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Nightsnake!

tyflier

tyflier

[Insert Witty Commentary]
Found this tiny little girl last night. Cruising back from taking my daughter to her mother's for the weekend, this little girl was sitting in the road. I almost drove right past her, but my brain sub-consciously registered "snake", and I stopped and backed up...and there she was.

Some people list 2 species each with subspecies. Others list a singular species. Until more studies are done and the taxonomic powers that be make up their minds, I am listing it as the singular Hypsiglena torquata...

night1.jpg


Thanks for looking!
 
What a find... How venomous are they? And how aggressive? And what are the chances of an envenomation?
Are you keeping it?
Seems like I got a lot of questions TY...LOL
 
snakewispera snr said:
What a find... How venomous are they? And how aggressive? And what are the chances of an envenomation?
Are you keeping it?
Seems like I got a lot of questions TY...LOL
Click to expand...

They are very mildly venomous, considered harmless to humans. In fact...she's so tiny I don't think she could bite me if she wanted to. She's only about 8-10" long...

She's quite calm, as well. Content to be handled, but jumpy if something she can't see touches her or goes near her face.

And the chances of envenomation are quite low. No more risky than hognose or Sierra Garter, which is also mildly venomous. It's not quite a true venom, more of a toxic saliva. And the rear fangs aren't true fangs, just enlarged, grooved teeth at the back of the upper jaw. VERY similar to the Sierra Gartersnake.

And yes...she is a rare find that I consider myself extremely lucky to have spotted. She will be added to my Inyo County Locality "museum". They are a very hardy and proliferate snake in the area...just very rarely seen...
 
tyflier said:
No idea...
Click to expand...
After chatting with Brian Grieg Fry, it seems this is *common* in a lot of the more advanced snakes (colubrides)....Even a lot considered to be 'non-venomous'... They just don't have the dental architecture to be able to deliver it....
 
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