Worm Snake (Eastern Worm Snake)
Carphophis amoenus • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Dipsadinae, Genus: Carphophis, Species: amoenus
Eastern United States, ranging from southern New England south to central Georgia and Alabama, and west to the Mississippi River.
Look up Worm Snake (Eastern Worm Snake) in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Dipsadinae, Genus: Carphophis, Species: amoenus
Conservation
IUCN: Least Concern. Generally common, though vulnerable to habitat loss and severe soil compaction or chemical pesticides.
Physical Description
Small, smooth-scaled, unpatterned snake. Dorsal color is typically a plain chocolate brown or reddish-brown. The belly is usually a contrasting bright pink or salmon color. The head is small and flat, not distinct from the neck, with tiny eyes suited for a burrowing lifestyle.
Size & Dimensions
Specimen is an adult roughly 7-10 inches. Species typical range is 7.5 to 11 inches (19 to 28 cm). Maximum recorded is approximately 13 inches.
Habitat
Fossorial (burrowing) species typically found in moist deciduous forests, woodlands, and edge habitats with soft soil, leaf litter, and rotting logs.
Diet & Feeding
Specialized diet consisting almost exclusively of earthworms. They use their pointed snout to probe through soil and leaf litter for prey.
Reproduction
Oviparous (egg-laying). Females lay small clutches of 1 to 8 eggs typically in early summer, with hatchlings emerging in late summer or early autumn.
Look-alikes
Often confused with the Smooth Earth Snake (Virginia valeriae), which has a more tan/grey color and lacks the pink belly, and the Red-bellied Snake (Storeria occipitomaculata), which has keeled scales.
Conservation Status
IUCN: Least Concern. Generally common, though vulnerable to habitat loss and severe soil compaction or chemical pesticides.
Cultural Significance
Ecologically important as a predator of soil invertebrates and a prey source for larger animals. Often one of the first snakes encountered by children due to their harmless nature.
Notable Features
Features a specialized, sharp, spur-like scale on the tip of the tail, which is used as a brace while burrowing or as a harmless defensive probe when held.