Virginia (genus)

Taxobox
name = "Virginia"


image_caption = Rough Earth Snake, "Virginia striatula"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Reptilia
ordo = Squamata
subordo = Serpentes
familia = Colubridae
genus = "Virginia"
genus_authority = Linnaeus, 1758

"Virginia" is a genus of small, terrestrial, colubrid snakes, native to the United States. They are commonly referred to as earth snakes.

Species

*Mountain Earth Snake, "Virginia pulchra" (Richmond, 1954)
*Rough Earth Snake, "Virginia striatula" (Linnaeus, 1766)
*Smooth Earth Snake, "Virginia valeriae" (Baird & Girard, 1853)

Distribution

*"V. pulchra" - eastern United States, from Pennsylvania to West Virginia
*"V. striatula" - southeastern United States, from Oklahoma and Texas to North Carolina and Florida.
*"V. valeriae" - eastern half of the United States, from Iowa and Texas to Pennsylvania and Florida.

Ranges overlap, it is unknown if hybridization occurs.

Description

"Virginia" species are small snakes, rarely exceeding 10 inches in length. They are normally a uniform brown color, with a lighter colored underside. Differentiating species can be difficult, but "V. valeriae" has smooth scales, where as "V. striatula" has keeled scales.

Habitat & diet

"Virginia" species are fossorial, spending the vast majority of their time buried in loose soil, under rotting logs, or in leaf litter. They eat earthworms and soft bodied arthropods. They themselves are a food source for other species of snake, like the coral snake.

References

* [http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/earthsn.htm South Carolina Reptiles & Amphibians]
* [http://www.uga.edu/srelherp/snakes/virstr.htm Snakes of Georgia & South Carolina]
*EMBL genus|genus=Virginia