Mudsnake

About the Mudsnake

The mud snake (Farancia abacura) is a species of nonvenomous, semiaquatic, colubrid snake endemic to the southeastern United States. The mud snake usually grows to a total length (including tail) of 40 to 54 inches (1-1.4 m), with the record total length being slightly over 80 inches (2 m).

This species is sexually dimorphic in size. Female adults are larger than males in total length. The upperside of the mud snake is glossy black. The underside is red and black, and the red extends up the sides to form bars of reddish-pink, although some have a completely black body with slightly lighter black spots instead of the common reddish colors.

The heavy body is cylindrical in cross section, and the short tail has a terminal spine. The head scalation is distinctive in that there is only one internasal scale, no preocular scale, and one anterior temporal scale. The dorsal scales are smooth, and are arranged in 19 rows at midbody. There are 168–208 ventral scales and 31–55 subcaudal scales. The anal plate is divided.

Farancia abacura is closely related to Farancia erytrogramma, also called the rainbow snake. There are two recognized subspecies of Farancia... Wikipedia →