Northern scarlet snake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cemophora coccinea copei |
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Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Colubridae |
| Genus: | Cemophora |
| Species: |
C. coccinea
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| Subspecies: |
C. c. copei
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| Trinomial name | |
| Cemophora coccinea copei Jan, 1863
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| Synonyms | |
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The Cemophora coccinea copei, also known as the northern scarlet snake, is a harmless snake. It is a type of subspecies of colubrid snake. You can find it in the southern and eastern parts of the United States.
Contents
About Its Name
The second part of the snake's scientific name, copei, honors a famous taxonomist named Edward Drinker Cope. A taxonomist is a scientist who names and classifies living things.
What It Looks Like
The northern scarlet snake usually grows to be about 36 to 51 centimeters (14 to 20 inches) long. This measurement includes its tail.
Its main body color is often gray or white. It has 17 to 24 red patches, called blotches, along its back. These red blotches are outlined in black. The black borders on the blotches often connect on the lower sides of the snake. This forms a line along its body. The scales on its back are smooth.
Sometimes, people might confuse the northern scarlet snake with other snakes. These include the scarlet kingsnake (Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides) or the eastern milk snake (Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum). This happens in places where these different snakes live in the same areas.
How It Behaves
The northern scarlet snake is a very private animal. It likes to burrow and stay hidden. It prefers places with soft soil. You can often find it in open forests or on farms.
These snakes spend most of their time underground or hidden away. They come out to find food. They eat small rodents and lizards. But they especially love reptile eggs. They can swallow eggs whole. Sometimes, they might puncture the egg and drink what's inside.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Northern scarlet snakes usually mate between March and June. The female snake lays about 3 to 8 eggs in the middle of summer. These eggs hatch in the early fall. When they hatch, the baby snakes are tiny. Each hatchling is about 13 to 15 centimeters (5 to 6 inches) long, including its tail.
Where It Lives
You can find the northern scarlet snake in many parts of the United States. It lives in eastern Texas, eastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, and southern Indiana. It also lives in Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and a small part of northern Florida. There are also separate groups of these snakes in New Jersey and central Missouri.
Conservation Status
For most of its range, the northern scarlet snake is not considered to be in danger. However, it is listed as an endangered species in the states of Indiana and Florida. This is because it is only found in one county in each of these states. These areas are at the very edges of where the snake normally lives.
Further Reading
- Species Cemophora coccinea at The Reptile Database
- Jan G (1863). "Enumerazione sistematica degli ofidi appartenenti al gruppo Coronellidae ". Archivio per la zoologia, l'anatomia e la fisiologia 2 (2): 213-230 + Plates XVII-XVIII. (Cemophora copei, new species, p. 231). (in Italian).
- Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp., 207 Figures, 47 Plates. ISBN: 978-0-544-12997-9. (Cemophora coccinea copei, pp. 367–368).
- Smith, Hobart M; Brodie, Edmund D., Jr. (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN: 0-307-13666-3 (paperback), ISBN: 0-307-47009-1 (hardcover). (Cemophora coccinea copei, p. 178).
