Kenneth L. Krysko photo.

Scientific name: Drymarchon corais couperi

Description: Average adult size is 60-74 inches (152-188 cm), record is 103.5 inches (262.8 cm). Adults are large and thick bodied. The body is glossy black and in sunlight has iridescent blue highlights. The chin and throat is reddish or white, and the color may extend down the body. The belly is cloudy orange and blue-gray. The scales on its back are smooth, but some individuals may possess some scales that are partially keeled. There are 17 dorsal scale rows at midbody. The pupil is round. Juveniles are black-bodied with narrow whitish blue bands.

Indigo snake: Left to right: Top of the head; underside of the head (chin and throat).

Indigo snake: Left to right: Side of the head; front (face view) of the head.

Range: It occurs throughout Florida and southeast Georgia. A different subspecies, Drymarchon corais erebennus, is found from southern Texas to southern Mexico.

Kenneth L. Krysko photo.

The lips, chin and throat may be black, white, or red.

Habitat: Indigos are widespread throughout the state, but nowhere are they abundant. They occur in hardwood forests, moist hammocks, pine flatwoods, prairies, and around cypress ponds.

Comments: . Indigo snake populations in many parts of Florida have declined. It is listed as a 'Threatened Species' by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Because it seeks refuge in gopher tortoise burrows, along with diamondback rattlesnakes and many other organisms, in some parts of Florida the indigo is called the 'gopher snake'.

Comparison with other species: Young indigo snakes might be confused with southern black racers (Coluber constrictor priapus) , which typically have white chins and throats. The black pine snake (Pituophis melanoleucus lodingi) may retain a hint of dark crossbanding on its tail and lacks the iridescent sheen of the indigo.

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