NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Black Rat snake
Pantherophis obsoletus (Say, 1823)
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
Pantherophis obsoletus, also known commonly as the western rat snake, black rat snake (not to be confused with Pantherophis alleghaniensis), pilot black snake, or simply black snake, is a nonvenomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to central North America west of the Mississippi River. No subspecies are recognized as being valid. Its color variations include the Texas rat snake. Along with other snakes of the eastern United States, like the eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi) and the eastern racer (Coluber constrictor), it is called "black snake".
Wikipedia contributors, Pantherophis obsoletus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:05:46.460913+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Pantherophis obsoletus (Say, 1823)
- Name authority
- (Say, 1823)
- Common name
- Black Rat snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Colubridae
- Genus
- Pantherophis
- 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
- genusPantherophis
- speciesPantherophis obsoletus (Say, 1823)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Pantherophis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern Rat Snake (alleghaniensis)Pantherophis alleghaniensis (Holbrook, 1836) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Baird's Rat SnakePantherophis bairdi (Yarrow, 1880) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Western FoxsnakePantherophis ramspotti Crother, White, Savage, Eckstut, Graham & Gardner, 2011 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Slowinski ’s Cornsnake [slowinskii]Pantherophis slowinskii (Burbrink, 2002) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Eastern Corn snakePantherophis guttatus (Linnaeus, 1766) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Eastern Fox SnakePantherophis vulpinus (Baird & Girard, 1853) | 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 |
|---|---|
| Scotophis confinis Baird & Girard, 1853 Baird & Girard, 1853 | synonym |
| Coluber reticularis Daudin, 1803 Daudin, 1803 | ambiguous synonym |
| Scotophis laetus Baird & Girard, 1853 Baird & Girard, 1853 | synonym |
| Scotophis lindheimerii Baird & Girard, 1853 Baird & Girard, 1853 | synonym |
| Elaphe obsoleta lindheimerii Conant & Collins, 1991 Conant & Collins, 1991 | synonym |
| Coluber obsoletus Holbrook, 1842 Holbrook, 1842 | synonym |
| Coluber obsoletus Say, 1823 Say, 1823 | 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=Pantherophis&species=obsoletus 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:4CGYF. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.