Montana Field Guide

A slender, moderately long snake, the racer ranges from 20 to 65 inches in length. In adults, color of the back can vary from uniform greenish gray to brown or blue. The belly is whitish to pale yellow, the latter extending onto scales of the upper lips and nasal region of the head. The eyes are relatively large, and the scales are smooth. Young snakes (up to about 20 inches) have a much different coloration than adults. On the back, a series of brown blotches edged with black runs the length of the snake; a row of blotches on each side also extends onto the belly.

Nonmigratory.

Racers are associated with relatively open habitats either in shortgrass prairie or forested areas. Very fast and active, they prey on insects and small vertebrates such as mice and frogs. Females lay a clutch of three to seven eggs in summer (FWP). In WY, primary habitats are scarp woodlands of plains and foothills often near water (Baxter and Stone 1980). Some cover seems es- pecially impt. on shortgrass prairie (Fitch 1963). In the NW racers generally absent from dense forest/hi mtns (Nussbaum 1983)

Orthopterans can form a major part of diet and have been re- ported as food in NC MT (Mosimann and Rabb 1952) and OR (Schonberger 1954). Small mammals, lizards, orthopterans, anurans are all major components of diet (Fitch 1963).

Home range of about 1 ha in KA & UT; travel as far as 4000' between hibernacula and summer range (KA) (Fitch 1963), or 1.6 km (UT) (Brown and Parker 1976).

In NE KA: mate May-early Jun; ovipost Jun-early Aug; incu- bate ave. 51 days; clutch size ave. 11.6 (flaviventris), 5.8 (mormon) (increases with size/age). Also KA: 13% of 2 yr old females fecund; 80% of old ones (Fitch 1963, Fitch 1970).