Getting closer to completing my list of East Texas species and spent some time close to the gulf coast this past weekend, and probably will this weekend too. Sunday night I came across this beast. I thought I'd cruised a N. clarkii clarkii on the side of the road shortly after sundown, but instead it was a meter long Thamnophis proximus orarius. Definitely the biggest ribbon snake I've ever seen or heard of, kinda wish I'd held on to him a few days for better pictures and some appropriate measurements. I'll have to put a tape measure in my herping pack from now on.
Thamnophis proximus orarius (Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake) by Kyle L.E., on Flickr
Thamnophis proximus orarius (Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake) by Kyle L.E., on Flickr
Ribbon snakes aren't particularly rare or interesting, but it's neat coming across something unusual from a common species.
Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
Moderator: Scott Waters
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Re: Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
Wow, neat find! Definitely an impressive ribbon snake.
- muskiemagnet
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Re: Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
i find that a seamstress tape works very well for taking measurements. rolls up real nice in the pack as well.
-ben
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- cctbspencer
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Re: Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
Wow..........that guy is huge! Congrats!
Re: Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
That's a brute alright. I have found a few very large ribbons along the gulf coast. The big ones are usually really bad tempered as well! Your's looks pretty clean. Most of the big ones I've found were much more beat up looking.
You could measure that snake still using the Serpwidgets measuring tool, assuming you have the hook as a known reference (http://serpwidgets.com/main/measure). By guessing the hook is 1 inch in diameter at the widest section, that makes the snake somewhere around 45 inches. It's a hog.
You could measure that snake still using the Serpwidgets measuring tool, assuming you have the hook as a known reference (http://serpwidgets.com/main/measure). By guessing the hook is 1 inch in diameter at the widest section, that makes the snake somewhere around 45 inches. It's a hog.
Re: Giant Gulf Coast Ribbon Snake
Oddly enough, Chris, this wasn't all that bad tempered. Didn't get bit once by it, and most ribbons are pretty nasty biters!chrish wrote:That's a brute alright. I have found a few very large ribbons along the gulf coast. The big ones are usually really bad tempered as well! Your's looks pretty clean. Most of the big ones I've found were much more beat up looking.
You could measure that snake still using the Serpwidgets measuring tool, assuming you have the hook as a known reference (http://serpwidgets.com/main/measure). By guessing the hook is 1 inch in diameter at the widest section, that makes the snake somewhere around 45 inches. It's a hog.
Using that tool, it says it was 2'9". Since the first joint on the hook is exactly 7/8 of an inch, I used that as a reference. The hook its close to 36" itself, so I really think that's closer to the actual length. Still, it was a big ribbon!