Roadless Areas
Home/Species/ Lined Snake

Tropidoclonion lineatum

(Hallowell, 1856)

Lined Snake

G5Secure Found in 1 roadless area NatureServe Explorer →
G5SecureGlobal Rank
Least concernIUCN
LowThreat Impact
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.102309
Element CodeARADB38010
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVertebrate Animal
IUCNLeast concern
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomAnimalia
PhylumCraniata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyColubridae
GenusTropidoclonion
Concept Reference
Collins, J. T. 1990. Standard common and current scientific names for North American amphibians and reptiles. 3rd ed. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Herpetological Circular No. 19. 41 pp.
Taxonomic Comments
Pyron et al. (2013) found Regina grahamii and R. septemvittata related to Tropidoclonion. Figueroa et al. (2016) found grahamii as sister to Tropidoclonion and septemvittata nested within Nerodia. Crother (2017) await further study before making any additional changes.
Conservation Status
Review Date2006-09-07
Change Date1996-10-30
Edition Date2006-09-07
Edition AuthorsHammerson, G.
Threat ImpactLow
Range Extent200,000-2,500,000 square km (about 80,000-1,000,000 square miles)
Number of Occurrences81 to >300
Rank Reasons
Fairly widespread in the central U.S., common in many areas; often abundant in cities and towns.
Range Extent Comments
The range extends discontinuously from Illinois, Iowa, extreme southwestern Minnesota, and extreme southeastern South Dakota south through eastern Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, and Oklahoma to New Mexico and Texas, at elevations from near sea level to around 2,000 meters (6,560 feet) (Conant and Collins 1991, Oldfield and Moriarty 1994, Degenhardt et al. 1996, Hammerson 1999, Phillips et al. 1999, Johnson 2000, Werler and Dixon 2000, Ernst and Ernst 2003, Stebbins 2003).
Occurrences Comments
This species is represented by a large number of occurences (subpopulations).
Threat Impact Comments
No major threats are known. This snake tolerates and even thrives on moderate habitat alteration.
Ecology & Habitat

Description

A small brownish snake with a grayish-white, cream, yellowish, or orangish dorsal stripe and a similarly colored lateral stripe on the 2nd and 3rd scale rows; stripes are bordered by a row of black dots; dorsal scales are keeled; anal plate is undivided; the greenish venter has a double row of black or dark brown half-moon-shaped spots; 5-7 (usually 6) upper labials are present on each side of the head; total length of adults usually is 22-38 cm, maximum about 54 cm; hatchlings are about 9-12 cm long (Ernst and Barbour 1989, Conant and Collins 1991).

Habitat

Habitats include prairie hillsides and canyon bottoms, woodland edges, vacant city lots, residential yards, and abandoned trash dumps, in moist situations that may or may not be close to a body of water or wetland; in daytime, this snake can be found under rocks, logs, trash, and other cover (Collins 1993, Degenhardt et al. 1996, Hammerson 1999, Phillips et al. 1999, Johnson 2000, Werler and Dixon 2000, Ernst and Ernst 2003).

Reproduction

Copulates in late summer after parturition. Gives birth to litter of 2-13 in August. In Missouri, males are capable of breeding in 1 year (Krohmer and Aldridge 1985), females produce first clutch at 2 years (Krohmer and Aldridge 1985).
Terrestrial Habitats
SavannaGrassland/herbaceousSuburban/orchard
Palustrine Habitats
Riparian
Other Nations (1)
United StatesN5
ProvinceRankNative
MissouriS5Yes
NebraskaS5Yes
MinnesotaS3Yes
WisconsinS1Yes
IllinoisS1Yes
IowaS4Yes
New MexicoS4Yes
OklahomaSNRYes
TexasS3Yes
ArkansasS1Yes
KansasS5Yes
ColoradoS3Yes
South DakotaS2Yes
Roadless Areas (1)
New Mexico (1)
AreaForestAcres
Candian RiverCibola National Forest7,149
References (26)
  1. Behler, J. L., and F. W. King. 1979. The Audubon Society field guide to North American reptiles and amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, New York. 719 pp.
  2. Collins, J. T. 1982. Amphibians and reptiles in Kansas. Second edition. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist., Pub. Ed. Ser. 8. xiii + 356 pp.
  3. Collins, J. T. 1990. Standard common and current scientific names for North American amphibians and reptiles. 3rd ed. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Herpetological Circular No. 19. 41 pp.
  4. Collins, J. T. 1993. Amphibians and reptiles in Kansas. Third edition, revised. University of Kansas Museum of Natural History, Public Education Series No. 13. xx + 397 pp.
  5. Conant, R. and J. T. Collins. 1991. A field guide to reptiles and amphibians: eastern and central North America. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 450 pp.
  6. Conant, R., and J. T. Collins. 1998. A field guide to reptiles and amphibians: eastern and central North America. Third edition, expanded. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Massachusetts. 616 pp.
  7. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2008. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. Sixth edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Herpetological Circular 37:1-84. Online with updates at: http://www.ssarherps.org/pages/comm_names/Index.php
  8. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2012. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 7th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 39:1-92.
  9. Crother, B. I. (editor). 2017. Scientific and standard English names of amphibians and reptiles of North America north of Mexico, with comments regarding confidence in our understanding. 8th edition. SSAR Herpetological Circular 43:1-104. [Updates in SSAR North American Species Names Database at: https://ssarherps.org/cndb]
  10. Degenhardt, W. G., C. W. Painter, and A. H. Price. 1996. Amphibians and reptiles of New Mexico. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque. xix + 431 pp.
  11. Ernst, C. H., and E. M. Ernst. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Books, Washington, D.C.
  12. Ernst, C. H., and R. W. Barbour. 1989b. Snakes of eastern North America. George Mason Univ. Press, Fairfax, Virginia. 282 pp.
  13. Figueroa, A., A. D. McKelvy, L. L. Grismer, C. D. Bell, and S. P. Lailvaux. 2016. A species level phylogeny of extant snakes with description of a new colubrid subfamily and genus. PLoS ONE 11(9):e0161070.
  14. Fitch, H. S. 1970. Reproductive cycles of lizards and snakes. Univ. Kansas Museum Natural History Miscellaneous Publication 52:1-247.
  15. Hammerson, G. A. 1982b. Amphibians and reptiles in Colorado. Colorado Division of Wildlife, Denver. vii + 131 pp.
  16. Hammerson, G. A. 1999. Amphibians and reptiles in Colorado. Second edition. University Press of Colorado, Boulder. xxvi + 484 pp.
  17. Johnson, T. R. 2000. The amphibians and reptiles of Missouri. Second edition. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City. 400 pp.
  18. Krohmer, R. W., and R. D. Aldridge. 1985a. Male reproductive cycle of the lined snake (<i>Tropidoclonion lineatum</i>). Herpetologica 41:33-38.
  19. Krohmer, R. W., and R. D. Aldridge. 1985b. Female reproductive cycle of the lined snake (<i>Tropidoclonion lineatum</i>). Herpetologica 41:39-44.
  20. Livo, L. J. 1985. Notes on the lined snake, <i>Tropidoclonion lineatum,</i> in Colorado. Journal of the Colorado-Wyoming Academy of Science 17 (1):36.
  21. Phillips, C. A., R. A. Brandon, and E. O. Moll. 1999. Field guide to amphibians and reptiles of Illinois. Illinois Natural History Survey Manual 8. xv + 282 pp.
  22. Pyron, R. A., F. T. Burbrink, and J. J. Wiens. 2013. A phylogeny and revised classification of Squamata, including 4161 species of lizards and snakes. BMC Evolutionary Biology 29:131.
  23. Stebbins, R. C. 1985a. A field guide to western reptiles and amphibians. Second edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Massachusetts. xiv + 336 pp.
  24. Stebbins, R. C. 2003. A field guide to western reptiles and amphibians. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston.
  25. Tennant, A. 1984. The Snakes of Texas. Texas Monthly Press, Austin, Texas. 561 pp.
  26. Werler, J. E., and J. R. Dixon. 2000. Texas snakes: identification, distribution, and natural history. University of Texas Press, Austin. xv + 437 pp.