''Coniophanes'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

colubrid Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from , 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest fossil species of the family date back to the Late Eocene epoch, with earlier origins suspected. Colu ...

snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...

s, commonly referred to as black-striped snakes, but they also have many other common names. The genus consists of 17

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

, and despite the common name, not all of them display striping.

Geographic range

Species of ''Coniophanes'' are found primarily in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

, but range as far north as southern

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and as far south as

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

Description

Snakes of the genus ''Coniophanes'' grow to a total length (including tail) of and are typically brown in color, with black striping down the sides and center of the back, and a red or orange underside. Some of the species, such as ''C. alvarezi'', are solid brown.

Habitat and behavior

''Coniophanes'' snakes are secretive burrowers. They spend most of their time digging into loose soils, forest leaf litter, or under rotting

cactus A cactus (: cacti, cactuses, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae (), a family of the order Caryophyllales comprising about 127 genera with some 1,750 known species. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, ...

. They are

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

, emerging from their underground retreats in the late evening to feed on

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order (biology), order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough ski ...

lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...

s, small

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

s, and smaller

Reproduction

Species in the genus ''Coniophanes'' are

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that reproduce by depositing fertilized zygotes outside the body (i.e., by laying or spawning) in metabolically independent incubation organs known as eggs, which nurture the embryo into moving offsprings kno ...

, laying clutches of up to 10

eggs An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo begins to develop. Egg, EGG or eggs may also refer to: Biology * Egg cell, the female reproductive cell (gamete) in oogamous organisms Food * Eggs as food Places * Egg, Austria * Egg, Switzerland ...

in loose soil. The eggs hatch in around 40 days, depending on relative temperature and humidity. Hatchlings are about in length.

Species

The following 17

are recognized as being valid."''Coniophanes'' ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org. *'' C. alvarezi'' – Chiapan stripeless snake – Mexico *'' C. andresensis'' – Isla San Andrés snake – Isla San Andrés,

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

*'' C. bipunctatus'' – two-spotted snake – Mexico,

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...

Belize Belize is a country on the north-eastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a maritime boundary with Honduras to the southeast. P ...

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

El Salvador El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the south by the Pacific Ocean. El Salvador's capital and largest city is S ...

, and

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

**''C. b. bipunctatus'' **''C. b. biseriatus'' *'' C. dromiciformis'' – Peters' running snake – Ecuador and Peru *'' C. fissidens'' – yellowbelly snake – Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia **''C. f. convergens'' **''C. f. dispersus'' **''C. f. fissidens'' **''C. f. proterops'' **''C. f. punctigularis'' *'' C. imperialis'' – black-striped snake – United States (Texas), Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras **''C. i. imperialis'' **''C. i. clavatus'' **''C. i. copei'' *'' C. joanae'' – Panama *'' C. lateritius'' – stripeless snake – Mexico *'' C. longinquus'' – Ecuador, Peru *'' C. melanocephalus'' – Mexico *'' C. meridanus'' – peninsula stripeless snake – Mexico *'' C. michoacanensis'' – Mexico *'' C. piceivittis'' – Cope's black-striped snake – Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica **''C. p. frangivirgatus'' **''C. p. piceivittis'' *'' C. quinquevittatus'' – five-striped snake – Mexico and Guatemala *'' C. schmidti'' – faded black-striped snake – Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. *'' C. taeniata'' – Cope's black-striped snake – Mexico *'' C. taylori'' – Mexico ''

Nota bene ( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''. In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, altho ...

or trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species or

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

was originally described in a genus other than ''Coniophanes''.

References

External links

Herps of Texas: ''Coniophanes imperialis''
* * {{Authority control Coniophanes Taxa named by Edward Hallowell (herpetologist) Snake genera