DeKay's brown snake explained

Storeria dekayi, commonly known as De Kay's brown snake, De Kay's snake, and simply the brown snake (along with many others), is a small non-venomous species of snake in the family Colubridae.^{[1] [2]} The species is native to North America and Central America.

Geographic range

S. dekayi is native to Southern Ontario and Quebec, most of the eastern half of the United States, through Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and possibly El Salvador.^[3] More specifically, this common species inhabits most wetland and terrestrial habitats east of the Great Plains from sea level to 1,400 meters (4,600 feet) above sea level.^[4]

Description

Dorsally, S. dekayi is brown to gray with a lighter center stripe bordered by small black spots; ventrally, it is lighter brown or pink with small black dots at the ends of the ventral scales.^[5] Adults usually measure less than 12inches in total length (including tail), but the record total length is NaNinches.^[6] The dorsal scales are keeled, and it has no loreal scale.^[7] Females exceed males in snout-vent length and number of ventral scales while males exceed females in tail length, head dimensions, and number of subcaudal scales.^[8]

Habitat

S. dekayi is a lover of urban areas and tends to frequent cities more often than the countryside. They can also be found in areas such as wetlands, grasslands, and forests, but they are most commonly encountered where humans are found.^[9] They prefer moist habitats.^[10] Although S. dekayi is solitary, aggregations of individuals have been observed.^[11]

Reproduction

Like other natricine snakes such as water snakes (genus Nerodia) and garter snakes (genus Thamnophis), S. dekayi is a viviparous species, giving birth to live young.^[12] Sexual maturity is reached at two to three years. Mating takes place in the spring, after snakes emerge from brumation. Between 3 and 41 young are born in late summer.^[13]

Diet

S. dekayi primarily feeds on slugs, snails, and earthworms.^{[14] [15]} In the southern extent of its region, the snake usually preys predominantly on earthworms; however, in the northern reaches of its range, slugs are the predominant food source.^[16] It has specialized jaws that allow it to remove snails from their shells for consumption. Reports of other invertebrates (such as woodlice, mites, or millipedes) in the diet of S. dekayi are more than likely the result of accidental ingestion rather than intentional feeding, in which one of these invertebrates may have adhered to a slug or other prey item being consumed.^[17]

Ecology

S. dekayi is a prey item for larger snakes, large frogs, and toads, birds, and many mammals including weasels and invasive housecats.^[18] Milksnakes (L. triangulum) have previously been reported to be a predator of S. dekayi.^[19] An observed predator avoidance mechanism is coiling the anterior portion of the body and swaying it side to side as they attempt to flee.^[20] In addition to this, they release a foul musk when threatened.^[10] The species is shy and rarely found in the open, usually found hiding under rocks or logs for safety and comfort. They will also occasionally burrow. Their most active period is from about March to October.

Etymology

The specific name, dekayi, is in honor of American zoologist James Ellsworth De Kay (1792–1851), who collected the first specimen on Long Island, New York, while the generic name, Storeria, honors zoologist David Humphreys Storer.^{[21] [22]} However, originally, it was named Coluber dekayi.

This is the only North American snake whose binomial is a double honorific – that is, both the generic name and the specific name honor people.

Further reading

• Behler JL, King FW (1979). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Knopf. 743 pp. . (Storeria dekayi, pp. 654–655 + Plate 550).
• Boulenger GA (1893). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume I., Containing the Families ... Colubridæ Aglyphæ, part. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (Ischnognathus dekayi, pp. 286–287).
• Clausen, H.J. (1936). "Observations on the Brown Snake Storeria dekayi (Holbrook), with especial Reference to the Habits and Birth of Young". Copeia 1936: 98-102.
• Conant, Roger

Bridges, William (1939). What Snake is That? A Field Guide to the Snakes of the United States East of the Rocky Mountains. (With 108 drawings by Edmond Malnate). New York and London: D. Appleton-Century. Frontispiece map + viii + 163 pp. + Plates A-C, 1-32. (Storeria dekayi, pp. 108–110 + Plate C, Figure 14; Plate 21, Figure 60).

• Goin, Coleman J.

Goin, Olive B.; Zug, George R. (1978). Introduction to Herpetology: Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman. xi + 378 pp. . (Storeria dekayi, p. 117).

• Gray, Brian S. (2014). "Natural history of Dekay's Brownsnake, Storeria dekayi (Holbrook 1836) at a site in northwestern Pennsylvania". Journal of North American Herpetology 2014 (1): 28–39.
• Holbrook JE (1842). North American Herpetology; or, a Description of the Reptiles Inhabiting the United States. Vol. IV. Philadelphia: J. Dobson. 136 pp. (Tropidonotus dekayi, new combination, pp. 53–55 & Plate XIV opposite p. 53).
• Morris, Percy A. (1948). Boy's Book of Snakes: How to Recognize and Understand Them. (A volume of the Humanizing Science Series, edited by Jaques Cattell). New York: Ronald Press. viii + 185 pp. (Storeria dekayi dekayi, pp. 26–28, 180).
• Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp. . (Storeria dekayi, pp. 423–424, Figures 192-193 + Plate 42).
• Zim HS, Smith HM (1956). Reptiles and Amphibians: A Guide to Familiar American Species. A Golden Nature Guide. New York: Simon and Schuster. 160 pp. (Storeria dekayi pp. 106, 156).

External links

• Brown Snake, Reptiles and Amphibians of Iowa.

Notes and References

1. [Leonhard Stejneger|Stejneger L]
2. [Albert Hazen Wright|Wright AH]
3. www.reptile-database.org.
4. Christman . Steven P. . Storeria dekayi . Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles . 1982 . 1.
5. [Karl Patterson Schmidt|Schmidt KP]
6. [Roger Conant (herpetologist)|Conant R]
7. [Hobart Muir Smith|Smith HM]
8. King . Richard B. . Variation in Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi) Morphology and Scalation: Sex, Family, and Microgeographic Differences . Journal of Herpetology . 1997 . 31 . 3 . 335–346 . 10.2307/1565661 . 1565661 .
9. Web site: Dekay's Brownsnake . 2023-04-25 . CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website . en.
10. Web site: Drew R. . Davis . Dekay's Brownsnake (Storeria dekayi) . Amphibians and Reptiles of South Dakota .
11. Hecnar, S. J., & Hecnar, D. R. (2011). Microhabitat selection of woody debris by Dekay's brownsnake (Storeria dekayi) in a dune habitat in Ontario, Canada. Journal of Herpetology, 45(4), 478-483.
12. Blackburn . Daniel G. . 23 June 2009 . Histology and ultrastructure of the placental membranes of the viviparous brown snake, Storeria dekayi (Colubridae: Natricinae) . Journal of Morphology . 270 . 9 . 1137–1154. 10.1002/jmor.10650 . 19551871 . 24548951 .
13. Web site: Animal Diversity Web: Storeria dekayi. Animal Diversity Web. 23 April 2023. Seaholm. Leslie. Harding. James. 2000.
14. Web site: Lum. Steven. 2022-01-11. Dekay's Brown Snake (Storeria dekayi): Can they become good pets?. 2022-01-12. Journeying The Globe. en-us.
15. Gray. Brian S.. Natural history notes: Storeria dekayi: Diet. Herpetological Review. 2015. 46. 1. 108.
16. Gray . Brian S. . The relative importance of slugs and earthworms in the diet of Dekay's Brownsnake, Storeria dekayi, from northwestern Pennsylvania . Bulletin of the Chicago Herpetological Society . 48 . 12 . 2013 . 157–165 .
17. Gray. Brian S.. Natural history notes: Storeria dekayi: Diet. Herpetological Review. 2013. 44. 3. 527.
18. News: Szalay . Jessie . Dutfield . Scott . Facts About Brown Snakes . Live Science . 1 March 2022 .
19. © The Center for North American Herpetology 38Ernst, C. H. and E. M. Ernst. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Press. Washington, DC.
20. LeGros . David L. . Side to Side Swaying as a Defensive Behaviour in the Dekay's Brownsnake (Storeria dekayi) . The Canadian Field-Naturalist . 28 February 2018 . 131 . 3 . 235–237 . 10.22621/cfn.v131i3.1897 . free .
21. Beltz, Ellin (2006). Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America – Explained. http://ebeltz.net/herps/biogappx.html
22. [species:Bo Beolens|Beolens, Bo]