HARMLESSLY VENOMOUS. Uses its venom to subdue prey, but is not dangerous to humans because a) they have an ineffective venom delivery mechanism, b) their mouths too small to gain purchase, and/or c) their venom is not adapted for causing physiological damage to mammals.
The Plains Black-headed Snake is characterized by smooth scales, a divided anal scale, an unpatterned light yellowish brown body and tail, a black head, two scales behind each eye, and seven scales on each upper lip. The belly is pink-red. Adult males have slightly longer tails than females.
Adults normally grow 180-254 mm (7-10 inches) in total length. The largest specimen from Kansas is a female (KU 203313) from Phillips County with a total length of 375 mm (145⁄8 inches) collected by Larry Miller on 18 May 1985 (Miller, 1985). The maximum length throughout the range is 382.6 mm (151⁄16 inches) (Powell et al., 2016).
Widespread in the western one-half of Kansas. Isolated populations in the Flint Hills in Riley/Geary and Cowley/Butler counties. Cope (1902) first reported this species from Riley County. Smith (1931) corroborated the Riley County report with additional specimens and stated that Taylor (1929) doubted Cope's reported localities (though Taylor (1929) does not say this). Smith (1950, 1956) noted that the species was spottily distributed in Riley County (and likely elsewhere) as he was only able to turn them up at a locality 4.5 miles south of Manhattan and only Tantilla gracilis at other localities.
The Plains Black-headed Snake is found on rocky hillsides of grassland prairies and along prairie streams. Active from April to October, it is secretive, spending most of the day beneath flat rocks. Like the Flathead Snake, it may be nocturnal, but little is known of its daily acuv1ty. During winter, it burrows to great depths beneath the ground to avoid cold temperatures. Tihen (1937) found two specimens eight feet beneath the ground during January in Ness County. Nothing is known of the breeding habits of this species in
Kansas. Presumably, it mates during the spring, females deposit their egg clutches in nests during summer, and the eggs hatch in late summer or fall.
The Plains Black-headed Snake eats centipedes.
Predators of this snake are birds, small mammals, lizards, and larger snakes (Collins, 1993).
First reported from Kansas by Cragin (1880) based on a single specimen in the United States National Museum from Fort Riley, Riley County. The earliest existing record from Kansas is (KU 2557 and USNM 58714) from Elkhart (Morton County) in August of 1910 and Hamilton County in 1910 by Julius Hurter, Sr., respectively, and referenced in Burt (1933).
Most records come from rocky hillsides in the western half of the state following rains in May. Because of its secretive nature, little is known about its natural history in the state.
References
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Branson, Edwin B. 1904. Snakes of Kansas. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 2(13):353-430.
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Taylor, Edward H. 1929. A revised checklist of the snakes of Kansas. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 19(5):53-62.
Taylor, Edward H. 1929. List of reptiles and batrachians of Morton County, Kansas, reporting species new to the state fauna. University of Kansas Science Bulletin 19(6):63-65.
Smith, Hobart M. 1931. Additions to the herpetological fauna of Riley County, Kansas. Copeia 1931(3):143.
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Snake, Tantilla nigriceps (Squamata, Colubridae): Unearthing
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Russell, Elisabeth. 2023. Habitat associations and fine-scale movements of the Red-spotted Toad (Anaxyrus punctatus) in Kansas and the efficacy of remote telemetry for monitoring small-scale movements. Thesis. Fort Hays State University, Hays, Kansas. 81 pp.