Colubridae

Great Plains Ratsnake

Pantherophis emoryi

Nonvenomous
Great Plains Ratsnake
(c) RJ Baltierra, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY 4.0 · Image source ↗Displayed copies may be resized; the full image is preserved.

A closer look

A nocturnal blotched constrictor that often shelters in barns and rock crevices. It is most often associated with prairie, farms and rocky country and typically feeds on rodents.

Habitat
Prairie, farms & rocky country
On the menu
Rodents
Behavior
A flexible hunter whose activity and escape behavior vary with habitat and temperature.
Observe without handling

Not considered venomous to people. Observe without handling, and never corner or relocate a wild snake.

Safety & bite guidance ↗
Listen to this snake’s field note ↗

Where it is listed

A sense of place.

10 jurisdictions
Great Plains Ratsnake: jurisdiction presenceHighlighted jurisdictions: Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah. This map shows checklist presence, not local occurrence.ALASKAHAWAIITERRITORIESPR · VIGU · AS · MP
Source-listedProvisionalNo record in this snapshot

Checklist presence only. A highlighted state is not a local range boundary. Territory tiles are schematic.

State & territory checklist

About continuous range data

A verified habitat-model layer is not available for this species in this release. Earlier broad sketches connected jurisdiction locations; they did not show measured occurrence or USGS habitat predictions.

Use USGS distribution resources ↗ for available modeled habitat data.