I'm out in the Mojave desert this week doing a field study class so if I'm not responsive it's because our internet connection and cell service out here sucks big time.
But here's a photo of an adorable night snake we met while road cruising.
The night snake (Hypsiglena torquata) is a member of the family Reptilia that is native to North America. Although they are native, these snakes are considered a rare find in many areas of their geographical range. They are most commonly found in Canada, specifically in the province British Colombia, but are also common in places such as Southern Mexico and Western United States. More specifically, the state of Guerrero in Mexico, and California, Arizona, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Utah and Nevada in the U.S. More uncommonly, they have also been found in Texasa, Kansas, and Oklahoma.
These terrestrial animals adapt to many different biomes and climates, which varies where they are found. Most commonly, they will be found in rocky canyons, savannahs, woodlands, grasslands, shrublands, and less commonly; deserts. Generally, they inhabit more arid areas, but can also survive in tropical or temperate climates.
In order to master the art of hunting when they grow older, as babies night snakes will begin by looking for insects to hunt to learn, before moving on to the larger prey that their relatives hunt. These venomous creatures tend to typically come out of bushes/rocks at night time to hunt for their prey - lizards, scorpions, frogs and insects.
To avoid their predators, night snakes hide away during the day. They are known to be hunted by Red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) and Owls.
Night snakes typically pose no threats to humans as they have a mild temperment and tend to hide away from them. However, there are a few cases of people being bit by them and causing pain and possible hemorrhage in humans. Despite this, they have more of a positive impact on humans - due to being found in a lot of areas, they are easy to find and study for research and education! Night snakes are often mistaken for rattlesnkes, however night snakes are venomous, whereas rattlesnakes are not. Despite being different species, sometimes night snakes will share burrows with rattlesnakes during the day.
This species are doing well in the wild and remain at least concern on the IUCN red list, and have a stable population. Although there are no specific threats to night snakes other than their predators, for all species, they are unsuitable for human settlement. This means that they are naturally disrupted by humans, constructions, etc. However, they appear in a many national parks and other well-protected areas - conservation actions aren’t nescessary right now.
Apart from breeding, night snakes are solitary animals, and will rarely be found with another of the species. These snakes are polygynous, meaning that males will have more than one female mate at a time. Breeding season typically takes place from spring to early autumn, and females will only mate once during this season. On average, three eggs out of a clutch will hatch and succeed. After the eggs hatch, the parents are not known to have ay parental involvement, similar to many other reptiles.
