A Rainbow (Snake) in Florida!

Usually news from Florida is pretty weird or disturbing, so it is nice to have a feel-good story for a change!  Recently a camper hiking in Ocala National Forest spotted something which hasn’t been seen in Marion County since 1969–a beautiful rainbow…snake. The rainbow snake (Farancia erytrogramma) is a secretive Colubrid snake which is rarely seen since it lives most of its life underwater or underground.  The snakes live on eels, minnows, tadpoles, and amphibians which are eaten live.  Not only are rainbow snakes fossorial/aquatic creatures of the underworld, they also tend to live in the most remote portions of densely forested swamps (which may explain why it has been so long since anyone has seen one in this region just north of  Orlando).  The snakes grow to a maximum size of 90 to 165 centimeters (2.5 to 5.5 feet) and are non-venomous.

The rainbow snake sounds like a Disney creation (or a primordial deity) but its common name is really just an acknowledgement of its beautiful coloration.  The rainbow snake is black, but it has gorgeous bands of brightest yellow and scarlet running vertically down the entire length of its body.  Additionally some specimens has bright white/cream rings running horizontally across these stripes (or buttermilk outlines around scales).  the whole creature looks like a fancy trapper keeper from 1989!

I’m not the only one who remembers these things, right?

Because they live in blackwater creeks, cypress swamps, or deep inside mud flats, it is difficult to assess the population health of rainbow snakes and whether they are being out-competed  (or straight-up eaten!) by competitors like invasive constrictors and pythons. However the fact that they are being spotted in old habitats seems like fairly encouraging news–particularly in a news cycle where the stories of furtive wild creatures grows increasingly bleak.

 

Advertisement