Can anyone ID this snake?

[EightLeggedFrea]

I found this snake in my front yard (I live in Chattanooga, TN). It was in my driveway so I tried to move it into the brush with a stick. The snake was rather defensive and upon being touched went into a defensive posture, ready to strike. It never actually struck, though. Eventually it ran away on its own.

http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll6/KingBaboon_2008/?action=view&current=100_0761.jpg

http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll6/KingBaboon_2008/?action=view&current=100_0762.jpg

http://s284.photobucket.com/albums/ll6/KingBaboon_2008/?action=view&current=100_0763.jpg

 

[reverendsterlin]

looks like a grey ratsnake to me
Rev

 

[crpy]

Or black rat

 

[Shrike]

Hi there. The snake in your pictures is a black rat snake, Elaphe obsoleta. As you can see in your pictures, the common name "black rat snake" doesn't necessarily mean the snake will be black. Juveniles will display blotched coloration that darkens as the snake matures. There is also temendous variability amongst adults. Some retain their blotched coloration through adulthood, others turn completely black. Nice find!

 

[ThomasH]

Black rat. Could also be a different species of obsoletus though. Remember the forms of obsoletus commonly integrade in the wild. [Hybridize on a subspecies level] They make great pets by the way.
TBH

 

[bigtyler1025]

I was going to say definitely black rat. Notice the white lips. Black rats are all dark except for white lips. I have a juvie albino black rat. Very pretty snake

 

[loxoscelesfear]

black rat or possibly black x gray. u have both subspecies in TN. but my gut says black rat . nice looking snake

 

[bluefrogtat2]

agree

i agree with black ratsnake,juvi's retain the spotting until mature.
mine were always aggro
andy

 

[loxoscelesfear]

here's a 3 footer from an area where no grays occur

 

[Tarantula_man94]

I'd say ratsnake

 

[crpy]

here's a 3 footer from an area where no grays occur

Nicey nice nice. <it wouldnt allow me to post a shorter answer.

 

[ThomasH]

Nice rat snake it just goes to show that obsoletus can be variable.
TBH

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

The remaining juvenile markings are responsible for the deaths of black rat snakes. In these parts, it is a common myth that they will cross with copperheads, creating a venomous hybrid. And of course, any juvenile black rat is pretty much doomed as being a "baby copperhead"
Sadly, just about any patterned snake has a tough time of it. I had a fellow bring me the head of a milk snake for an ID, he was sure he had removed it from a copperhead. About the only snake safe from confusion is a garter snake, and they still are often killed out of principle.

Anyway, it has been my experience that the juvenile markings of adult black rats become much more apparent when they are agitated. That last picture is a gorgeous specimen, by the way. I can't recall ever seeing one with such clearly defined markings.

 

[ThomasH]

The remaining juvenile markings are responsible for the deaths of black rat snakes. In these parts, it is a common myth that they will cross with copperheads, creating a venomous hybrid. And of course, any juvenile black rat is pretty much doomed as being a "baby copperhead"
Sadly, just about any patterned snake has a tough time of it. I had a fellow bring me the head of a milk snake for an ID, he was sure he had removed it from a copperhead. About the only snake safe from confusion is a garter snake, and they still are often killed out of principle.:mad

Yeah, I hate how that works. The only death copperheads were ever attributed to was a man dying from bad medical tecniques in the fifties. Yet the snake was still blamed even though it was the doctor's fault. One of the most highly regarded sources of venomous animals on the copperhead. http://www.toxinology.com/fusebox.cfm?fuseaction=main.snakes.display&id=SN0330
Remember I'm not saying these snakes are not dangerous but they are DEFINITELY NOT DEADLY.
TBH

 

[hardlucktattoo]

Yeah, I hate how that works. The only death copperheads were ever attributed to was a man dying from bad medical tecniques in the fifties. Yet the snake was still blamed even though it was the doctor's fault. One of the most highly regarded sources of venomous animals on the copperhead. http://www.toxinology.com/fusebox.cfm?fuseaction=main.snakes.display&id=SN0330
Remember I'm not saying these snakes are not dangerous but they are DEFINITELY NOT DEADLY.
TBH[/QUOTE

Yea I got bit by an Adult copperhead a few years ago....Due to my own stupidity at the time I am alive But I was in the hospital for about 3 days and in bed at home for another week

 

[pitbulllady]

I need to get a photo of some the E. obsolettas I've caught this summer, in my yard, just to show how variable they really can be! I caught a three-foot female this morning that is so black I thought she was a Racer at first, until I saw the white lips and throat and light-colored eyes, but I've also got a blotched "Greenish" female, and a male that looks just like the one loxoscelesfear posted, and a HUGE stubby-tailed old male that's got a lot of dark mottled brown on him, almost like what is called a "Brindle" Rat in the pet trade. I've got a baby, probably hatched late last fall, that I found in one of the schools where I teach, that's already got a lot of green showing in between the blotches.

pitbulllady

 

[Shrike]

Another characteristic that I find helpful in the field is to examine the scales. Are they keeled or smooth? A black rat snake will have weakly keeled scales wheras a black racer's scales are completely smooth.