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Flat-headed snake

Tantilla gracilis

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36.7473, -95.9808

Field Notes

Habitat:

Dry rocky streambed in pasture.

Reference Links:

Tantilla

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (6)
AshleyT
Congrats on the lifer! I'm doing research straight south of you a few hours (just south of Dallas) and this is the most common snake I turn up in my traps. So they do come out from under rocks and move around, but they tend to stay in the leaf litter so are hard to find. Have found quite a few flipping as well!
Stephanie Rainwater
Nice info, Ashley. I've lived in this area my whole life, always been a chronic rock flipper, but this was the first one of these that I have ever seen. I was pretty excited!
AshleyT
I have seen these guys in both wet and dry habitats. The dry habitats tend to be really sandy upland soils with scattered oaks. The wet habitat just needs to have a soil they can burrow into as these are fossorial snakes. If you are in range for them, they are usually very common, you just won't see them out and about. Look under rocks :)
Christy Chow
Ah, very cool! Thank you for such wonderful detail on the habitat!
Stephanie Rainwater
Yes, it was under some sandstone rocks in a dry creek bed. The terrain was gently rolling. We were surveying along an existing pipeline right of way so there was a maintained pasture corridor but that corridor was surrounded by a loose post oak dominant forest so it is hard to say if it is more likely to be found in forest or pasture.
Christy Chow
In what sort of environment would one find a beauty such as this little creature? Hot and dry areas, I'm guessing?
Photographed
PublishedJuly 13, 2014

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