What kind of snake is this?

s0uthstar · 02-05-17, 02:24 PM

Can anyone identify this snake?

**Minkness** · 02-05-17, 02:31 PM

I think it's a gopher snake. Harmless.

FWK · 02-05-17, 02:36 PM

It is a juvenile Rat Snake (Pantherophis sp.), harmless. It is one of three species in the "Black" Rat Snake complex (also known as Common or Blotched Rat Snakes). Location will determine the species, update us with the location and we can tell you the species. These are great snakes to have around, they eat a lot of rodents. Nice find

s0uthstar · 02-05-17, 03:23 PM

Im located Galveston county. i thought it was a Texas glossy snake

s0uthstar · 02-05-17, 03:44 PM

Front View

FWK · 02-05-17, 03:49 PM

It's a Western Rat Snake then, Pantherophis obsoletus. Not likely to find a Texas Glossy (Arizona elegans arenicola) along the coast that far north, its range follows the blackland prairies and oak woods in east central Texas. The closest they come to you would probably be just north-west of Harris County, in Walker and Grimes County. The pattern is superficially similar to a Glossy, but there are a number of differences. The length of the dorsal and lateral blotches are a giveaway here, a Glossy Snake has notably shorter blotches that correspond to a much higher blotch count. The morphology of the head is markedly different as well, a Glossy has a much longer, more angular nose, with a more pronounced rostral scale (the scale right at the tip of the nose). Still a cool find though, and thanks for sharing.

FWK · 02-05-17, 04:07 PM

That second shot is really nice, I like head shots and that one has a lot of detail. My profile picture is of a Western Rat Snake by the way, an adult found in my backyard in Victoria County Texas. The head pattern fades quickly with age, becoming a solid gray within a couple years. The picture above is of a couple more Victoria County Western Rat Snakes. The larger animal is one year old in this picture, the smaller just a couple months. They don't always color up that nice, sometimes they grey out a bit or even darken quite a bit. They are remarkably variable.

RAD House · 02-05-17, 04:08 PM

Most definitely a rat snake, and I agree with FWKs assessment.

s0uthstar · 02-05-17, 05:02 PM

Im glad that its not dangerous! Thanks to all for replying & helping identify it. Happy sunday