Ring-necked snakes are colubrid snakes that can be found throughout North America. They are quite shy, so it’s not always easy to spot one in the wild, but if you do get a chance to see them you’ll be able to see their beautiful colors. Keep reading to learn more about the fascinating ring-necked snake!
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Quick Facts
Scientific Name: Diadophis punctatus
Common Names: Ring-necked snake, Ringneck snake
Geographic Range: United States, Canada, Mexico
Life Span: 10+ Years
Conservation Status: Least Concern
Top 10 List – Ring-Necked Snake
1. Ring-Necked Snakes Can Be Very Brightly Colored
The colors of ring-necked snakes vary slightly depending on the subspecies. The color of the top of the snake can be various colors, such as blue-grey, light grey, green-grey, brown, olive, and black. Their bellies are either cream, yellow, or orange, with various black spots, and the same color in a ring around their necks – hence their common name the ring-necked snake. However a few species may not actually have the ring around their neck, or the ring may only be partial. Some subspecies have a more reddy-orange color towards their tail. Their pupils are round and their heads tend to be darker than the rest of their body.
Ring-necked snakes have an average length of 25 – 38 cm (10 – 15 inches), with females tending to be longer than the males. The subspecies Diadophis punctatus regalis (regal ring-necked snake) is larger however and can range in length from 38 – 46 cm (15 – 18 inches) in length.
2. Ring-Necked Snakes Like Areas With Lots Of Places To Hide
Since ring-necked snakes are so shy, they tend to prefer areas with lots of hiding places and dens. They use these dens to hibernate underground, avoiding the heat during hot weather, as well as avoiding the cold during the winter. Northern and western subspecies prefer to hide under rocks and tree bark and are often found in open woodlands near rocky hillsides. Southern subspecies prefer wet areas such as swamps and damp forests.
3. They Are Nocturnal And Hunt For Their Food At Night
Being nocturnal, ring-necked snakes hunt at night for their prey. They are carnivorous, preying on animals such as small salamanders, lizards, frogs, earthworms, slugs, and juvenile snakes of other species. Depending on their region it will vary on which of those prey they eat most of. It is thought they subdue their prey using spatial constriction as well as their mild venom.
4. Females Ringnecks Will Release Pheremones To Attract A Male
During mating season (spring or fall, depending on the subspecies), the females will release pheromones through their skin in order to attract males. They are considered sexually mature at 3 years old. After mating, the female snake will lay 3 – 10 eggs in a moist location, during either June or July. Where colonies exist eggs are sometimes laid in a communal nest. Around August or September, the eggs will hatch, and the juvenile ring-neck snakes will be expected to immediately be independent and able to fend for themselves.
5. Despite Having Mild Venom They Are Harmless To Humans
Despite not having a true venom gland, the ring-necked snake instead produces venom in a similar type of gland called the Duvernoy’s gland, which is located behind the eye. They use this venom by injecting it through elongated teeth at the rear of their mouth, in order to subdue and immobilize their larger prey. Their venom seems to be used to eat, and not as a defense strategy as they have other defense mechanisms that they use instead. Even though they do have venom it is very mild and they are still considered harmless to humans. However, we still don’t recommend going out and bugging them in the wild.
6. They Are Actually Quite Social Snakes
As mentioned above, they are mainly nocturnal and are most active during the night, however, they can occasionally be spotted during the day sunning themselves to warm up. They tend not to be aggressive, and are quite shy, preferring to hide. These snakes are also fairly social animals, with some “communities” of these snakes having more than one hundred of them together. They will hide in dens together, and sometimes even lay their eggs together in communal nests. The exact social hierarchy, if there is one, has not yet been determined.
7. Ring-Neckes Snakes Will Coil And Raise Their Tails When Threatened
Ring-neck snakes have various predators in the wild, such as various other snakes, wild hogs, opossums, shrews, armadillos, skunks, screech owls, and bullfrogs. They are also threatened by habitat loss as well as being run over by cars while crossing or sitting on the road. When alarmed they will coil up their tails, which is thought to be a threat display to try to get the predator to leave. If that doesn’t work some subspecies may play dead and release a foul-smelling musk, to try to make themselves as unappetizing to predators as possible.
8. They Communicate With Eachother In Various Ways
As mentioned above females will release pheromones through their skin to communicate to male ring-neck snakes that she is ready to mate. During mating, males will often rub their heads on the female. They also have been seen rubbing heads and nuzzling.
9. Ring-Necked Snakes Have 14 Different Subspecies
Ring-necked snakes have 14 different subspecies, 3 of which are pictured above. Subspecies can vary slightly in color, size, as well as the way the ring around their neck looks. Three of the subspecies ( San Diego ring-neck snake, san Bernardino ring-neck snake, and key ring-neck snake) are considered candidates for various threatened species list, however, the species overall is considered to be at least concern for extinction.
10. They Are Sometimes Mistaken For The Red-Bellied Snake
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Occasionally ring-necked snakes can be confused for red-bellied snakes. Both species can be found throughout North America, both expose their bellies when threatened, and are around the same length. Red-bellied snakes do not have rings around their necks as ring-necked snakes do.
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