Southern Smooth Snake

About the Southern Smooth Snake

Coronella girondica, commonly known as the southern smooth snake or Riccioli's snake, is a species of harmless snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to southern Europe and northern Africa. No subspecies are recognized as being valid.

C. girondica is found in Spain, Portugal, southern France, Monaco, Italy, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The type locality given is Bordeaux, France. C. girondica is brown, grayish, or reddish dorsally, with dark brown or blackish transverse bars or spots. On the nape there is a dark U-shaped mark, or a pair of dark elongate spots. There is a dark streak from the eye to the corner of the mouth, a dark band from eye to eye across the prefrontals, and a black line below the eye. Ventrally it is yellowish or red with black markings. The dorsal scales, which are smooth, are in 21 rows (rarely 19). Adults may attain a total length of 62 cm (2 feet), of which 12.5 cm (5 inches) is tail.

The natural habitats of C. girondica are temperate forests, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, pastureland, and plantations. It is threatened by habitat loss. This... Wikipedia →