A Guide to the Amphibians
and Reptiles of California

Click on a picture for a larger view

Glossy Snakes found in California

Not Dangerous (Non-poisonous)
Glossy Snakes do not have venom that is dangerous to most humans.

Glossy snakes are fairly large, slow-moving nocturnal snakes inhabiting deserts and open dry places, such as grassland and chaparral.
They are often observed crossing a road on a warm night.

Check the map below to determine which subspecies occurs in your area.

Mohave Glossy Snake -
Arizona elegans candida

Desert Glossy Snake -
Arizona elegans eburnata

California Glossy Snake -
Arizona elegans occidentalis

Red: Arizona elegans eburnata - Desert Glossy Snake

Orange: Arizona elegans occidentalis - California Glossy Snake

Purple: Arizona elegans candida - Mojave Glossy Snake

Key to the 3 Subspecies of Arizona elegans found in California *
	Mohave Glossy Snake Arizona elegans candida	Desert Glossy Snake Arizona elegans eburnata	California Glossy Snake Arizona elegans occidentalis
Number of Preocular Scales	2	1	1 or 2
Scale Rows at Midbody	27 or fewer	27 or fewer	27
Number of Dark Dorsal Blotches	Average 63 (53-73)	Average 68 (53-85)	Average 63 (51-75)
Size of Dark Dorsal Blotches	Width about 9 scales wide at dorsal midline	Width about 7 scales wide at dorsal midline. Small and narrower than light spaces between blotches.	About equal in width to the light spaces between blotches.
Other Useful Details	Small lateral blotches alternate with the dark dorsal blotches		Lower labials are often spotted Ground color is darker than other CA subspecies Dark marks on edges of ventrals

Prefrontal Scales

Sympatric Species Similar to Arizona elegans *
	Western Glossy Snake Arizona elegans	Gopher Snake Pituophis catenifer	North American Nightsnakes Hypsiglena	Juvenile Western Yellow-bellied Racer Coluber constrictor mormon	Lyresnakes Trimorphodon biscutatus
Dorsal Scales	Smooth	Keeled	Smooth	Smooth	Smooth
Anal Plate	Undivided	Undivided	Divided	Divided	Divided / Undivided
Pupils	Round or slightly vertical	Round	Distinctly vertical	Round	Distinctly vertical
Other Useful Details	Head not flattened		Head Flattened		Thin neck, broad head with lyre-shaped mark on top

Top: Gopher Snakes have
Keeled Scales

Bottom: Glossy Snakes have
Smooth Scales

Top: Glossy Snakes have Round or
Slightly Vertical Pupils

Middle & Bottom: Nightsnakes and Lyresnakes have Vertical Pupils

Top: NIghtsnakes and Western Yellow-bellied Racers have a Divided Anal Plate.

Bottom: Western Glossy Snakes have a Single Anal Plate.

(no enlagement of this picture)

* Based on information from:

Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.

Brown, Philip R. A Field Guide to Snakes of California. Gulf Publishing Co., 1997.

Bartlett, R. D. & Patricia P. Bartlett. Guide and Reference to the Snakes of Western North America (North of Mexico) and Hawaii. University Press of Florida, 2009.

Wright, Robert Hazen & Anna Allen Wright. Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press, 1957.

Return to the Top