Fun Pine Woods Snake Facts For Kids

The pine woods snake (Rhadinaea flavilata), popularly called the yellow-lipped snake for its yellow to pale lip scales, are rear-fanged reptiles that inhabit several parts of the United States. These snakes portray a somewhat nervous behavior and often get into hiding under rotten logs or a heap of leaf litter, especially when they feel the presence of predators or humans in the vicinity. The species is known to be docile and meek in nature as they escape and avoid encounters with deadly snakes like the Southern black racer. In cold winter conditions, these snakes hibernate in underground burrows while in the wet seasons they become highly animated. Since the species loves to inhabit spaces surrounded by pine woods, their name has been aptly attributed.

If you are a wildlife enthusiast exploring the North American pine forest animals and manage to locate and get hold of the snake, beware of its repulsive nauseating stench.

If you intend to spend your evening exploring more fun facts about snakes then don't forget to take a look at these blue racer snake facts and orb-weaver spider facts.

‍

What type of animal is a Pine Woods Snake?

A pine woods snake (Rhadinaea flavilata) is a species of non-venomous snake belonging to the Dipsadidae family.

What class of animal does a Pine Woods Snake belong to?

Pine woods snakes belong to the class Reptilia.

How many Pine Woods Snakes are there in the world?

Although the species is considered to be an uncommon sight, it is present in great numbers. It can be assumed that there are more than 100,000 mature individuals in the geographical habitat.

Where does a Pine Woods Snake live?

The population of pine woods snakes is scattered throughout the forest ranges of the United States. They can be located in the Florida peninsula to regions around Lake Okeechobee, the northern and southern parts of Carolina along the Savannah River. They are also found in places like Alabama, eastern Louisiana, and Georgia.

What is a Pine Woods Snake's habitat?

The Pine woods snake habitat range mainly includes forests and woodlands abundant in pine trees. They are well-suited to damp and temperate climates. They can seldom be seen in freshwater marshes, hardwood hammocks, around marshes of barrier islands, cypress strands, or sandhills.

Who do Pine Woods Snakes live with?

Although no concrete evidence regarding their social behavior is available, it can be imbibed that the species prefers to dwell solitarily owing to its aversion to other animals. They might pair up during mating periods.

How long does a Pine Woods Snake live?

The life span of the species extends to about three years in the wilderness.

How do they reproduce?

Very little information can be found about the reproduction behavior of the species. Pine woods snakes lay eggs (sometimes two clutches in a single year). Mating occurs in the months of March to May. After successful mating, the female pine woods snakes lay eggs during the months of summer or spring. The clutch size comprises one to four eggs.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation of pine woods snakes is currently a matter of least concern as per the computations of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The species is quite plentiful within its range.

What do Pine Woods Snakes look like?

The primary color of a pine woods snake's body ranges from reddish-brown, golden-brown, to orange. Rhadinaea flavilata is apparently small-sized with large bulging eyes on its head. The color of the underside is pinkish and sometimes the snake possesses a light stripe on the middle portion of its back. A distinguishing feature of the species is that it possesses yellow-colored lip scales around the region of its mouth thus earning them the name yellow-lipped snake.

How cute are they?

The question of cuteness varies from person to person. Any animal lover would find the species beautiful for its vibrant hues.

How do they communicate?

The yellow-lipped snake, pine woods snake, engages in communication through hissing sounds. They also analyze pheromones that aid the process of interaction where they can unravel information about other snakes.

How big is a Pine Woods Snake?

On average, the Pine woods snake length ranges from around 10-13 in (25-33 cm). They are much smaller than black mambas.

How fast can a Pine Woods Snake move?

The speed limit of the pine woods snake cannot be underscored due to the dearth of records. However, it can be assumed that they are spry in their movements just like any other slithery snake.

How much does a Pine Woods Snake weigh?

Tracing the species is very challenging as they are very rare outside their habitat. The weight of the snake is a mystery but it can be said that the snake is pretty lightweight owing to its small size.

What are their male and female names of the species?

Neither gender of the Pine woods snakes have specific attributions. They are regarded as males and females respectively.

What would you call a baby Pine Woods Snake?

A pine woods snake baby is commonly regarded as a neonate while it is also called a snakelet.

What do they eat?

Pine woods snakes are carnivorous. They feed on lizards, small frogs, snakes, and salamanders.

Are they poisonous?

Pine woods snakes emit a pungent smell when they feel threatened by the presence of predators or humans nearby. This is one of their defense mechanisms used mainly to repel potential predators. They do produce venom but that is not lethal or potent enough to kill.

Would they make a good pet?

Wild animals are best suited to their natural habitat. Reptiles like snakes are often captivated and kept as pets or in zoos. Pine woods snakes are not aggressive towards humans and might fit in well as pets. However, these animals must not be removed from their original homes.

Did you know...

Rhadinaea flavilata is regarded with several other common names and some of these common names include Dromicus flavilatus (Cope), Leimadophis flavilatus, and Liophis flavilatus. They are also known by their common name of the brown-headed snake.

Did you know that the pine woods snake (Rhadinaea flavilata) dwells underground? They are fossorial and are often found hiding under a pile of leaf litter, inside rotting tree logs or barks, or underneath other debris. If you get lucky enough you might find one under accumulated pine straw in backyards or rooftops.

What environment does the Pine Woods Snake enjoy?

Rhadinaea flavilata enjoys the warm temperate climate prevailing in the coastal regions as well as damp and moist weather conditions. They love to dwell in the pine woods.

What animals eat the Pine Woods Snake?

Pine woods snake are preyed upon by other snakes such as the Southern black racer and Kingsnake. Predatory birds and toads are also known to prey and feed on them.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these worm snake facts and cottonmouth snake facts.

You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our pine woods snake coloring pages.

‍