''Coluber constrictor oaxaca'', commonly known as the Mexican racer, is a 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 j ...

, a subspecies of the

eastern racer The eastern racer (''Coluber constrictor'') 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 ...

(''Coluber constrictor'').

Geographic range

It is found primarily in Mexico from

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

Vera Cruz Veracruz is a state in Mexico. Veracruz or Vera Cruz (literally "True Cross") may also refer to: People * María González Veracruz (born 1979), Spanish politician * Philip Vera Cruz (1904–1994), Filipino American labor leader * Tomé Vera Cruz ...

, with isolated records of it occurring 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 ...

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 i ...

Colima Colima (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Colima ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Colima), is one of the 31 states that make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It shares its name with its capital and main city, Colima. Colima i ...

Oaxaca ) , population_note = , population_rank = 10th , timezone1 = CST , utc_offset1 = −6 , timezone1_DST = CDT , utc_offset1_DST = −5 , postal_code_type = Postal ...

and

Chiapas Chiapas (; Tzotzil and Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 124 municipalities ...

. The subspecies also ranges as far north as the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

in southern

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

and as far south as Guatemala. It is known to

intergrade In zoology, intergradation is the way in which two distinct subspecies are connected via areas where populations are found that have the characteristics of both. There are two types of intergradation: primary and secondary intergradation. Primar ...

with the eastern yellow-bellied racer (''

Coluber constrictor flaviventris ''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. Description The eastern yellow-bellied racer is a ...

'').

Description

Adults of ''Coluber constrictor oaxaca'' are 51–102 cm (20-40 inches) in total length. They are greenish

dorsally Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

and yellowish

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

ly. They have eight upper

labial The term ''labial'' originates from '' Labium'' (Latin for "lip"), and is the adjective that describes anything of or related to lips, such as lip-like structures. Thus, it may refer to: * the lips ** In linguistics, a labial consonant ** In zoolo ...

s and eight lower labials. Smith, H.M., and E.D. Brodie, Jr. 1982. ''Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification''. Golden Press. New York. 240 pp. (paperback). (''Coluber constrictor oaxaca'', p. 190.) Juveniles have dark, narrow, close-spaced crossbands on the anterior part of the body, unlike the mid-dorsal blotches of juveniles of most other subspecies of ''Coluber constrictor''.

References

External links

Natural History Miscellany: Mexican Racer (''Coluber constrictor oaxaca'') from the Davis Mountains of Texas
* Colubrinae Reptiles of Mexico Reptiles of Guatemala Reptiles of the United States Natural history of Oaxaca Natural history of Tamaulipas {{Colubrids-stub

Geographic range

Description

References

Further reading

External links