Farancia

Farancia
Farancia erytrogramma
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Subfamily:	Dipsadinae
Genus:	Farancia Gray, 1842

Farancia is a genus of colubrid snakes. It consists of two species, one commonly referred to as the rainbow snake (F. erytrogramma) and the other commonly referred to as the mud snake (F. abacura). Both species are native to the southeastern United States.

Description

Adult specimens of Farancia species are usually to 36-54 inches (92–137 cm) in total length (including tail).[1] They are usually dark brown or black dorsally, with a brightly colored underside that is red or orange. Rainbow snakes exhibit red striping down their backs.

The body of Farancia species is cylindrical, robust, and muscular. The smooth, shiny, and iridescent dorsal scales are arranged in 19 rows at midbody. The tail is short, ending in a spine.[2]

Behaviour

Snakes of the genus Farancia are amphibious and semiaquatic, living along the muddy edges and rocks of slow-moving and/or permanent water sources.

Diet

The diet of Farancia species consists primarily of amphiumas, eels, and sirens.

Reproduction

In Farancia breeding occurs in early spring, and eggs are laid in a burrow near the water in early summer. The clutch incubates between 8–12 weeks, and hatches in mid-autumn.

Species and subspecies

• Farancia abacura – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.
  • Farancia abacura abacura (Holbrook, 1836) – eastern mud snake
  • Farancia abacura reinwardtii (Schlegel, 1837) – western mud snake
• Farancia erytrogramma – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
  • Farancia erytrogramma erytrogramma (Palisot de Beauvois, 1802) – rainbow snake
  • †Farancia erytrogramma seminola (Neill, 1964) – Florida rainbow snake

References

1. Conant R (1975). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. xviii + 429 pp. + Plates 1-48. ISBN 0-395-19979-4 (hardcover), ISBN 0-395-19977-8 (paperback). (Farancia, pp. 176-177 + Plate 25 + Maps 137-138).
2. Smith HM, Brodie ED Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3. (Genus Farancia, pp. 162-163).

Further reading

• Goin CJ, Goin OB, Zug GR (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Company. xi + 378 pp. ISBN 0-7167-0020-4. (Genus Farancia, p. 323).
• Gray JE (1842). "Monographic Synopsis of the Water Snakes, or the Family HYDRIDÆ". Zoological Miscellany [2]: 59–68. (Farancia, new genus, p. 68).

External links

• Herps of Texas: Farancia abacura
• Genus Farancia at The Reptile Database