Ring-necked Snake

Where they live

• View a map of where they live.
• Ring-necked snakes can be found throughout the United States (especially along the eastern coast), southeastern Canada, and central Mexico.
• Can adapt to many habitats but prefer to live in wooded areas.
• Most of their time is spent hiding underground or under rocks, logs, or leaf debris.

What they eat

• Most ring-necked snakes primarily feed on salamanders and earthworms.
• Can also eat some invertebrates, lizards, amphibians, and other small snakes.

Breeding

• In June or July, females search under rocks or rotted logs for loose soil on which to lay their eggs.
• They lay 3 to 10 long white eggs, which will hatch around 8 weeks later.

Cool Biology Facts

• When threatened by a predator, ring-necked snakes will coil their tail and display their bright underside.
• Ring-necked snakes are so common that they can reach very high densities in some areas; a study by Henry Fitch estimated that, in Kansas, ring-necked snake densities could be as high as 700 to 1,800 snakes per hectare (2.47 acres)!

Threats

• Ring-necked snakes are considered “least concern” and are common in nearly all of their range.
• View their status on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.