Brown Snake
Storeria dekayi • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Natricinae, Genus: Storeria, Species: Storeria dekayi
Native to eastern and central North America, ranging from southern Canada through the eastern United States down into Mexico and parts of Central America.
Look up Brown Snake in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Natricinae, Genus: Storeria, Species: Storeria dekayi
Conservation
Listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List due to its wide distribution, high tolerance for habitat alteration, and stable population trends.
Physical Description
Characterized by a brown, grayish-brown, or yellowish-brown dorsum with a lighter central stripe bordered by dark spots or transverse dashes. The head is distinct from the neck, featuring dark markings on the sides of the head and sometimes a pale collar.
Size & Dimensions
Small in stature, typically ranging from 23 to 33 cm (9 to 13 inches) in total length as adults, with a maximum recorded length of around 50 cm. This particular specimen appears to be a juvenile or a smaller adult.
Habitat
Found in a wide variety of habitats including deciduous forests, fields, wetlands, and heavily urbanized suburban areas. They are highly adaptable and frequently hide under debris, logs, stones, or inside structural crevices near human habitations.
Diet & Feeding
Feeds primarily on soft-bodied invertebrates, with a strong dietary preference for slugs, snails, earthworms, and occasionally insects, utilizing an active foraging strategy.
Reproduction
Viviparous (giving birth to live young rather than laying eggs), typically producing litters ranging from 3 to over 20 young in the late summer months.
Look-alikes
Often confused with young garter snakes (Thamnophis species) or red-bellied snakes (Storeria occipitomaculata). Distinguished from garter snakes by the lack of prominent bright lateral stripes, and from red-bellied snakes by belly coloration and neck markings.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List due to its wide distribution, high tolerance for habitat alteration, and stable population trends.
Cultural Significance
Acts as an important natural controller of garden pests such as slugs and snails, often living in close proximity to human yards and gardens unnoticed.
Notable Features
Known for specializing in a diet of terrestrial mollusks, possessing specialized jaw adaptations to extract snails from their shells.
Notes
Small, morning time