Listing Status
- Federal Status: Not Listed
- FL Status: State-designated Threatened
- FNAI Ranks: G4T3?/S3 (Globally: Apparently Secure, Sub sp. Rare [Tentative Ranking]/State: Rare)
- IUCN Status: Not ranked
Appearance
The Florida pine snake is one of the largest snakes in eastern North America (Bartlett and Bartlett 2003). This species can reach a length of up to 84 inches (213 centimeters). It has a brown back with dark blotches, white belly, ridged scales, small head, and pointed snout (Florida Natural Areas Inventory 2001).
Behavior
The diet of the Florida pine snake primarily consists of moles, rabbits, mice, rats, squirrels, lizards, and other snakes and their eggs (Ernst and Ernst 2003).
Nesting occurs from June to August, with the eggs hatching in September and October (Franz 1992). Nests are constructed in side burrows located off of the species main burrow. The female will construct the burrow alone, usually in an area that receives a lot of sunlight. The clutch size for the Florida pine snake is 4-12 eggs (Bartlett and Bartlett 2003). The incubation time for eggs ranges from 67-72 days (Franz 1992).
Habitat
The Florida pine snake inhabits areas that feature well-drained sandy soils with a moderate to open canopy (Franz 1992, Ernst and Ernst 2003). This species can be found from southwest South Carolina, west to Mobile Bay in Alabama, south to Florida (excluding the Everglades) (Conant and Collins 1991, Ernst and Ernst 2003, Florida Natural Areas Inventory 2001).
Threats
Habitat loss has been an issue for the Florida pine snake. By 1987, 88% of scrub habitat in Florida had been lost to development (Kautz et al. 1993). Other habitat for this species includes the longleaf pine community, of which 97% has been converted to agriculture, pine plantations, and urban areas (Noss et al. 1995). Habitat loss and fragmentation is a result of commercial and residential development, silviculture (controlling the growth and quality of forests through timber management), mining, and road construction. The alteration of its fire-dependent habitat can cause less favorable living conditions for the Florida pine snake due to the encroachment of hardwoods. The removal of stumps can threaten the pine snake because it decreases the amount of underground habitat structures (Means 2005). Pine snakes might be experiencing increased rates of predation of adults, hatchlings, or eggs from nine-banded armadillos, feral hogs, and red imported fire ants (R. Zappalorti, Herpetological Associates, pers. commun. 2011). Other threats include mortality caused by roads, humans, and domesticated pets (Jordan 1998).
Conservation and Management
The Florida pine snake is protected as a state-Threatened species by Florida’s Endangered and Threatened Species Rule.
Biological Status Review (BSR)
Supplemental Information for the BSR
Species Action Plan
References
Bartlett, R., and P. Bartlett, P. 2003. Florida Snakes A Guide to Their Identification and Habits. Gainesville, Florida : University Press of Florida. 182 pp.
Conant, R., and J. T. Collins. 1991. A field guide to amphibians and reptiles of eastern and central North America. Third edition. Houghton Mifflin, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. 450pp.
Ernst, C. H., and E. M. Ernst. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Books, Washington, D.C., USA. 668pp.
Florida Natural Areas Inventory. 2001. Field guide to the rare animals of Florida.
https://www.fnai.org/PDFs/FieldGuides/Pituophis_melanoleucus_mugitus.pdf
Franz, R. 1992. Florida pine snake, Pituophis melanoleucus mugitus Barbour. Pages 254–258 in P. E. Moler, editor. Rare and endangered biota of Florida. Volume III. Amphibians and reptiles. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
Jordan, R. A. 1998. Species profile: pine snake (Pituophis melanoleucus ssp.) on military installations in the southeastern United States. Technical Report SERDP-98-5, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA. 24pp.
Kautz, R. S., D. T. Gilbert, and G. M. Mauldin. 1993. Vegetative cover in Florida based on 1985–1989 Landsat Thematic Mapper Imagery. Florida Scientist 56:135–154.
Means, D. B. 2005. The value of dead tree bases and stumpholes as habitat for wildlife. Pages 74–78 in W. E. Meshaka, Jr., and K. J. Babbitt, editors. Amphibians and reptiles: status and conservation in Florida. Krieger, Malabar, Florida, USA.
Noss, R. F, E. T. LaRoe III, and J. M. Scott. 1995. Endangered ecosystems of the United States: a preliminary assessment of loss and degradation. U.S. Department of the Interior. National Biological Services Biological Report 28. 81pp.