California Reptiles & Amphibians

Masticophis lateralis lateralis - California Striped Racer

(=Coluber lateralis lateralis)

Click on a picture for a larger view

Range in California: Red

Green: Alameda Striped Racer

Sub-adult, Monterey County

Adult, Kern County

Adult, Orange County, © Jason Jones

Sub-adult, Tuolumne County

Adult, Butte County © Jackson Shedd

Adult, San Diego County

Adult, Ventura County, © Patrick H. Briggs

Adult, Los Angeles County
© Emily Chebul

Juvenile, Fresno County
© Patrick H. Briggs

Adult hidden in the grass with head elevated, eating a Western Fence Lizard, Sonoma County

Coastal San Diego County grassland habitat. © Brian Hinds

Habitat, Napa County

Habitat, Monterey County

Habitat, Tuolumne County

Habitat, 4,500 ft., Kern County

Habitat, Kern County. The large crack in this rock served as a den which also contained Western Yellow-bellied Racers and Northern Pacific Rattlesnakes.

Habitat, Ventura County
© Patrick Briggs

Habitat, San Diego County mountains

Description

Nonvenomous

Considered harmless to humans.

Size

Adults are generally 30 - 48 inches long (76 - 122 cm) occasionally reaching 60 inches (152 cm.) Hatchlings are about 13 inches long (33 cm.)

Appearance

A fast-moving snake with a long thin body and tail, a broad elongated head, large eyes, a slender neck, and smooth scales. Dark brown to black with a pale yellow or cream solid stripe on each side which extends from the back of the eye to or beyond the vent. The stripes are relatively narrow - "2 half-scale rows wide."(Stebbins) The underside is cream or pale yellow tapering to pink toward the tail.

Behavior

Dirunal, often seen actively foraging in the daytime with head and forward part of the body held up off the ground searching for prey with its acute vision. Climbs vegetation and seeks shelter in burrows, rocks, or woody debris. Very fast-moving and alert, quickly fleeing when threatened, this snake is difficult to get close to. Like most Masticophis this snake will strike repeatedly and bite viciously when threatened or handled.

Diet

Eats lizards, small rodents, small birds, frogs, salamanders, small snakes. Juveniles will consume large insects.

Reproduction

Lays eggs in late spring or early summer which hatch in two to three months.

Range

Occurs from near Dunsmuir in Siskiyou County east to the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, south along the Sierra foothills to southern California and south along the coast to near sea level, to northern Baja California. Occurs east in Southern California to the desert foothills. Absent from the far north coast, the great valley, the deserts, and elevations over 7,400 ft. (2,250 m.)

Habitat

Open areas in canyons, rocky hillsides, brushy chaparral, scrub, open woodlands, pond edges, stream courses.

Taxonomic Notes

Masticophis lateralis is split into two subspecies - M. l. euryxanthus - Alameda Striped Racer, and M. l. lateralis - California Striped Racer.

Nagy et al. (2004, J. Zool. Syst. Evol. Res. 42:223-233) restricted the genus Coluber to the New World.

Utiger et al. (2005, Russian Journal of Herpetology 12:39-60) supported Nagy et al. and synonymized Masticophis with Coluber.

Conservation Issues (Conservation Status)

None.

Taxonomy
Family	Colubridae	Colubrids
Genus	Masticophis	Whipsnakes, Striped Racers, and Coachwhips
Species	lateralis	Striped Racer
Subspecies	lateralis	California Striped Racer
Original Description
Masticophis lateralis - (Hallowell, 1853) - Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Vol. 6, p. 237 from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz
Meaning of the Scientific Name
Masticophis - Greek - mastix - whip and ophis - snake - refers to the body shape and braided appearance of tail lateralis - Latin - of the side - referring to the lateral stripes from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz
Alternate Names
Chaparral Whipsnake Coluber lateralis lateralis - California Striped Racer
Related or Similar California Snakes
M. l. euryxanthus - Alameda Striped Racer C. constrictor mormon - Western Yellow-bellied Racer T. e. elegans - Mountain Gartersnake T. hammondii - Two-striped Gartersnake S. h. virgultea - Coast Patch-nosed Snake M. f. piceus - Red Coachwhip
More Information and References
Natureserve Explorer California Dept. of Fish and Game Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003. Behler, John L., & F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992. Bartlett, R.D. , & Alan Tennant. Snakes of North America - Western Region. Gulf Publishing Co., 2000. Ernst, Carl H., Evelyn M. Ernst, & Robert M. Corker. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution Press, 2003. Wright, Albert Hazen & Anna Allen Wright. Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press. Brown, Philip R. A Field Guide to Snakes of California. Gulf Publishing Co., 1997.

Conservation Status
The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game. This snake is not included on the Special Animals List, which indicates that there are no significant conservation concerns for it in California.
Organization	Status Listing
U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)
California Endangered Species Act (CESA)
California Department of Fish and Game
Bureau of Land Management
USDA Forest Service
Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List