NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Blotched rat snake
Elaphe sauromates (Pallas, 1811)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The blotched snake (Elaphe sauromates), a member of the Colubrinae subfamily of the family Colubridae, is a nonvenomous snake found in Eastern Europe. It grows up to 260 cm (8 ft 6 in) in length but the medium is 120 to 160 cm. It is one of the largest European snakes. The species has been of cultural and historical significance for its role in ancient Greek and Roman mythology and derived symbolism.
For symbolism of the blotched snake, see Serpent (symbolism).
Wikipedia contributors, Blotched snake; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:13:50.877011+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Elaphe sauromates (Pallas, 1811)
- Name authority
- (Pallas, 1811)
- Common name
- Blotched rat snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Colubridae
- Genus
- Elaphe
- 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.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
- infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
- familyColubridae
- subfamilyColubrinae
- genusElaphe
- speciesElaphe sauromates (Pallas, 1811)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Elaphe. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Elaphe climacophora (Boie, 1826) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Steppes RatsnakesElaphe dione (Pallas, 1773) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Japanese Four-lined RatsnakeElaphe quadrivirgata (Boie, 1826) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Amur RatsnakesElaphe schrenckii Strauch, 1873 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Zoige RatsnakeElaphe zoigeensis Huang, Ding, Burbrink, Yang, Huang, Ling, Chen & Zhang, 2012 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Four-lined snake (or ratsnake)Elaphe quatuorlineata (Lacépède, 1789) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Blade-teethed Rat SnakeElaphe xiphodonta Qi, Shi, Ma, Gao, Bu, Grismer, LI & Wang, 2021 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Elaphe anomala (Boulenger, 1916) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chinese Leopard SnakeElaphe bimaculata Schmidt, 1925 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Taiwan Stink SnakeElaphe carinata (Günther, 1864) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pere David's Rat SnakeElaphe davidi (Sauvage, 1884) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Coluber fulvus Dwigubsky, 1832 Dwigubsky, 1832 | synonym |
| Coluber sauromates Pallas, 1811 Pallas, 1811 | synonym |
| Elaphe parreysi Fitzinger ex Wagler, 1833 Fitzinger ex Wagler, 1833 | synonym |
| Coluber cereus Dwigubsky, 1832 Dwigubsky, 1832 | synonym |
| Coluber thaeniothys Fischer, 1837 Fischer, 1837 | synonym |
| Coluber xanthogaster Andrzejowski, 1832 Andrzejowski, 1832 | synonym |
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.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Elaphe&species=sauromates 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
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:38YMJ. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.