Thamnophis proximus rubrilineatus, the redstripe ribbon snake, is a subspecies of the western ribbon snake, a garter snake endemic to the southern United States.
Thamnophis proximus rubrilineatus | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Colubridae |
Genus: | Thamnophis |
Species: | |
Subspecies: | T. p. rubrilineatus
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Trinomial name | |
Thamnophis proximus rubrilineatus Rossman, 1963
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Geographic range
editIt is found in West Texas on the Edwards Plateau.[1]
Description
editThis species has a distinctive red stripe down the center of the back, to which both the common name and the subspecific name refer.
Habitat and behavior
editIt is semiaquatic, spending most of its time on the edge of permanent bodies of water such as swamps, ponds, lakes, or slow-moving streams. It is fast-moving and an excellent swimmer.
Diet
editIts primary diet is amphibians, such as the northern cricket frog (Acris crepitans), but it will also consume lizards and small rodents.
References
edit- Species Thamnophis proximus at The Reptile Database
- ^ Conant, R. (1975). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition. Houghton Mifflin. Boston. xviii + 429 pp. (Thamnophis proximus rubrilineatus, p. 166, Plate 23, Map 120.)
Further reading
edit- Rossman, D.A. (1963). The Colubrid Snake Genus Thamnophis: A Revision of the sauritus Group. Bull. Florida State Mus. Biol. Sci. 7(3):99-178.