Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys...a friend of ours brought over a snake tonight...his wife wanted it "gone!...lol...I have looked all over & I am 99% sure it is a South FL Mole Kingsnake. Not just a mole king but, it looks EXACTLY like the South FL version. Thing is, we live in Hernando County. From what I've read they were only found in Dade, Oseola, & Glades counties.
Any info would be greatly appreciated.
The head is interesting...extremely narrow...guess that's why it's a mole snake eh?
Again, any info.......Thanks.

Terri

wow that snake is sweet!
almost as cool as my brooks lol
hey i would like ot know what it is too so i can see if i can find one lol.

Wow thats a sweet looking snake. almost as sweet as my brooks lol.

But it looks very much like a short-tailed snake (Stilosoma extenuatum) to me. Mole kings are generally much much thicker at that length. That snake looks to be at least a foot long, in which a mole king would be about twice as thick as your snake. Thats a pretty rare snake that I think is found in Hernando Co. and is also threatened in Florida. They may be prohibited in captivity but I'm not sure about that. In any case, I hear they're predominately snake/lizard feeders and can be very tough captives. I'd advise releasing it for these reasons.

Can you get some photos from the top and bottom? A good way is to let it tire out some during handling and then photograph from above and below a glass table.

Cool snake by all means. I know many in FL (myself included) who have never found one.

Van

... in my opinion. Looks very much like a short-tailed snake. Should be released. They are rare to find, eat tantilla, and may be protected here. Get as many pics as you can without really stressing him out and put him back near where he was found. One view of his ventral would show for sure he's not a mole king. Beautiful snake and quite a find. Consider yourself lucky to have seen one.
:Mark

The above posts are correct. It is illegal to collect or own that species...Better release it or... Better still...Turn it over to Game & Fish. If they do scan these posts then you may well have a problem here that is best resolved by turning it in.
Frank

Hey guys.....I wanted to make a post & thank you all for your help.

I do indeed have a Short-Tailed Snake and a big one as far as they go. This little guy messures 22 inches. Beautiful little fella.

Anyway, I called the friend who brought him to us & told him all the things you guys had shared wih me & Burt agreed to come pick him up tomorrow & let it go where he found it. He said he'd never tell his wife that he came BACK & got it & released it back near their yard. LOL.

He agreed that we shouldn't upset it's happy life as it's rare & seems to feed exclusively on the snakes of the genus Tantilla. It must have a plentiful supply of food for being the size it is. So...back it goes tomorrow to where it came from.

Again....THANK YOU all. I really appreciate your help.

Terri

N/p

It will be a happy ending if Burt, my Boyfriend Mike & I can remember to keep our mouths shuts about releasing that rare snake Burt once caught back into his own yard....when in the company of his paronoid wife!!!!! LMAO

I actually am a biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The short-tailed snake is a threatened species, but we do not prosecute persons for honest mistakes. I'm glad you returned it to where it was caught. Since you took such a good photo of it, the Florida Museum of Natural History would probably like it as a voucher, if you can give them the locality information (e-mail Kenney Krysko, the Collections Manager, at kenneyk@flmnh.ufl.edu). There is a guy, Eugene Trescott, who compiles locality data for this species who would like the information (etrescott@yahoo.com). We already have several records for Hernando Co., including two from Chinsegut Nature Center, which is located north of Brooksville. We're going to have a Herp Day at Chinsegut on Oct. 18, which is free and usually attracts 300-400 people. I'm going to talk about short-tailed snakes, and we'll have a live specimen on display that we've had to catch Tantilla for for several months.

Kevin Enge