DeKay's brown snake
| DeKay's brown snake | |
|---|---|
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| Storeria dekayi | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Colubridae |
| Genus: | Storeria |
| Species: | S. dekayi
|
| Binomial name | |
| Storeria dekayi (Holbrook, 1836)
| |
| |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Storeria dekayi, commonly known as De Kay's brown snake, De Kay's snake, and simply the brown snake (along with many others), is a small non-venomous species of snake in the family Colubridae.[3][4] The species is native to North America and Central America.
Geographic range
S. dekayi is native to Southern Ontario and Quebec, most of the eastern half of the United States, through Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and possibly El Salvador.[1][2] More specifically, this common species inhabits most wetland and terrestrial habitats east of the Great Plains from sea level to 1,400 meters (4,600 feet) above sea level.[5]
Description
loreal scale.[8] Females exceed males in snout-vent length and number of ventral scales while males exceed females in tail length, head dimensions, and number of subcaudal scales.[9]
Habitat
S. dekayi is a lover of urban areas and tends to frequent cities more often than the countryside. They can also be found in areas such as wetlands, grasslands, and forests, but they are most commonly encountered where humans are found.[10] They prefer moist habitats.[11] Although S. dekayi is solitary, aggregations of individuals have been observed.[12]
Reproduction
Like other
brumation. Between 3 and 41 young are born in late summer.[14]
Diet
S. dekayi primarily feeds on
millipedes) in the diet of S. dekayi are more than likely the result of accidental ingestion rather than intentional feeding, in which one of these invertebrates may have adhered to a slug or other prey item being consumed.[18]
Ecology
S. dekayi is a prey item for larger snakes, large
weasels and invasive housecats.[19] Milksnakes (L. trian-gulum) have previously been reported to be a predator of S. dekayi.[20] An observed predator avoidance mechanism is coiling the anterior portion of the body and swaying it side to side as they attempt to flee.[21] In addition to this, they release a foul musk when threatened.[11] The species is shy and rarely found in the open, usually found hiding under rocks or logs for safety and comfort. They will also occasionally burrow. Their most active period is from about March to October.[citation needed
]
Etymology
The
Long Island, New York, while the generic name, Storeria, honors zoologist David Humphreys Storer.[22][23] However, originally, it was named Coluber dekayi.[citation needed
]
This is the only North American snake whose binomial is a double honorific – that is, both the generic name and the specific name honor people.
References
- ^ . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
- ^ a b Species Storeria dekayi at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
- ^ Stejneger L, Barbour T (1917). A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 125 pp. (Storeria dekayi, p. 98).
- ^ Wright AH, Wright AA (1957). Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates, A Division of Cornell University Press. 1,105 pp. (in two volumes). (Storeria dekayi, pp. 697-714, Figures 205-209, Map 53).
- ^ Christman, Steven P. (1982). "Storeria dekayi". Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles: 1.
- ^ Schmidt KP, Davis DD (1941). Field Book of Snakes of the United States and Canada. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 365 pp. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 227-228 + Plate 25).
- ISBN 0-395-19977-8(paperback). (Storeria dekayi, pp. 153-156, Figure 35 + Plate 22 + Map 28).
- ^ Smith HM, Brodie ED Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 158-159).
- JSTOR 1565661.
- ^ "Dekay's Brownsnake". CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
- ^ a b Davis, Drew R. "Dekay's Brownsnake (Storeria dekayi)". Amphibians and Reptiles of South Dakota.[self-published source?]
- ^ Hecnar, S. J., & Hecnar, D. R. (2011). Microhabitat selection of woody debris by Dekay's brownsnake (Storeria dekayi) in a dune habitat in Ontario, Canada. Journal of Herpetology, 45(4), 478-483.
- S2CID 24548951.
- ^ a b Seaholm, Leslie (2000). Harding, James (ed.). "Animal Diversity Web: Storeria dekayi". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
- ^ Lum, Steven (2022-01-11). "Dekay's Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi): Can they become good pets?". Journeying The Globe. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
- ^ a b Gray, Brian S. (2013). "The relative importance of slugs and earthworms in the diet of Dekay's Brownsnake, Storeria dekayi, from northwestern Pennsylvania" (PDF). Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological Society. 48 (12): 157–165.
- ^ Gray, Brian S. (2015). "Natural history notes: Storeria dekayi: Diet". Herpetological Review. 46 (1): 108.
- ^ Gray, Brian S. (2013). "Natural history notes: Storeria dekayi: Diet". Herpetological Review. 44 (3): 527.
- ^ Szalay, Jessie; Dutfield, Scott (1 March 2022). "Facts About Brown Snakes". Live Science.
- ^ © The Center for North American Herpetology 38Ernst, C. H. and E. M. Ernst. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Press. Washington, DC.
- .
- ^ Beltz, Ellin (2006). Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America – Explained. http://ebeltz.net/herps/biogappx.html
- ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Storeria dekayi, p. 68; genus Storeria, p. 255; Storeria dekayi wrightorum, p. 289).
Further reading
- ISBN 0-394-50824-6. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 654–655 + Plate 550).
- Boulenger GA (1893). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume I., Containing the Families ... Colubridæ Aglyphæ, part. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (Ischnognathus dekayi, pp. 286–287).
- Clausen, H.J. (1936). "Observations on the Brown Snake Storeria dekayi (Holbrook), with especial Reference to the Habits and Birth of Young". Copeia 1936: 98-102.
- Conant, Roger; Bridges, William (1939). What Snake is That? A Field Guide to the Snakes of the United States East of the Rocky Mountains. (With 108 drawings by Edmond Malnate). New York and London: D. Appleton-Century. Frontispiece map + viii + 163 pp. + Plates A-C, 1-32. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 108–110 + Plate C, Figure 14; Plate 21, Figure 60).
- ISBN 0-7167-0020-4. (Storeria dekayi, p. 117).
- Holbrook JE (1842). North American Herpetology; or, a Description of the Reptiles Inhabiting the United States. Vol. IV. Philadelphia: J. Dobson. 136 pp. (Tropidonotus dekayi, new combination, pp. 53–55 & Plate XIV opposite p. 53).
- Morris, Percy A. (1948). Boy's Book of Snakes: How to Recognize and Understand Them. (A volume of the Humanizing Science Series, edited by Jaques Cattell). New York: Ronald Press. viii + 185 pp. (Storeria dekayi dekayi, pp. 26–28, 180).
- ISBN 978-0-544-12997-9. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 423–424, Figures 192-193 + Plate 42).
- Zim HS, Smith HM(1956). Reptiles and Amphibians: A Guide to Familiar American Species. A Golden Nature Guide. New York: Simon and Schuster. 160 pp. (Storeria dekayi pp. 106, 156).
- Gray, B. S. (2014) "Natural history of Dekay’s Brownsnake, Storeria dekayi (Holbrook 1836) at a site in northwestern Pennsylvania". Journal of North American Herpetology 2014(1):28-39.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Storeria dekayi.
- Brown Snake, Reptiles and Amphibians of Iowa.