''Drymarchon'' 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 ...

of large non-venomous

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 known as indigo snakes or cribos, found in the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also known as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical List of regions in the United States, region of the United States located in the eastern portion of the Southern United States and t ...

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 ...

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 ...

, and

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

Indigo snakes are large, robust snakes. 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 Publis ...

, and several color variations, including a glossy blue-black color. The snake's generic name ''Drymarchon'' means "lord of the forest". The species in this genus are sexually dimorphic, with the males being 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 n ...

birds Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...

lizards Lizard is the common name used for all 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 oceanic island chains. The ...

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

toads Toad (also known as a hoptoad) 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. In popular culture (folk taxonomy), ...

, and other

snakes Snakes are elongated Limbless vertebrate, limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales much like other members of ...

, 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 ...

. Indigo snakes also eat small gopher tortoises when they are available. 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 Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss or habitat reduction) occurs when a natural habitat is no longer able to support its native species. The organisms once living there have either moved elsewhere, or are dead, leading to a decrease ...

poaching Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set against the huntin ...

, 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 possession, harming, or harassing them illegal. Permits are also required 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 Genus, genera, the term ...

formed by

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 ...

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 interagenc ...

: One of the species has several subspecies that are recognized as being valid. * Falcon indigo snake — ''Drymarchon caudomaculatus'' * Indigo snake — ''Drymarchon corais'' *

Eastern indigo snake The eastern indigo snake (''Drymarchon couperi'') is a species of large, non-venomous snake in the Family (biology), family Colubridae. Native to the southeastern United States, it is the longest native snake species in the country. Taxonomy ...

— ''Drymarchon couperi'' *Gulf Coast indigo snake — ''Drymarchon kolpobasileus'' * Margarita indigo snake — ''Drymarchon margaritae'' * Middle American indigo snake — ''Drymarchon melanurus'' **Black-tailed cribo — ''D. m. melanurus'' ** Texas indigo snake — ''D. m. erebennus'' **Orizaba indigo snake — ''D. m. orizabensis'' **Mexican red-tailed indigo snake — ''D. m. rubidus'' **Unicolor cribo — ''D. m. unicolor'' ''

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 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 Drymarchon Reptiles of the United States Reptiles of Central America Reptiles of South America Snake genera Taxa named by Leopold Fitzinger Apex predators