{"id":477,"date":"2016-09-17T10:53:14","date_gmt":"2016-09-17T15:53:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/?p=477"},"modified":"2019-02-16T14:28:21","modified_gmt":"2019-02-16T20:28:21","slug":"glade-glade-snakes-by-ben-dalton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/2016\/09\/17\/glade-glade-snakes-by-ben-dalton\/","title":{"rendered":"Glade & Glade Snakes by\u00a0Ben Dalton"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Glade & Glade Snakes<\/b><\/h1>\n

by\u00a0Ben Dalton<\/b><\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re not from this neck o\u2019 the woods, you might know a glade as a clearing in a forest.\u00a0 However, glades have a special meaning to those of us who live in the Ozarks:<\/p>\n

A glade is a unique ecosystem that is drier, rockier, and more resembles a prairie than the surrounding woodland.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

While hiking around these hills, you might notice a prickly pear cactus, or you may have seen a roadrunner speeding past.\u00a0While these plants and animals are common in states like Texas and Arizona, you probably don\u2019t associate them with the Ozarks.\u00a0 Indeed, glades are special ecosystems colonized by plants and animals commonly found farther into the south and west.<\/p>\n

Glades provide a perfect habitat for many types of reptiles.\u00a0Rocks of all sizes litter the glades \u2014 usually as a result of being exposed to the elements \u2014 and make great hiding places and decent areas to thermoregulate<\/i>. Rocks maintain heat into cooler nights and stay cool into the warming morning.<\/p>\n

Both prairie grasses and forest plant species can be found in glades and the great variety of plant life supports an equally great variety of insects. While the cold winters do prevent many of the high-heat reptiles from spreading into the Ozarks, several more tolerant southwestern reptiles have adapted.\u00a0 You\u2019ll find Collared Lizards, Texas Horned Lizards and several snake species.\u00a0There are many shapes and sizes of glade-loving snake species (e.g., Coachwhip, Speckled Kingsnake), but it\u2019s the smaller snakes that seem most abundant.\u00a0These snakes are so small, in fact, you won\u2019t find them unless you\u2019re looking for them.<\/p>\n

In particular, there are three species of snakes that are fairly common throughout Ozark glades:<\/p>\n

The Ringed-neck Snake, the Worm Snake, and the Flat-headed Snake.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Ring-necked Snakes (Diadophis punctatus arnyi<\/i>)<\/b> are probably the most recognizable and well-known of the three species.\u00a0 Ring-necked snakes rarely grow over a foot long and are usually thinner around than a pea. Their defining characteristic, and their namesake, comes from the white \u201cnecklace\u201d coloration at the base of the head.<\/p>\n

Otherwise, you might think them dull snakes, being a gray-brown down the entire length of their back (until you flip them over).<\/p>\n

Ring-necked snakes have bright yellow bellies \u2014 often speckled with black spots \u2014 which end with a vivid orange tail.\u00a0 When you\u2019re a small snake you have lots of predators. If you cannot defend yourself then your best bet is to scare predators away.\u00a0 If you startle a ring-neck, they\u2019ll flip over and show the bright coloration of their bellies, often releasing a foul-smelling musk at the same time.\u00a0 If it looks bad, and smells bad, you might not want to eat it, right?<\/p>\n

The genus name Diadophis<\/i> comes from a combination of diadem<\/i> and the Greek root for snake<\/i> (\u201cophios<\/i>\u201d). The species name punctatus<\/i> shares a root with punctuation, referring to the small black spots on the bellies.<\/p>\n

Ring-necked snakes feed on small worms, insects and salamanders. Realistically, its prey choice is limited by the size of its mouth (which is too small to even latch onto the pinky finger of this herpetologist).<\/p>\n

Despite the size, there\u2019s another surprise ring-necks are hiding: they possess venom!\u00a0 Now, I\u2019d hesitate to call them venomous (although they technically<\/i> are) because: 1) they\u2019re too small to bite people; 2) their fangs are in the rear of their mouths, so if one somehow managed to latch on, it would have to effectively swallow before it could inject its venom; 3) their venom is aimed at earthworms and salamanders \u2014 to humans it\u2019s less aggravating than poison ivy.<\/p>\n

Not everything is quite as scary as it seems, huh?<\/p>\n

Worm Snakes (Carphophis vermis<\/i>)<\/b> are probably less-known than ring-necks but are also common in the glades of the Ozarks. Roughly the same size as ring-necks, worm snakes are dorsally black (almost iridescent) and ventrally red-to-pink. If you thought the mouth of a ring-necked snake was small, the mouth of a worm snake is even smaller \u2014 they have a smaller gape than ring-necks and as such feed primarily on worms and ants.\u00a0Part of the reason they have a differently shaped mouth and skull is because they burrow more so than ring-necks.<\/p>\n

Their name might also be called worm snakes because, like ring-necks, worm snakes flip over when threatened and display their red belly \u2014 making them easy to mistake for a big angry worm.<\/p>\n

The genus name Carphophis <\/i>comes from the Greek root for dry<\/i> (\u201ckarphos\u201d) and again ophios<\/i> for snake. Vermis<\/i> is Latin for worm.\u00a0 A more aptly-named creature you cannot find.<\/p>\n

The third small snake of our glades is the Flat-headed Snake (Tantilla gracilis<\/i>)<\/b>.\u00a0 Of the three, this is probably the most wide-spread \u2014 from South America to the Eastern Seaboard, Tantilla <\/i>abound.\u00a0Flat-heads are somewhat smaller than worms or ring-necks, and are also thinner.\u00a0Their smaller size \u2014 in conjunction with their flat-head namesake \u2014 helps them squeeze into tight spaces between rocks and logs.\u00a0 With such a small head, they are restricted to preying on the smallest of the insects of the glades (mostly ants).<\/p>\n

The genus Tantilla <\/i>is Latin for little<\/i> and the species name gracilis<\/i> is Latin for thin<\/i>.\u00a0 Taxonomists aren\u2019t a particularly creative bunch when choosing to name a little, thin snake.<\/p>\n

Flat-headed snakes are tan with a dark brown head.\u00a0 In other areas of the country, closely-related species of Tantilla<\/i> have been named things like the Crowned Snake (T. coronata<\/i>) where the pattern on their head takes on a more crown-like shape. Again, the flat-headed snake sports a brighter, reddish-colored belly.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve noticed a pattern here, it\u2019s no coincidence.\u00a0I\u2019ve explained the reasons why warning coloration might be helpful for survival \u2014 startling predators \u2014 but why do so many glade species have it?<\/p>\n

Consider this scenario:\u00a0 You are friends with your neighbors to either side when a troublesome neighbor moves in across the street.\u00a0You decide this is just the opportunity you\u2019ve been looking for to build a new fence in your front yard.<\/p>\n

You draw up a plan, go to the hardware store down the road for materials, then set to work.<\/p>\n

When you\u2019re almost finished, your friendly neighbors both come back from the same hardware store with materials for their own fences.\u00a0Later, you all step back and look at the finished project:<\/p>\n

Your wood fence is bordered by a stone fence on one side and a hedge row on the other.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Although they don\u2019t look exactly the same, the obtrusive view is blocked all around. Without talking to your neighbors, you three found a similar solution to the same problem, using what materials were readily available.<\/p>\n

This is similar to the snakes we\u2019ve talked about today.\u00a0Animals that are similar in life-history often face the same set of problems in many parts of the world. In our situation, this could be small, thin-bodied snakes in danger of being eaten by birds.<\/p>\n

Plants and animals have similar sets of materials to pull from and will use what best accomplishes their task. If a bright belly helps snakes survive better than other means of defense, you can expect that characteristic to show regularly.\u00a0 Whether it be a red belly, pink belly, or yellow belly, all solve the same problem.<\/p>\n

Glades are representative of a special type of habitat with a unique environment.\u00a0 Plants and animals from different parts of the country that might not be found together (and have evolved separately from each other) are present because of the special oasis our Ozark glades create.<\/p>\n

Sometimes this takes the form of small, fascinating snakes that like dry rocky hillsides. Other times it takes the form of plants, or insects, or birds. The list goes on.\u00a0While glades are fascinating, they\u2019re also fragile.\u00a0Hikers trample sensitive plants, flip rocks that snakes, lizards, and other animals use for cover, and leave trash behind.\u00a0Our glades are our treasures. Be respectful.<\/p>\n

As the Park Service says, \u201cLeave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures.\u201d Next time you\u2019re near a glade, take a moment to look around, and try to guess if the life you\u2019re looking at comes from the east or the southwest.<\/p>\n

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Above, the\u00a0Coachwhip Snake (Coluber flagellum<\/i>). This snake gets its name from the patterning on the posterior side of the body, where the coloration goes from a dark brown (or black) to a “braided” appearance resembling a whip. These snakes are long and thin, allowing them to prey upon quick lizard species. Formerly Masticophis flagellum<\/i>. \u2014\u00a0Ben Dalton<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”361″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Ring-necked Snakes (Diadophis punctatus arnyi<\/i>) are probably the most recognizable and well known of the three species.<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”362″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]The third small snake of our glades is the Flat-headed Snake (Tantilla gracilis<\/i>).\u00a0 Of the three, this is probably the widest-spread \u2014 from South America to the Eastern seaboard, Tantilla <\/i>abound.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”363″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]There are many shapes and sizes of glade-loving snake species (eg. Coachwhip, Speckled Kingsnake), but it\u2019s the smaller snakes that seem most abundant.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”365″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_column_text]Worm Snakes (Carphophis vermis<\/i>) are probably less-known than ring-necks but are also common in the glades of the Ozarks.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”462″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Herpetologist Ben\u00a0Dalton graduated in 2013 from Missouri State University-Springfield and continued teaching biology labs at MSU \u2014\u00a0and biology at Ozark Technical College. He is\u00a0a laboratory supervisor in the biology department at MSU. His undergraduate Puerto Rican coqui<\/i> frog (Eleutherodactylus coqui<\/i>) research and Ozark zigzag salamander\u00a0(Plethodon angusticlavius<\/i>)\u00a0thesis work have been published in peer-reviewed journals.<\/p>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text] Glade & Glade Snakes by\u00a0Ben Dalton If you\u2019re not from this neck o\u2019 the woods, you might know a glade as a clearing in a forest.\u00a0 However, glades have a special meaning to those of us who live in the Ozarks: A glade is a unique ecosystem that is drier, rockier, and more…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":360,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[937,905],"tags":[54,55,52,56,57,53],"class_list":["post-477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ozarkwriters","category-sotonaturalheritage","tag-carphophis-vermis","tag-coluber-flagellum","tag-diadophis-punctatus-arnyi","tag-masticophis-flagellum","tag-t-coronata","tag-tantilla-gracilis","category-937","category-905","description-off"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=477"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":482,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/477\/revisions\/482"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateoftheozarks.net\/showcase\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}