Lined Snake
Tropidoclonion lineatum
Summary 5
Tropidoclonion is a genus of small colubrid snakes, commonly known as lined snakes, which are endemic to North America. The single species in the genus is Tropidoclonion lineatum. There are currently no recognized subspecies of Tropidoclonion lineatus.
Description 6
The lined snake is olive green to brown with a distinctive tan or yellow stripe running down the middle of the back from head to tail. It has similar stripes, one down each side on scale rows 2 and 3. On the belly, it has a double row of clean-cut black half-moon spots running down the middle. It has a narrow head and small eyes.
Adult size is typically less than 35 cm (14 inches) in total length (including tail). However, maximum recorded total length is 53 cm (21 in).
The keeled dorsal scales are arranged in 19 rows at midbody. There are only 5 or 6 upper labials.
Behavior 6
The lined snake is semifossorial, spending most of its time hiding under rocks, leaf litter, logs, or buried in the soil.
Habitat 6
The preferred habitat of T. lineatum is grassland areas with soft, moist soils.
Common names 6
Additional common names for T. lineatum include common snake, dwarf garter snake, grass snake, line snake, ribbon snake, streaked snake, striped snake, and swamp snake.
Sources and Credits
- (c) Mike Keeling, some rights reserved (CC BY-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/42684459@N00/526393376
- (c) R, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by R
- (c) Jennifer Boeyink Hartley, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Jennifer Boeyink Hartley
- (c) Chris Harrison, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Chris Harrison
- Adapted by Desmon M Dunn from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropidoclonion_lineatum
- (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropidoclonion
