Gopher Snake (or Bullsnake)
Pituophis catenifer • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Colubrinae, Genus: Pituophis, Species: P. catenifer
Native to North America, ranging from southwestern Canada through the western and central United States down into northern Mexico.
Look up Gopher Snake (or Bullsnake) in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Colubrinae, Genus: Pituophis, Species: P. catenifer
Conservation
Listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, though local populations face threats from habitat fragmentation, road mortality, and intentional persecution.
Physical Description
Displays a yellowish, tan, or cream ground color overlaid with a series of dark brown, black, or reddish-brown blotches along the back and smaller spots on the flanks. The head is slightly distinct from the neck with a rounded snout, and the scales are keeled, giving a somewhat rough texture.
Size & Dimensions
This specimen appears to be a subadult or juvenile measuring roughly 2 to 3 feet in length. Typical adults reach lengths of 4 to 6 feet, with exceptional individuals growing even larger.
Habitat
Found in a wide variety of habitats including grasslands, brushlands, desert areas, pine forests, agricultural fields, and rocky foothills, spanning from sea level up to elevations over 9,000 feet.
Diet & Feeding
Feeds primarily on small mammals such as rodents, rabbits, and gophers, as well as birds, bird eggs, and occasionally lizards. It is an active forager that subdues prey through constriction.
Reproduction
Oviparous species that mates in spring, with females laying clutches typically ranging from 2 to 24 eggs in underground burrows or beneath rocks during early summer.
Look-alikes
Frequently confused with various rattlesnake species due to its patterned dorsal blotches and defensive behavior of vibrating its tail in dry leaves, but lacks rattles at the tail tip and has a round pupil shape.
Conservation Status
Listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, though local populations face threats from habitat fragmentation, road mortality, and intentional persecution.
Cultural Significance
Highly beneficial to agriculture and ecosystems due to its efficiency in controlling rodent populations, though it is sometimes mistakenly killed out of fear due to its superficial resemblance to rattlesnakes.
Notable Features
Known for dramatic defensive displays when threatened, which include hissing loudly by forcing air through a specialized epiglottal flap, flattening its head, vibrating its tail, and striking aggressively.