Summary ⁸

The grass snake (Natrix natrix), sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake, is a Eurasian non-venomous snake. It is often found near water and feeds almost exclusively on amphibians.

Description ⁹

The grass snake is Britain's largest terrestrial reptile. This snake is typically olive-green, brown or greyish in colour, with a variable row of black bars along the sides, occasionally with smaller round markings along the back in double rows. The underside is off-white or yellowish with dark triangular or rectangular markings. A characteristic black and yellow collar is present behind the head, which has earned the species the alternative name of 'ringed snake' (2). Totally black (melanistic) forms and albinos occasionally arise. Males and females are generally similar in appearance, although females are often larger; males can be identified by the presence of a swelling at the base of the tail and by the fact that they have longer tails relative to females (2).

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Vitaliy Khustochka, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/8289389@N04/4216474223
2. (c) Karl Larsaeus, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/Natrix_natrix_%28Karl_L%29.jpg/460px-Natrix_natrix_%28Karl_L%29.jpg
3. (c) Piet Spaans, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a2/NatrixNatrix.JPG/460px-NatrixNatrix.JPG
4. Jonas Bergsten, no known copyright restrictions (public domain), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Natrix_natrix_20060810_001.jpg/460px-Natrix_natrix_20060810_001.jpg
5. (c) Piet Spaans Viridiflavus, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/BatrixNatrixBellyPattern.JPG/460px-BatrixNatrixBellyPattern.JPG
6. (c) Wikimedia Commons, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Meshchera01.jpg/460px-Meshchera01.jpg
7. (c) Mariola Jolanta Adamczyk, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/P1040259.JPG/460px-P1040259.JPG
8. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natrix_natrix
9. (c) Wildscreen, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/6692173

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• Snake Database
• The Reptile Database
• VertNet

Range Map

(c) Barcode of Life Data Systems, some rights reserved (CC-BY)

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