Faded snake
Glossy snakes are medium-sized nonvenomous colubrid snakes native to the United States and Mexico. They are similar in appearance to gopher snakes being smaller in size, with narrow, pointed heads, and a variety of skin patterns and colors. They appear "washed-out" or pale, hence the common name, "faded snakes". Glossy snakes are shades of tan, brown, and gray with spotted patterns on their smooth, glossy skin, and a white or cream-colored unmarked ventral surface. Coloration often varies in relation to the color of the soil in a snake's native habitat.
Glossy snakes are found in the southwestern United States, from California in the west to Kansas in the east and as far south as Texas, and northern Mexico. They inhabit open semi-arid grasslands, shrubland, sandhills, coastal scrub, desert with shrubs, and rocky washes.
Glossy snakes are active during the night and lead a solitary lifestyle. They are excellent burrowers and thus prefer to live in areas with sandy or loamy soils. They create their own burrows where they rest during the day or hibernate during cold autumn and winter months. However, they may also take shelter in abandoned burrows of small animals, under rocks and other surfaces. Glossy snakes are generally quite gentle and calm. When disturbed they will vibrate their tail and if captured may produce a musk; males, however, may strike and bite.
Glossy snakes have a carnivorous diet. They prey mainly on small lizards but will also take rodents, and small birds.
Glossy snakes are polygynandrous (promiscuous) in their mating habits meaning that both the males and the females have multiple mates. They breed in the late spring and early summer after hibernation and males typically find females by following scent trails. Glossy snakes are oviparous and females lay one clutch per year consisting of 10 to 20 eggs. The incubation period lasts about 72 days. The newly hatched young are approximately 25 cm (9.8 in) in total length and are pretected by their mother for the first few days after birth.
Glossy snakes are not considered threatened at present, however, locally some populations have suffered from urbanization and agricultural development.
According to the IUCN Red List, the total adult population size of the Glossy snake is unknown but certainly exceeds 100,000 mature individuals. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List and its numbers today are stable.
Glossy snakes play an important role in the ecosystem they live in. They control the populations of their prey items and due to their burrowing habits, they also aid in soil aeration.
