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Great Plains Rat Snake
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- Order: Squamata (scaled reptiles)
- Suborder: Serpentes (snakes)
- Family: Colubridae ("typical" snakes)
- Subfamily: Colubrinae ("typical"
snakes)
- Genus: Elaphe (corn, fox, and rat
snakes)
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| Also Known As: Emory
rat snake |
Scientific Name: Elaphe emoryi
(Baird & Girard, 1853) NOTE: Recent taxonomical
changes have placed most North American Elaphe into a new
genus, Pantherophis. |
| Habitat: Meadows and
open areas. |
Elaphos="deer" (possibly alluding
to these snakes' speed), emoryi in honor of Army General
William H. Emory
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| Length: Up to 6 feet. |
Old Scientific Name:
Elaphe guttata emoryi |
| Food: Rodents and
birds. |
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| I found this snake July 2002
near Del Rio. Initially when I picked it up it was
docile. However, when I attempted to restrain it near the
head to get a better grip for measurement purposes, it whipped
around and bit me! The picture at right is a frame from my
video tape when the snake struck. |
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| Here's how my index finger
looked after the snake let go. It left a U-shaped bite mark
which bled quite a bit. |
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This is about the best shot of this snake I could
glean from my video tape. Compare this to the Texas
Rat Snake head pattern. Great Plains rats retain this
pattern as adults; Texas rats' pattern fades with age.
This snake was a roughly-3-foot-long female.
After taking video, I released it where I found it.
See also Southern Plains Rat
Snake. |
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