Images From The Ozarks

[E Green]

My wife and I moved to the southern MO Ozarks from Milwaukee, WI in spring 2010. I absolutely love the wildlife and scenery in this region of the country. I created this thread so I could post some of my pics of this amazing landscape and all the wildlife i am lucky enough to see. Hope you like some of the photos...

"the spirit moves in all things....." john bell

[Nick Williams]

That's a sweet pic of the Timber Rattlesnake, provided I identified it correctly. Looks like a small log

[Al Agnew]

Yeah, that's an impressive timber rattler. The northern water snake looks pretty threatening, too. And I love those little ringneck snakes.

Also love the perspective on the box turtle pic.

[Guest]

Great pictures!

[E Green]

round 2

[mic]

What type of snakes are the second from the top (before the rattler) and the spotted snack after the water snake pics.

[mic]

Is it a:

Speckled Kingsnake

• Photos
• Video

Speckled Kingsnake

Speckled Kingsnake

Video of a speckled kingsnake in the wild.

Lampropeltis getula holbrooki

Family:

Colubridae (nonvenomous snakes) in the order Squamata (lizards and snakes)

Description:

This handsome snake is generally black. A white or yellow spot in the center of most of the scales causes it to look speckled. The belly is yellowish with some irregular black markings. Like the rest of our kingsnakes, the speckled kingsnake vibrates its tail when alarmed.

Size:

Length averages from 36 to 48 inches (91-122 cm).

Habitat and conservation:

The speckled kingsnake can be found under rocks, logs or boards on rocky, wooded hillsides or near farm buildings.

Foods:

It feeds on lizards, snakes and small rodents.

Distribution in Missouri:

Statewide.

Status:

Common. Another common name for this species is "salt-and-pepper snake."

[E Green]

The first snake in question is a very young broad banded watersnake (Otter Slough Wildlife Mgmt Area). The other snake you asked about is indeed a speckled Kingsnake (Elephant Rocks State Park).

[E Green]

round 3

[countryred]

very cool pics, I like all the snakes!!!