Speckled Kingsnake

diagnosis

Diagnosis: The Speckled Kingsnake (L. holbrooki) is a medium- to large-bodied constrictor with a maximum adult size of 183 cm and a mean adult range of 90 – 122 cm (Conant & Collins 1998). Scales are smooth, anal plate single, and midbody scale rows number 19 – 25 (Blaney 1977). Ventral scales number 197 – 222 in both sexes, with subcaudals ranging from 46 – 59 in males and 37 – 51 in females (Blanchard 1921; Blaney 1977). The Speckled Kingsnake occurs west of the Mississippi River, from Iowa and Nebraska in the north to the Gulf Coast, and west to west-central Texas (Fig. 2). The majority of the range of L. holbrooki is characterized by the ‘ speckled’ pattern, which consists of a black ground color, with a white or yellow speckle in the center of each scale, and very occasionally a faint trace of dorsal crossbanding (Fig. 3). Large geographical areas harboring at least superficial morphological intermediacy between the Speckled Kingsnake and the Desert lineage in west central Texas are apparently inhabited only by the Speckled Kingsnake, suggesting that such color pattern variation may be due to phenotypic responses to ecological gradation, rather than hybridization or introgress

Systematics of the Common Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula; Serpentes: Colubridae) and the burden of heritage in taxonomy

etymology

Etymology: Specific epithet is a patronym honoring John Edwards Holbrook, a prominent American herpetologist of the 19 th century, known as the ‘ father of North American Herpetology’. Synonymy: This species is essentially co-terminous with populations of the previously recognized subspecies L. g. holbrooki occurring west of the Mississippi River.

Systematics of the Common Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula; Serpentes: Colubridae) and the burden of heritage in taxonomy

materials_examined

Holotype: Unknown Type Locality: ‘ Valley of the Mississippi’ (Holbrook 1842), restricted to Hot Springs, Arkansas (Schmidt 1953).

Systematics of the Common Kingsnake (Lampropeltis getula; Serpentes: Colubridae) and the burden of heritage in taxonomy