Genus Pantherophis – North American Ratsnakes
Another well-known genus, even more abundant in US collections than kingsnakes. There are 8 or 9 species depending on your taxonomy, mostly from the eastern and central portions of the country; the survey found them all. As a warning: they are a pretty confusing group even for colubrids, with a lot of misleading common names and unclear taxonomy.
Eastern and Western Ratsnakes (P. alleghaniensis and P. obsoletus) – Abundant
A staple of nature centers (and people’s backyards), these ratsnakes are often black in color and are commonly referred to as “black ratsnakes”. There is quite a bit of variability in color and pattern though; juveniles can be different than adults, Texas Ratsnakes have a brown-and-black blotch patterning, and some Eastern Ratsnakes are a golden-orange and are called Yellow Ratsnakes.
I tried to sort all these out, but wildly inconsistent common names and a lack of Latin IDs made it difficult; the ones I could assign were roughly a 60-40 split between Eastern and Western respectively. I therefore lumped the two together.
A wild Western Ratsnake (P. obsoletus)
Taken in Missouri by @DesertTortoise
Everglades Eastern Ratsnake (P. alleghaniensis)
Taken at the Indianapolis Zoo by @Moebelle
Corn Snake (P. guttatus) – Abundant
One of the two most popular pet snakes in the world, only beaten out nowadays by Ball Pythons. These docile ratsnakes are a frequent beginner pet for many young herpkeepers, and despite a slight drop in popularity recently they remain a staple of pet stores. They are commonly used by zoos as an outreach animal, or included in small private zoos and nature centers for exhibit purposes.
Taken at the Riverbanks Zoo (South Carolina) by @geomorph
The Great Plains Ratsnake (P. emoryi) has on-and-off been considered either a subspecies of guttatus or a distinct species, as has the Slowinski’s Corn Snake (P. slowinskii). Fun fact: the latter is named in honor of an American herpetologist who died of snakebite… though not from a corn snake, obviously. Both of these species seem to be rare in US captive collections.
Other species of Pantherophis:
Prevalent
Gray Ratsnake (P. spiloides) - another ratsnake found across the eastern half of the country, and also variable in color and patterning.
Taken at Zoo Tampa by @red river hog
Uncommon or Rare:
Baird’s Ratsnake (P. bairdii)
Eastern Foxsnake (P. vulpinus)
Western Foxsnake (P. ramspotti)
Another well-known genus, even more abundant in US collections than kingsnakes. There are 8 or 9 species depending on your taxonomy, mostly from the eastern and central portions of the country; the survey found them all. As a warning: they are a pretty confusing group even for colubrids, with a lot of misleading common names and unclear taxonomy.
Eastern and Western Ratsnakes (P. alleghaniensis and P. obsoletus) – Abundant
A staple of nature centers (and people’s backyards), these ratsnakes are often black in color and are commonly referred to as “black ratsnakes”. There is quite a bit of variability in color and pattern though; juveniles can be different than adults, Texas Ratsnakes have a brown-and-black blotch patterning, and some Eastern Ratsnakes are a golden-orange and are called Yellow Ratsnakes.
I tried to sort all these out, but wildly inconsistent common names and a lack of Latin IDs made it difficult; the ones I could assign were roughly a 60-40 split between Eastern and Western respectively. I therefore lumped the two together.
A wild Western Ratsnake (P. obsoletus)
Taken in Missouri by @DesertTortoise
Everglades Eastern Ratsnake (P. alleghaniensis)
Taken at the Indianapolis Zoo by @Moebelle
Corn Snake (P. guttatus) – Abundant
One of the two most popular pet snakes in the world, only beaten out nowadays by Ball Pythons. These docile ratsnakes are a frequent beginner pet for many young herpkeepers, and despite a slight drop in popularity recently they remain a staple of pet stores. They are commonly used by zoos as an outreach animal, or included in small private zoos and nature centers for exhibit purposes.
Taken at the Riverbanks Zoo (South Carolina) by @geomorph
The Great Plains Ratsnake (P. emoryi) has on-and-off been considered either a subspecies of guttatus or a distinct species, as has the Slowinski’s Corn Snake (P. slowinskii). Fun fact: the latter is named in honor of an American herpetologist who died of snakebite… though not from a corn snake, obviously. Both of these species seem to be rare in US captive collections.
Other species of Pantherophis:
Prevalent
Gray Ratsnake (P. spiloides) - another ratsnake found across the eastern half of the country, and also variable in color and patterning.
Taken at Zoo Tampa by @red river hog
Uncommon or Rare:
Baird’s Ratsnake (P. bairdii)
Eastern Foxsnake (P. vulpinus)
Western Foxsnake (P. ramspotti)
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These are among the world’s largest colubrid snakes (reaching nearly 10 ft in length) and are colored a beautiful glossy black. Unfortunately, due to habitat loss and targeted killings these snakes are considered rare and threatened; they are now legally protected as a result. Indigo snakes appear mostly in major accredited zoos rather than in small nature centers or private zoos like many other native snakes. There are two species; the US populations of both look similar to each other.
