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Diadophis punctatus acricus
The ringneck snake or ring-necked snake (Diadophis punctatus) is a colubrid snake species. It is found throughout much of the United States, central Mexico, and south eastern Canada[2]. Ring-necked snakes are secretive, nocturnal snakes that are rarely seen during the day time. They are slightly venomous but their non-aggressive nature and small rear-facing fangs pose little threat to humans who wish to handle them. They are best known for their unique defense posture of curling up their tails exposing their bright red-orange posterior, ventral surface when threatened. Ring-necked snakes are believed to be fairly abundant throughout most of their range though no scientific evaluation supports this theory. Scientific research is lacking for the ring-necked snake and more in-depth investigations are greatly needed[3]. It is the only species within the genus Diadophis, and currently fourteen subspecies are identified, but many herpetologists question the morphologically-based classifications[4].
9 Comments
I'd love to have one of those in my hands!
Scientific research is lacking in so many many species, who knows what we could find and learn.
And really pleasant to hold actually.
Yeah! You can't be scared of these harmless little guys! They are SO CUTE!!!
Very cute! Getting over fear!
It's very beautiful.
Well we certainly did go looking. If you see someone lifting and looking under rocks, it could be me.... ;) Cheers.
Ah, I thought with the darker background and the description saying they're nocturnal that you went out looking for some :) Great series of this little beauty.
Thanks Cindy, they certainly are beautiful. This image was taken with a narrow aperture and flash on. It makes the background seem darker.
Beautiful colors. I'm curious how you found this little guy at night. I'm still trying to find more night critters.