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Regina (genus)
Encyclopedia
Regina is a genus
of colubrid
snake
s known as crayfish snakes, named after their primary choice of diet
. The genus consists of four species
which are found predominantly in the southern and eastern United States
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of colubrid
Colubrid
A colubrid is a member of the snake family Colubridae. This broad classification of snakes includes about two-thirds of all snake species on earth. The earliest species of the snake family date back to the Oligocene epoch. With 304 genera and 1,938 species, Colubridae is the largest snake family...
snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s known as crayfish snakes, named after their primary choice of diet
Diet (nutrition)
In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. Dietary habits are the habitual decisions an individual or culture makes when choosing what foods to eat. With the word diet, it is often implied the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management...
. The genus consists of four species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
which are found predominantly in the southern and eastern United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Species
- striped crayfish snake, Regina alleniRegina alleniRegina alleni , the striped crayfish snake, is a North American snake that derives its common name from its principal prey, crayfish. This snake is also called the striped swamp snake....
(Garman, 1874) - Graham's crayfish snake, Regina grahamiiRegina grahamiiGraham's crayfish snake is a medium-sized nonvenomous North American snake measuring an average of 18 to 32 inches in length, but can grow up to 4 feet long in some cases. It is usually a brown or gray color with an occasional faint mid-dorsal stripe...
BairdSpencer Fullerton BairdSpencer Fullerton Baird was an American ornithologist, ichthyologist and herpetologist. Starting in 1850 he was assistant-secretary and later secretary of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C...
& GirardCharles Frédéric GirardCharles Frédéric Girard was a French biologist specializing in ichthyology and herpetology.Born in Mulhouse, France, he studied at the College of Neuchâtel, Switzerland as a student of Louis Agassiz. In 1847, he accompanied Agassiz as his assistant to Harvard...
, 1853 - glossy crayfish snake, Regina rigidaRegina rigidaRegina rigida is a species of snake endemic to the southeastern United States. The species contains three subspecies:* Regina rigida deltae * Regina rigida rigida...
(SayThomas SayThomas Say was an American naturalist, entomologist, malacologist, herpetologist and carcinologist. A taxonomist, he is often considered to be the father of descriptive entomology in the United States. He described more than 1,000 new species of beetles and over 400 species of insects of other...
, 1825) - queen snake, Regina septemvittata (SayThomas SayThomas Say was an American naturalist, entomologist, malacologist, herpetologist and carcinologist. A taxonomist, he is often considered to be the father of descriptive entomology in the United States. He described more than 1,000 new species of beetles and over 400 species of insects of other...
, 1825)