WORLD PITUOPHIS WEB PAGE BY PATRICK H. BRIGGS

Northern Pine Snake

Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus (Daudin, 1803)

Digital Image taken by Patrick Houston Briggs on July 7, 2017 Adult Female, Courtesy of Rick Lewis 

Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus/Northern Pine snake

sub-adult male from Orangeburg South Carolina below 

Digital Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs April 26, 2018

Below is a Northern Pine snake/Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus

Upper body view from above of a sub-adult male from Orangeburg, South Carolina parents

Digital Photo by Patrick H. Briggs April 26, 2018

Below is a Northern Pine snake/Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus

Close up head study from above of a sub-adult male from Orangeburg, South Carolina parents

Digital Photo by Patrick H. Briggs April 26, 2018

The N. pine snake below is the same Orangeburg S. Carolina individual above but photographed over a year later on Saturday, October 12, 2019

Digital Image Taken By Patrick Houston Briggs with my Nikon 7200 with an AF-S Micro NIKKOR 60mm 1:2.8G ED lens.

The N. pine snake below is the same Orangeburg S. Carolina individual a few images above, but photographed over a year later on Saturday, October 12, 2019

Digital Image Taken By Patrick Houston Briggs with my Nikon 7200 with an AF-S Micro NIKKOR 60mm 1:2.8G ED lens.

Below is Patrick Houston Briggs who holds up for viewing his adult over 6 feet male Northern Pine snake Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus  August 2017.

Photo by Stephanie Ruth Briggs

Northern Pine snake adult female below

Digital Image By Patrick Briggs 2017 

Young Northern Pine snake below

Photo image by Patrick Briggs

Young Northern Pine Snake 

Digital Image by Pat Briggs 2014

 Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus adult female

Digital image taken July 7, 2017 By Patrick H. Briggs Courtesy Rick Lewis

 Adult Male Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus below

Digital Photo Image By Patrick H. Briggs July 7, 2017 Courtesy Rick Lewis

 Patternless Northern Pine snake

Digital Image taken July 7, 2017 By Patrick H. Briggs, Courtesy Rick Lewis 

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs 

 Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Lloyd Lemke

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Rick Smith

A Robust and Powerful Female Northern Pine snake below

 Photo by Patrick Briggs 1995 courtesy Lloyd Lemke

Photo by Patrick Briggs courtesy Lloyd Lemke

Northern Pine Snake

by Patrick Briggs

The Northern Pine Snake Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus is a light colored snake with dark or bold pattern markings and blotches. Infact, its scientific name is from the Greek melano which means dark or black, and the Greek leucus meaning white or light; therefore, a light against dark pine snake. It may have light ground colors such as gray, cream, tan, yellow, or white against reddish-brown, brown, or black blotching and markings. The dorsal blotches numbers 29 or less and no stripe extends backward from the rear of the eye. This is a snake with a pointed snout that grows to be a robust and powerful constrictor able to exceed 7 feet in length.

Some melanoleucus are communal sharing nest sites with other conspecipics, while others may be solitary.

Distribution: Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus: S North Carolina west through South Carolina to northern Georgia, E Tennessee, SE Kentucky, south into Alabama. Disjunct populations in S New Jersey, WC Virginia, adjacent West Virginia, C Kentucky, SW Tennessee. Intergrades with mugitus in South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. Type locality: "la Caroline méridionale et de la Floríde." Restricted to Carolina by Barbour, 1921b: 117. Further restricted to Charleston, South Carolina, USA by Schmidt, 1953a: 201.

 Northern Pine snake eggs laid summer of 2017

Digital picture by Patrick H. Briggs, Courtesy Rick Lewis

 Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus   HATCHLING RIGHT SIDE HEAD STUDY

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs

 Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus   HATCHLING

 Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus   HATCHLING UPPER HEAD STUDY

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/5681490499/in/photostream/

Kentucky Northern Pine snake video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31MAYJt6wDo

Virginia range map for the Northern pine snake: http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/species/maps/030040-map.jpg

http://www.freewebs.com/dnsreptiles/blackpinesnakes.htm

http://www.pinelandsalliance.org/images/artmax/artmax_515.jpg

Jersey Northern pine snake:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/2044756795/

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/pine_snake_assessment09.pdf

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/2347064804/in/set-72157603233540189

http://www.coastalplainsreptiles.com/Species/Snakes/Pituophis_melanoleucus_melanoleucus_pix_all.htm

 Male Northern pine snakes battle for dominance:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/lvulgaris/3494355093/in/photostream/

North Dakota bull snake range map and image:  http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/herps/amrepnd/species/pitucate.htm

 Northern Pine snake in Tennessee: http://apbrwww5.apsu.edu/reptatlas/colu/p_mel_photo.htm

 Tennessee range map: http://apbrwww5.apsu.edu/reptatlas/colu/pmelAccount.htm

 Albino Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/2678720614/in/set-72157603233540189

 Adult albino Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/8513564473/in/set-72157603233540189

 Red Morph- Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/2045549544/in/set-72157603233540189

"Paradox" Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/2044764487/in/set-72157603233540189

 Click this to see a beautiful but strange mutation morph of the Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/8504367678/in/set-72157603233540189

New Jersy pine snakes:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/michiganherper/7391281444/

Virginia pine snake range map: http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/species/maps/030040-map.jpg

A robust Northern pine snake: http://www.pinelandsalliance.org/images/artmax/artmax_515.jpg

Info on Northern pine snake Jersey: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/pine_snake_assessment09.pdf

Nesting info on the Jersey pine snake:  http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/1564642?uid=3739560&uid=2134&uid=2&uid=70&uid=4&uid=3739256&sid=21102046130751

Northern pine snakes of different locations: http://www.coastalplainsreptiles.com/Species/Snakes/Pituophis_melanoleucus_melanoleucus_pix_all.htm

New Jersey pine snake conservation: http://endangerednj.blogspot.com/2009/12/continued-pine-snake-protection.html

Northern pine snake info: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/somsept.htm

Northern pine snake with her eggs:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/5681490499/in/photostream/

Rusty morph Northern pine snake: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hghjim/8503260231/sizes/l/in/set-72157603233540189/

Several fine pics of pine snakes: http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/img_query

North Carolina pine snakes: http://www.bio.davidson.edu/projects/herpcons/herps_of_NC/snakes/Pitmel/Pit_mel.htm

lNorthern pine snake info: http://www.marylandzoo.org/animals-conservation/reptiles/northern-pine-snake/

Northern pine snake beauty:  http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=1985433,1985433

New Jersy pine snake range and program: http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/pdf/literature/nj_pinesnake_assessment.pdf

Northern pine snake care sheet: http://www.rtpnet.org/ncherps/pdf_forms/NorthernPineSnake.pdf

History and maps of the pine snakes: http://el.erdc.usace.army.mil/tes/pdfs/serdp985.pdf

Wild New Jersy pine snake female found by Michigan herpers: http://herpingmichigan.blogspot.com/2012/06/trail-continues.html

Effects of egg incubation temps on newborn pine snakes: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF00295199#page-1

An exceptional looking Northern pine snake: http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1188680

Scutelation:

                               Mid-body Scales          27-31                          Supralabials                    7-9

                               Ventrals                        205-249                      Infralabials                     10-13

                               Caudals                         52-66                           Postoculars                    2-4

                               Anal                                Single (Entire)           Preoculars                     1-2

                               Prefrontals                    4

(Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus Close View of Midbody Ventral)

Photo by Patrick H. Briggs

NORTHERN PINE SNAKE HEAD STUDY 

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Lloyd Lemke

NORTHERN PINE SNAKE

 Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs 2000 Courtesy Rick Smith

Northern Pine Snake albino with pattern, Lloyd Lemke line from the late 90's

Image scanned into the computer from one of Patrick H. Briggs photos 

 Photo by Pat Briggs Courtesy Lloyd and Sonnie Lemke

Albino Northern Pine snake

 White Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus  

Photo by Pat Briggs Courtesy Lloyd Lemke

Each level of this melamine enclosure is 19 inches x 74 inches x 20 inches. I house Pituophis over 6 feet long in these cages. 

Status in Tennessee: The Northern Pinesnake is listed as “Threatened” by TWRA and considered rare and uncommon by Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. Populations are declining due to loss of habitat, decline in habitat quality (fire suppression), and road mortality