Plains Hog-nosed Snake
Heterodon nasicus • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Dipsadidae, Subfamily: Dipsadinae, Genus: Heterodon, Species: H. nasicus
North America, extending from southern Canada through the central United States down into northern Mexico.
Look up Plains Hog-nosed Snake in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Dipsadidae, Subfamily: Dipsadinae, Genus: Heterodon, Species: H. nasicus
Conservation
IUCN Red List status is Least Concern, though local populations face threats from habitat loss, agricultural conversion, and road mortality.
Physical Description
Characterized by an upturned, shovel-like snout used for digging. The dorsal pattern features distinct dark blotches or spots over a lighter tan, gray, or olive background, often with darker pigmentation on the head.
Size & Dimensions
Estimated specimen length is approximately 40-50 cm, with typical adult lengths ranging from 40 to 65 cm (maximum up to 90 cm).
Habitat
Typically found in arid and semi-arid regions, prairies, sandhills, and floodplains with loose, sandy or gravelly soils suitable for burrowing.
Diet & Feeding
Specialized feeder with a strong dietary preference for amphibians, particularly toads, which they locate and unearth using their upturned snouts.
Reproduction
Oviparous species, laying clutches typically ranging from 4 to 23 eggs in underground nests during the summer months.
Look-alikes
Frequently confused with other hog-nosed snake species (like the Eastern Hog-nosed Snake) and various rattlesnakes due to its defensive posturing, though it lacks rattles and has the characteristic upturned snout.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List status is Least Concern, though local populations face threats from habitat loss, agricultural conversion, and road mortality.
Cultural Significance
Famous for dramatic defensive displays including hissing, flattening the neck to mimic a cobra, and feigning death by rolling onto its back.
Notable Features
Possesses a modified rostral scale on the tip of the snout functioning as a plow for burrowing, and exhibits elaborate theatrical anti-predator behaviors.