Thamnophis elegans

• Overview
• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Overview

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Family Colubridae

The family Colubridae, which includes the kingsnakes (Lampropeltis spp. ), is the largest, most widespread, and diverse family of snakes , with few physical characteristics universal among all species. The family contains 70 percent of the known species of snakes, with more than 1700 species worldwide (Pough et al. 1998). Although some colubrids are dangerously venomous , most are harmless to humans. [1]

Habitat

Typically found in a lake at a mean distance from sea level of 852 meters (2,795 feet).[2]

Ecology: This species occurs in a wide variety of habitats , from lowlands to high mountains: grassland, shrubland, woodland, rocky hillsides, and open areas in forests . It is chiefly terrestrial in most areas, but also aquatic in some locations (e.g. , high Sierra Nevada). Often in inhabits wetlands and areas near streams , ponds , and lakes . (Ref. 310554).

List of Habitats:

•     1     Forest   
  
•     1.4     Forest - Temperate   
  
•     2     Savanna   
  
•     2.1     Savanna - Dry   
  
•     2.2     Savanna - Moist   
  
•     3     Shrubland   
  
•     3.4     Shrubland - Temperate   
  
•     4     Grassland   
  
•     4.4     Grassland - Temperate   
  
•     5     Wetlands (inland)   
  
•     5.1     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Rivers/Streams/Creeks (includes waterfalls )   
  
•     5.2     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent/Irregular Rivers/Streams/Creeks   
  
•     5.3     Wetlands (inland) - Shrub Dominated Wetlands   
  
•     5.4     Wetlands (inland) - Bogs , Marshes, Swamps , Fens , Peatlands   
  
•     5.5     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     5.6     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Lakes (over 8ha)   
  
•     5.7     Wetlands (inland) - Permanent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     5.8     Wetlands (inland) - Seasonal/Intermittent Freshwater Marshes/Pools (under 8ha)   
  
•     5.9     Wetlands (inland) - Freshwater Springs and Oases   
  
•     5.11     Wetlands (inland) - Alpine Wetlands (includes temporary waters from snowmelt)   
  
•     14     Artificial/Terrestrial   
  
•     14.2     Artificial/Terrestrial - Pastureland   
  
•     14.4     Artificial/Terrestrial - Rural Gardens   
  
•     15     Artificial/Aquatic & Marine   
  
•     15.7     Artificial/Aquatic - Irrigated Land (includes irrigation channels )   
[more info]

Taxonomy

Synonyms

Eutainia elegans Baird and Girard 1853: 34 • Eutainia [sic] elegans Baird & Girard 1853: 34 • Thamnophis elegans — Liner 1994 • Thamnophis elegans — Smith & Smith 1976 • Thamnophis elegans — Stebbins 1985: 201 • Thamnophis ordinoides elegans — Fitch 1936

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Similar Species

Members of the genus Thamnophis

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 68 species and subspecies in this genus:

T. angustirostris (Longnose Garter Snake) · T. atratus (Aquatic Gartersnake) · T. atratus atratus (Santa Cruz Garter Snake) · T. atratus hydrophilus (Aquatic Garter Snake) · T. brachystoma (Short-Headed Garter Snake) · T. butleri (Butler's Gartersnake) · T. chrysocephalus (Goldenhead Garter Snake) · T. couchii (Couch's Garter Snake) · T. couchii couchii (Western Aquatic Garter Snake) · T. cyrtopsis (Black-Necked Garter Snake) · T. cyrtopsis collaris (Black-Necked Garter Snake) · T. cyrtopsis ocellatus (Black-Headed Garter Snake) · T. elegans (Terrestrial Gartersnake) · T. elegans arizonae (Arizona Garter Snake) · T. elegans elegans (Mountain Garter Snake) · T. elegans terrestris (Coast Garter Snake) · T. elegans vagrans (Wandering Garter Snake) · T. elegans vascotanneri (Upper Basin Garter Snake) · T. eques (Mexican Gartersnake) · T. eques eques (Mexican Garter Snake) · T. eques megalops (Mexican Garter Snake) · T. exsul (Montane Garter Snake) · T. fulvus (Highland Garter Snake) · T. gigas (Giant Gartersnake) · T. godmani (Godman's Garter Snake) · T. hammondi (Two-Striped Garter Snake) · T. hammondii (Two-Striped Gartersnake) · T. marcianus (Checkered Garter Snake) · T. melanogaster (Blackbelly Garter Snake) · T. melanogaster melanogaster (Blackbelly Garter Snake) · T. mendax (Tamaulipan Montane Garter Snake) · T. ordinoides (Northwestern Gartersnake) · T. ordinoides ordinoides (Northwestern Garter Snake) · T. proximus (Western Ribbon Snake) · T. proximus diabolicus (Arid Land Ribbon Snake) · T. proximus orarius (Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake) · T. proximus (Western Ribbon Snake) · T. proximus rubrilineatus (Redstripe Ribbon Snake) · T. radix (Plains Gartersnake) · T. radix haydeni (Plains Garter Snake) · T. radix haydenii (Western Plains Garter Snake) · T. radix radix (Eastern Plains Garter Snake) · T. rossmani (Rossman's Garter Snake) · T. rufipunctatus (Narrow-Headed Garter Snake) · T. rufipunctatus rufipunctatus (Narrowhead Garter Snake) · T. sauritus (Eastern Ribbonsnake) · T. sauritus nitae (Blue-Striped Ribbon Snake) · T. sauritus sackenii (Eastern Ribbon Snake) · T. sauritus sauritus (Eastern Ribbon Snake) · T. sauritus septentrionalis (Eastern Ribbon Snake) · T. scalaris (Longtail Alpine Garter Snake) · T. scaliger (Short-Tail Alpine Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis (San Francisco Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis annectens (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis concinnus (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis dorsalis (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis fitchi (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis infernalis (California Red-Sided Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis pallidulus (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis parietalis (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis pickeringii (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis semifasciatus (Chicago Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis similis (Blue-Striped Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis sirtalis (Common Garter Snake) · T. sirtalis tetrataenia (Common Garter Snake) · T. sumichrasti (Sumichrast's Garter Snake) · T. valida (West Coast Garter Snake) · T. valida valida (West Coast Garter Snake)

More Info

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Further Reading

• A faunal survey of the Centennial Valley Sandhills, Beaverhead County, Montana / [prepared by Paul Hendricks and Michael Roedel]. Helena, MT: Montana Natural Heritage Program, [2001] url , p. 13.
• A geographic classification of Neotropical mammals. 36 1958 [Chicago]Chicago Natural History Museum, 1958. url p. 628, p. 636.
• A synthesis of evolutionary theory. Englewood Cliffs, N.J., Prentice-Hall, 1962. url p. 205, p. 354, p. 386.
• Amphibian and reptile inventory on the Headwaters and Dillon Resources Areas in conjunction with Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program; c1998. url , , , , , , , , , , , , .
• Amphibian and reptile survey of the Thompson Chain of Lakes / submitted by Paul Hendricks; a report to Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife & Parks. Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program; c2000. url p. 2.
• Amphibian and reptile survey on the Bureau of Land Management Lewistown District: 1995-1998 / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program; c1998. url , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .
• Amphibian and reptile surveys on Montana refuges: 1998-1999 / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program, c1999. url , , .
• Amphibian, reptile and northern bog lemming survey on the Rocky Mountain Front: 1996 / submitted by James D. Reichel; a report to Lewis and Clark National Forest, Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Region 4, [and] BLM-Great Falls Resource Area. Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program, c1997. url , p. 12, p. 13, p. 51, p. 77.
• Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. Washington: Smithsonian Institution, -1965. url p. 126, p. 127.
• Brigham Young University science bulletin. 1 1958 Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University, [1955-1976] url p. 67.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. url p. 242, p. 249, p. 253, p. 258, p. 270, p. 289.
• Bulletin of the Southern California Academy of Sciences Los Angeles, Calif.: The Academy, 1971- url , p. 78, p. 84.
• California fish and game. [San Francisco, etc.]: State of California, Resources Agency, Dept. of Fish and Game. url p. 160, p. 169, p. 170, p. 186.
• Check-list of the amphibians and reptiles of Canada and Alaska / Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum, 1955. url p. 60.
• Colonial nesting bird survey on the Bureau of Land Management Lewistown district: 1996 / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program, 1998, c1997. url , .
• Diet and arboreality in the emerald monitor, Varanus prasinus: with comments on the study of adaptation: a contribution in celebration of the distinguished scholarship of Robert F. Inger on the occasion of his sixty-fifth birthday / Harry W. Greene. 31 1986 Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, 1986. url p. 10.
• Distribution of the land vertebrates of southeastern Washington, by Lee Raymond Dice. Berkeley, University of California press1916. url p. 303, p. 304, p. 310, p. 312, p. 319, p. 321.
• Functional morphology and biochemistry of reptilian oviducts and eggs: implications for the evolution of reproductive modes in tetrapod vertebrates / 1990. url p. 189.
• General embryological information service. Utrecht, Hubrecht Laboratory. url p. 81.
• Great Basin naturalist memoirs. 1978 [Provo, Utah]Brigham Young University, 1976-1992. url p. 268.
• Inventory of plants, plant communities and herpetofauna of concern in the vicinity of the Snow-Talon burn, Helena National Forest / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program, c2005. url , , , .
• Kootenai Falls wildlife inventory December 1978 / prepared by Gayle Joslin. Helena, Mont.: Montana Dept. of Fish and Game, [1978] url p. 49.
• Lee Metcalf National Wildlife Refuge bullfrog and painted turtle investigations: 1997 / Helena, Mont.: Montana Natural Heritage Program; c1998. url .
• Miscellaneous publication - University of Kansas, Museum of Natural History. 1970 Lawrence: University of Kansas, 1946-1996. url p. 3, p. 356.
• Montana wildlife / Montana Fish and Game Department official publication, Information-Education Division. Helena, Mont.: The Division, url p. 4, p. 8.
• North American fauna. Washington: Fish and Wildlife Service; for sale by the Supt. of Docs., U. S. Govt. Print. Off. url p. 161, p. 211.
• Notes on a collection of reptiles made by Mr. C. J. Pierson at Fort Smith, Arkansas, with remarks on other eastern reptiles. Wheeling, W. Va., 1899. url , .
• Occasional papers of the California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences, url p. 207, p. 212, p. 25, p. 817, p. 824, p. 830.
• Our living resources: a report to the nation on the distribution, abundance, and health of U.S. plants, animals, and ecosystems / [edited by], Edward T. LaRoe. .. [et al.]. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Biological Service, 1995. url p. 134, p. 499.
• Patterns of geographic variation in Florida snakes / by Steven P. Christman. 1975. url p. 391.
• Patterns of snake evolution suggested by their proteins: a contribution in celebration of the distinguished scholarship of Robert F. Inger on the occasion of his sixty-fifth birthday / Herbert C. Dessauer, John E. Cadle, Robin Lawson. 34 1987 Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, 1987. url p. 12, p. 13, p. 30, p. 33.
• Preliminary amphibian and reptile survey of the Ashland District, Custer National Forest: 1995: a report / Helena: Montana Natural Heritage Program, [1996] url , , , , .
• Proceedings - California Academy of Sciences, 4th series. San Francisco, California Academy of Sciences. url p. 158.
• Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia url p. 23.
• Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. Washington, Biological Society of Washington url p. 196.
• Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences, 1979- url p. 37.
• Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.] url p. 251, p. 252, p. 253, p. 254, p. 256, p. 281, p. 298, p. 309, p. 316, p. 317, p. 319, p. 585, p. 626.
• Report of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and financial report of the Executive Committee of the Board of Regents for the year ending June 30. .. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution, 1933-1965. url p. 126, p. 127.
• Report. New York url p. 135, p. 137.
• Sexual size differences in reptiles / by Henry S. Fitch. 1981 Lawrence: University of Kansas, 1981. url p. 26, p. 64.
• Syllogeus. Ottawa, National Museum of Natural Sciences, 1972-1995. url p. 7.
• The Biological bulletin. Woods Hole, Mass.: Marine Biological Laboratory, url p. 303, p. 39, p. 472.
• The Canadian field-naturalist. Ottawa, Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club. url p. 314, p. 316, p. 495, p. 582, p. 623, p. 717, p. 755, p. 788.
• The Great Basin naturalist. 49 1989 Provo, Utah: M.L. Bean Life Science Museum, Brigham Young University, 1939-1999. url , , p. 132, p. 199, p. 42, p. 477, p. 48, p. 51, tanner & lowe, page 511, figs. 2-3, page 513, figs. 4-5, page 514, figs. 6-7, page 515, p. 515, p. 516, p. 518, p. 519, p. 656, p. 657, p. 659, p. 660, fig. 9f, page 673, p. 68.
• The University of Colorado studies. Boulder, University of Colorado. url p. 123, p. 129, p. 130, p. 131, p. 261, p. 82, p. 83, p. 88, p. 89.
• The amphibia and reptilia of Colorado / Max M. Ellis and Junius Henderson. Boulder: University of Colorado, 1913. url p. 123, p. 129, p. 261, p. 88, p. 89.
• The hyoid and its associated muscles in snakes Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 1968. url p. 64, p. 66.
• The reptiles of the Pacific coast and Great Basin; an account of the species known to inhabit California and Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Nevada. San FranciscoCalifornia Academy of Sciences1897 url p. 207.
• The reptiles of western North America, an account of the species known to inhabit California and Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, British Columbia, Sonora and Lower California, by John Van Denburgh, with one hundred and twenty-eight plates. San Francisco, California Academy of Sciences, 1922. url p. 817, p. 824, p. 830.
• To eat or not to eat?: that is the question of treefrog prey selection / by Arthur Nelson Freed. 1982. url p. 58.
• Transactions of the San Diego Society of Natural History. 20 1982 [San Diego]: The Society, 1905-1989. url p. 11.
• Transactions of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. [Madison]Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters, 1870/72- url p. 681.
• Tulane studies in zoology and botany. 23 1982 New Orleans: Tulane University, [1968- url p. 125, p. 137, p. 139.
• University of California publications in zoology. Berkeley: University Press, 1906- url p. 166, p. 180, p. 181, p. 207, p. 304, p. 310, p. 312, p. 319, p. 321, p. 439, p. 556.
• University of Kansas publications, Museum of Natural History. 19 1970 Lawrence, University of Kansas. url p. 192, fig. 2, page 301, p. 500, p. 516, p. 519, p. 548, p. 559, p. 624, p. 731.
• Variation in clutch and litter size in New World reptiles / by Henry S. Fitch. 1985 Lawrence: University of Kansas, 1985. url p. 44, fig. 14, page 45, p. 57, p. 76.
• Vertebrate ecology and systematics: a tribute to Henry S. Fitch / edited by Richard A. Seigel. .. [et al.]. Lawrence: University of Kansas, 1984. url p. 171, p. 235, p. 270, p. 58, p. 60, p. 72, p. 9.
• Vertebrate life / Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, c1996. url p. 790.
• Wildlife inventory and hard rock mining impact analysis of the West Cabinet Mountains and Lake Creek Valley, Lincoln County, Montana / prepared by Gayle Joslin. [Helena, Mont.?]: Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, [1980] url p. 71.

Notes

Contributors

• Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-present. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Zwaag, The Netherlands. Accessed January 10, 2012.
• Frost, D.R., Hammerson, G.A. & Hollingsworth, B. 2007. Thamnophis elegans. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloadedon 05February2012.
• Frost, D.R., Hammerson, G.A. and Hollingsworth, B. 2007. In IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNRedList.org. Downloaded July 19, 2008.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed February 27, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 8 providers.
• IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. . Downloaded on January 28, 2012.
• Ruggiero M., Gordon D., Bailly N., Kirk P., Nicolson D. (2011). The Catalogue of Life Taxonomic Classification, Edition 2, Part A. In: Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2011 Annual Checklist (Bisby F.A., Roskov Y.R., Orrell T.M., Nicolson D., Paglinawan L.E., Bailly N., Kirk P.M., Bourgoin T., Baillargeon G., Ouvrard D., eds). DVD; Species 2000: Reading, UK.
• TIGR Reptile Database . Release date: October 2, 2007
• Uetz, Peter. The Reptile Database

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal February 27, 2008:

• Arizona State University, International Institute for Species Exploration: Arizona State University Amphibian and Reptile Collection
• California Academy of Sciences: CAS Herpetology Collection Catalog
• Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History: Vertebrate specimens
• Marine Science Institute, UCSB: Paleobiology Database
• Museum of Southwestern Biology, Division of Amphibians and Reptiles: Museum of Southwestern Biology, Division of Amphibians and Reptiles database
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology: Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
• Sternberg Museum of Natural History: Herp Collection
• University of Colorado Museum: Zoological specimens

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 2545645
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: Rep-12682
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 174142
• IUCN ID: 245998
• Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: ARADB36050
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 177885

Footnotes

1. Painter, Charles W., Chuck L. Hayes, and James N. Stuart "Recovery and Conservation of the Gray-Banded Kingsnake. New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. May 1, 2002. [back]
2. Standard Deviation = 905.410 based on 104 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]

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