Colubrids: Colubridae - Physical Characteristics, Habitat, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction, Colubrids And People, Conservation Status - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE
species accounts snake
Colubrid snakes occur almost everywhere in the world. The only places they do not live are Antarctica; the far northern reaches of Europe, Asia, and North America; and central and western Australia.
Additional Topics
The colubrids (KAHL-yuh-bruhds) make up the largest group of snakes; they include almost 75 percent of all the world's snake species, or types of snakes. These snakes come in many sizes, shapes, and colors. Despite the many differences among the snakes in this family, colubrids share a few features. Most have wide scales on their bellies and, usually, nine large scales on the tops of their …
Scientists have not studied the activities of most of the 1,700 colubrid species in any detail, because many of them live underground or in trees, or else they have excellent camouflage (KA-mah-flahzh), a sort of disguise, which makes them difficult to watch. Scientists do, however, have a lot of information about the more common snakes and even some particularly odd types. The most obvious featur…
The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists one species as Extinct, meaning that none is still alive. Six species are Critically Endangered, meaning that they face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild, and seven are Endangered, meaning that they face a very high risk of extinction. Eight are considered Vulnerable, meaning that their risk of extinction is high, and four are Near Threatene…
Physical characteristics: A long, thin snake, the boomslang comes in a number of colors, including green, reddish, and black with yellow spots inside each of the black scales. The belly is often a creamy color. The boomslang has a large head and big eyes. Adults are about 4 feet (1.2 meters) long. Geographic range: The boomslang lives in the central and southern regions of Africa, which is known a…
Physical characteristics: The common garter is a somewhat thin snake that may be brown, greenish, or red and may have blackish blotches. Garters usually have three long stripes running from top to bottom: a center stripe that may be almost cream in color and two yellow stripes along the sides of the body. Adults range from about 20 to 28 inches (51 to 71 centimeters) in length, but some can reach …
Physical characteristics: Although all milksnakes have smooth, shiny scales, they can look quite different from one region to the next. Some have large red or brown blotches that are often lined in black on a gray to tan background; others have bands of red, black, and yellow or white. A few are solid black. Adults range from 20 to 60 inches (51 to 152 centimeters) in length.
Although the milk…
Physical characteristics: The eastern hog-nosed snake has a thick body and a wide head with an upward-curving snout, or nose area. Its scales form ridges, or raised areas, and the snake's back usually is covered with brown spots scattered over a yellowish, orangey, gray, or olive green background. The spots, however, may be faded or missing entirely. Occasionally, a snake may be completely …
Physical characteristics: The indigo snakes that live in the southeastern United States are shiny black or bluish-black with a reddish throat. In tropical areas, their colors range from black to brown, gray, or yellow. Sometimes, the tail is a different color from the rest of the body. The longest snake in the United States, adults can reach nearly 10 feet (3 meters) long.
Although it lives ma…
Citing this material
Please include a link to this page if you have found this material useful for research or writing a related article. Content on this website is from high-quality, licensed material originally published in print form. You can always be sure you're reading unbiased, factual, and accurate information.
Highlight the text below, right-click, and select “copy”. Paste the link into your website, email, or any other HTML document.
User Comments