Diadophis punctatus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Open encyclopedia reference

Diadophis punctatus, commonly known as the ring-necked snake or ringneck snake, is a small, harmless species of colubrid snake found throughout much of the United States, as well as south in Central Mexico and as far north as Nova Scotia, Canada. Ring-necked snakes are generally fossorial and somewhat secretive, by nature, and, as a nocturnal species, are rarely seen during the daytime. These snakes are believed to be fairly abundant throughout most of their range, though no scientific evaluation supports this hypothesis. Scientific research is lacking for the species, despite their apparently common status, and more in-depth investigations are greatly needed. It is the only species within the genus Diadophis and, currently, 14 subspecies are identified, though many herpetologists question the morphologically based classifications. The ring-necked snake is perhaps best known for its unique defensive posture: when threatened, it curls its tail into a tight coil, partially rolls onto its back, and shows its bright red-orange underside and ventral surface.

Wikipedia contributors, Ring-necked snake; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T14:24:52.465619+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Diadophis punctatus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Name authority

(Linnaeus, 1766)

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Reptilia

Order

Squamata

Family

Colubridae

Genus

Diadophis

Extinction status

Not supplied by this source

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
9. orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
10. suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
11. infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
12. familyColubridae
13. subfamilyDipsadinae
14. genusDiadophis
15. speciesDiadophis punctatus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Close classified relatives

No other member of this genus is present in the selected snapshot.

Browse 1,632 records assigned to Colubridae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Diadophis&species=punctatus Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:3589D. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.