, and the pupil of the

eye Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conv ...

is round.

Habitat

The preferred habitat of ''S. semiannulata'' is dry, rocky areas with loose soil.

Behavior

The western ground snake is typically

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

and secretive, but it is common throughout its range. It is often found on roadsides, or in dry drainage ditches at night, foraging for food.

Diet

The diet of ''S. semiannulata'' consists primarily of invertebrates, such as spiders, scorpions,

centipede Centipedes (from New Latin , "hundred", and Latin , " foot") are predatory arthropods belonging to the class Chilopoda (Ancient Greek , ''kheilos'', lip, and New Latin suffix , "foot", describing the forcipules) of the subphylum Myriapoda, an ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

s, and insect larvae.

Reproduction

The western ground snake is

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...

, breeding and laying eggs through the summer months.

Taxonomy

''Sonora semiannulata'' was once broken up into five separate

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 species ...

, based on the vast differences in color and patterning that the species displays, but recent research has shown that the various colors and patterns of ground snake interbreed indiscriminately, making distinction between them impossible and thus not warranting subspecies status, though some sources still refer to them, using geography as a basis rather than morphology.

References

External links

California Herps: ''Sonora semiannulata''
* ttp://www.reptilesofaz.com/Snakes-Subpages/h-s-semiannulata.html Arizona PARC: ''Sonora semiannulata''

* Baird, S.F., and C.F. Girard (1853). ''Catalogue of the Reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Part. I.—Serpents.'' Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xvi + 172 pp. (''Sonora semiannulata'', p. 117). * Powell, R., R. Conant and J.T. Collins (2016). ''Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition''. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp., 47 plates, 207 figures. . (''Sonora semiannulata'', pp. 394–396, Figure 183 + Plate 38). * Smith, H.M., and E.D. Brodie Jr. (1982). ''Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification''. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. (paperback). (''Sonora semiannulata'', pp. 168–169). * Wright, A.H., and A.A. Wright (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates, a division of Cornell University Press. 1,105 pp. (in 2 volumes) (Separate accounts of the following synonyms of ''Sonora semiannulata'': ''Sonora episcopa episcopa, Sonora episcopa taylori, Sonora semiannulata semiannulata, Sonora semiannulata blanchardi, Sonora semiannulata gloydi, Sonora semiannulata isozona, Sonora semiannulata linearis'', pp. 670–692, Figures 196-203 + Map 51 on p. 668). {{Authority control Sonora (snake) Fauna of the Southwestern United States Reptiles of Mexico Fauna of the Plains-Midwest (United States) Reptiles described in 1853 Taxa named by Spencer Fullerton Baird