Dekay's Brownsnake
Storeria dekayi
Small snake, 9 to 13 inches long, rarely longer than 15 inches. Stout body in greyish brown color with light streak on back bordered with black dots. Underside is whitish…
How to identify
Small snake, 9 to 13 inches long, rarely longer than 15 inches. Stout body in greyish brown color with light streak on back bordered with black dots. Underside is whitish-pink in color. 17 scale rows at midbody. Males have longer tails than females. Heavily keeled scales.
Range
Wide range extends from southern Canada into the United States (east of the Rocky Mountains) and northern Mexico.
Habitat
Terrestrial, fossorial during hibernation. Tend to stay under cover. Prefer disturbed areas with plenty of stones, rocks, or leaf litter. Habitats vary from prairies to marshes to woods and urban zones.
Variations
Juveniles: Black or dark grey coloration with light grey ring around the neck.
Similar species
Name and etymology
Genus
Storeria
Honoring David H. Storer
Origin
Honors
Sources
- Baird and Girard, 1853. Cat. N. Amer. Rept., Pt. 1, p. 135 ↗
Storeria. Baird and Girard, 1853 - Cat. N. Amer. Rept., Pt. 1, p. 135
Species epithet
dekayi
Honoring James E. DeKay
Origin
Honors
Sources
- (Holbrook, "1836" ? 1839). N. Amer. Herp., Ed. 1, Vol. 1, "1836", prob. 1839, p. 121, pl. 24 ↗
Storeria dekayi. (Holbrook, "1836" ? 1839) - N. Amer. Herp., Ed. 1, Vol. 1, "1836", prob. 1839, p. 121, pl. 24
Explore more names in the etymology index.
At a glance
Size
23.0 to 52.7 cm
Range
Wide range extends from southern Canada into the United States (east of the Rocky Mountains) and northern Mexico.
Habitat
Terrestrial, fossorial during hibernation. Tend to stay under cover. Prefer disturbed areas with plenty of stones, rocks, or…
Range map
Approximate range. © Mapbox © OpenStreetMap