I hope I am not in the wrong forum with my question. I found this guy on the outside of my greenhouse inbetween the bubble wrap and the hard plastic. The section that he is wandering into is a heated incubator room that my husband built into my greenhouse. Guess he was feeling the warmth. He is a dull red with a grey stripe. He has solid grey under his mouth. I also hope the photo comes through ok. Thanks to any and all info.
Tough picture. Shape of head tells me it probably isn't poisonous. I can see the pinkish/redish color but wish I could see the gray you are mentioning. Did the little guy's neck get broken or is that just an illusion? Looks like a small snake to me based on the size of the bubbly wrap, maybe under a foot?
Couple ideas but can't really tell from your photo-
juvenile Carphophis vermis? Doesn't seem quite right though.
http://www.herpjournal.com/2004/Kansas_2/05_19_04/fullsize/05_19_04_14.jpg
adult Storeria occipitomaculata? Seems more likely.
http://faculty.uca.edu/~mcdonaldv/photogallery/Redbelly%20Snake%20(Storeria%20occipitomaculata%20ssp.).jpg
Neither of these are poisonous. Friends not foe.
Any chance of getting a photo of the top of the snake.
Thanks for your reply. No, his neck isn't broken, he is just sliding in-between the bubbles. He is probably less than a foot long. I hope this other picture turns out, because he probably won't be there tomorrow. Thanks again.
Your photo isn't good enough for me to count the scale rows. I've tried but I just can't.
My guess is that you've got an adult Red Bellied snake. Maybe a Northern Red Bellied snake? Storeria occipitomaculata ssp. occipitomaculata. I don't think you have ssp. obscura or pahasapae because those two aren't indigenous to your region.
Please know that they vary a lot in color. In other words, you can have one S. occipitomaculata that is a deeper red accented by darker gray while the next one you find might be a salmony pink or even lighter accented with a pale or dove gray. Much variability in the species.
This may help you determine if you have S. occipitomaculata or not-
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Storeria_occipitomaculata.html
Regardless of what you have, that's a real pretty snake. Nice colors.
