This snake looks rather like a long piece of greyish-brown plasticine, with its head barely distinguishable from the tail. It burrows under logs, leaf litter or even rocks and is most active at night. Being very slow-moving, it defends itself by rolling into a ball with its tail sticking up as a decoy head. It prefers to eat mice and shrews and will take young from a nest by keeping the mother at bay with its tail.
This greyish-yellow snake with irregular brown markings along the back and sides is the largest snake in BC, growing up to one metre in length. A fine dark line circles the face through the large round eyes. The Gopher Snake is an aggressive snake; it makes a loud hiss when disturbed. As the name indicates, they feed on small mammals such as gophers, and sometimes on birds and their eggs. They often hibernate with Western Rattlesnakes.
Want to find out about species at risk in open coniferous forest? Go to Species at Risk
Here are some more representative species in open coniferous forests:
Common Terrestrial Garter Snake Great Basin Spadefoot Toad Long-toed Salamander Pacific Chorus Frog Racer Spotted Frog Western Terrestrial Garter Snake Western Toad Red: Gopher Snake Western Rattlesnake
Photos: Jared Hobbs (Rubber boa, Gopher snake)
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