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I see you are speaking of racers. I was thinking of "Black Snakes" Which are not the same critter although both are in the Coluber family.
You are correct racers do not constrict. I was surprized to just now discover that and never heard of a coluber that was not a constrictor.
Did a few google searches specifically on "Black Racers"
Thanks for teaching an old dog a new trick
What we call a "Racer" here in GBE basin is a long, very slender, light sage green with orange and black striped sides . They get as long as the Bull snakes., exceeding 5 feet, but are nowhere near the girth. They are, however, unbelievably fast. They earn their name. Coyotes have trouble running one down. They can turn to quick. I had trouble believing my eyes the first time I saw one of these things really step on the gas.
Since they are not venomous and it is not wise to swallow live mice, they don't have many options on how to kill their prey.
All members of the Coluber family do kill by constriction.
You can search youtube for videos of Rat snakes (Couluber, same family as Black Snakes)killing mice.
Hi Woodrow,
Coluber constrictor is not actually a constrictor, that species name is a misnomer. Also, rat snakes are not in the genus Coluber, they are in the genus Pantherophis (previously Elaphe).
There are snakes in the family colubridae that are constrictors, but not in the genus Coluber (which are the racers and whipsnakes). Snakes in the genus Lampropeltis (milk and king snakes) are an example of colubridae which are constrictors.
However, not all in the family colubridae are constrictors (genera Thamnophis, Nerodia, etc).
I agree with what you said in your last post about black snakes referring to black rat snakes, or at least that's been my experience in our region.
Hate the damn things.... and so glad its not hot enough where I live to have many ,they do exist here in scotland but I never hope to come across one... they give me the heebies..
As far as living in North America, people should not kill any snakes, their role as a predator in an ecosystem far exceeds the danger of being injured by one. This especially goes not only for black rat snakes but also for any constrictors that eat rodents. Milk snakes, bull snakes, gopher snakes, fox snakes and pine snakes all kill rodents by constriction. To give an idea of their economic value for farmers, tne black rat snake will eat upward of 200 rodents in a farm field in a single season.
It's a little-known fact that the major host for Lyme-vector ticks are white-footed mice, not deer. Reducing the number of these mice and other rodents decreases the number of ticks and also decreases the number of cases of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.
Even pit vipers' (rattlesnakes' and copperheads') major prey are rodents. People are typically terrified of them but they are actually quite docile unless a) cornered and b) attempted to handle. People have stepped around, over and even on these snakes without knowing until after the fact, and haven't been bitten.
Water snakes, hognoses, indigos, racers, king snakes, and large garters will also eat rodents if the opportunity arises.
They are beautiful, amazing animals with a fascinating natural history and tremendous benefit to us.
Snakes, dragonflies, spiders, salamanders, frogs, some birds of prey, and bats all play a huge role in keeping the number of disease-vector insects down, either directly or indirectly. I don't want to hijack the thread into another direction, but some time check out the number of mosquitos eaten by a dragonfly in a single day. A real eye opener.
Thats not true. An adult snake only eats once or twice a month. Youngsters will eat weekly. Thats not to say they arent very valuable to have around.
Thats not true. An adult snake only eats once or twice a month. Youngsters will eat weekly. Thats not to say they arent very valuable to have around.
I suppose that number should have been 20!
Thanks for the heads up.
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