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Southern Black Racer, Adult (March 23, 2007) Huntsville, Texas (Coluber constrictor priapus) Non-poisonous, Pugnacious (will bite if handled, though the bite is inconsequential), Aggressive if cornered but flees if escape is possible, eats insects and small rodents (and is, therefore, beneficial) Photos courtesy of Bill C..; text by Jerry Cates The snake species Coluber constrictor is present, in Texas, in five subspecies. All are similar, in many ways, to the coachwhips, though the latter comprise a separate genus, Masticophis. The coachwhips and racers are non-poisonous and beneficial. Among the racers, only the southern black racer has a plain, unmarked, black, olive, or slate-gray coloration throughout its sides, back, and head. The belly is dark gray, and the underside of the head is light gray. This coloration is similar to that of the eastern coachwhip (Masticophis flagellum flagellum), and the two are not easy to tell apart.
One distinction between the racers and the coachwhips involves the scalation of the head, particularly that above and behind the eye. In the coachwhips, the scales above the eye form a ridge that extends from in front of the eye backward well beyond the ocular cavity. In the racers, this ridge extends from the front almost as far as the middle of the ocular cavity, but not quite. Another scale, quite unlike a ridge in form, then extends back and down, in a wide crescent, a full 180 degrees to the lower left quadrant of the ocular cavity.
The midbody scales of the coachwhips and racers are smooth and unkeeled, and are arranged in 17 rows.
Many thanks to Bill C. for these photos... |
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