HARMLESS. The Western Wormsnake is characterized by smooth scales, a divided anal plate, and a distinctive color. The head, body, and tail are black or gray-black and contrast sharply with the belly color of bright reddish pink, which extends a short distance up onto the sides. Male Western Wormsnakes have longer tails than females and have keels or ridges on the scale rows above the cloaca! opening. Females grow larger than males.
Adults normally grow 19.0-28.0 cm (7½-11 inches) in total length. The largest specimen from Kansas is a female (KU 206169) from Doniphan County with a total length of 36.6 cm (143⁄8 inches) collected by Robert Powell on 2 May 1986. The maximum length throughout the range is 39.1 cm (153⁄8 inches) (Powell et al., 2016) The maximum weight for Kansas specimen is 14.5 grams (½ ounce).
Found in the more heavily forested eastern third of Kansas. This species favors more heavily forested areas and makes it into the Flint Hills along riparian corridors.
Clark (1967, 1970) studied this small, secretive snake in northeastern Kansas, and much of the information from Kansas is based on his observations.
Western Wormsnakes are found beneath limestone rocks in the loose, damp soil of wooded or partly wooded hillsides. Some have been observed at woodland edge. This reptile is active from March to early October, with a peak observable abundance during April. Few specimens are seen during mid to late summer as temperatures increase and the soil under cover become dry. During winter, Western Wormsnakes retreat beneath the soil to depths of at least two feet to avoid cold temperatures.
This species is active day and night at air temperatures ranging from 8.9° to 25.6°C (48° to 78°F), but its daily activities are more dependent on soil temperature. These snakes have home ranges varying from 65.0 to 46.5 square meters (700 to 7,500 square feet), and males have much larger home ranges than females. Population density for this snake in northeastern Kansas is estimated to be 150- 300 individuals per acre within suitable habitat. When burrowing through soil, this snake pushes and rotates its head into areas of least resistance, such as crevices and cracks. This species is rarely discovered out from under cover. Smith (1950, 1956) observed a specimen active on the surface along a creek in Cherokee County. During his two-year study, Taggart (2006) noted 41 specimens under cover and one road-killed specimen.
Western Wormsnakes mate during the spring (April and May) and again in fall (September and October). If courtship exists, it is unknown. Females normally lay an average of one to five eggs per clutch (Fitch, 1985) from mid-June to early July. The eggs, presumably laid in burrows beneath the soil or under rocks, are known to hatch in August.
Dloogatch (1978) reported the discovery of a clutch of five eggs in Douglas County. The eggs were beneath a limestone rock on a south-facing hillside, and all hatched on 13- 14 August.
Clark (1970) and Henderson (1974) reported the Western Wormsnake feeding exclusively on earthworms in Douglas County.
Other snakes and moles are the main predators on this small creature in Kansas (Collins, 1993).
First reported from Kansas by Cope (1875) based on a specimen from "Kansas" in the United States National Museum. The earliest existing specimen (KU 1585) from Kansas was collected in Anderson County in August of 1909 (no other associated data).
Burt and Hoyle (1935) reported on a Western Wormsnake collected under stones on a grassy hillside near a spring not far from Spring River and about 3 miles north of Baxter Springs, Cherokee County, Kansas, by Edward H. Taylor and Hobart M. Smith on 4 April 1931.
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