Ring neck snake, (Diadophis punctatus), small terrestrial snake (family Colubridae), found wide in North America, that sports a hoop or collar of contrastive color around its neck or scruff. The ring is most often white to yellow on AN otherwise uniform background of brown, gray, or black. The colubrid snake is found throughout the jap and western us, southeastern Canada, and northeastern United Mexican States. There square measure many taxonomic category, and most square measure tiny, sometimes but thirty eight cm (15 inches) in total length—though the majestic colubrid snake (D. punctatus regalis) might exceed forty six cm (18 inches) long. In some ring-necked snakes the sunshine collar is massive and outstanding within the young, however it then slowly shrinks and eventually disappears because the snake matures. The perform of a ringed neck is unknown, tho’ it presumptively has some camouflaging or signal purpose. Ring-necked snakes forage among surface litter for worms, arthropods, frogs, salamanders, and different tiny reptiles.

Dozens of unrelated snakes throughout the globe have similar collar marking patterns. within the European ringed or grass snake (Natrix natrix), the collar is dark brown to black and edged on one edge with white (see water snake).

Ring neck snake

colubrid, any member of the foremost common family of snakes, Colubridae, characterised by the whole absence of hind limbs, the absence or tidy reduction of the left respiratory organ, and also the lack of teeth on the premaxilla and typically having a loose facial structure, comparatively few head scales, and ventral scales as wide because the body. There square measure close to one,760 species of colubrids, and that they account for regarding common fraction of the world’s snakes. Most have solid and cone-shaped teeth; some have grooved teeth at the rear of the jaw and manufacture a venom that induces disfunction. many have short, erect fangs within the front 1/2 the mouth. for many of the venomous snake species, a bite unaccompanied by chew is never harmful to humans. during a few species with fangs, one bite is dangerous and probably fatal.

Ring neck snake lay eggs, however some (especially the aquatic forms) square measure live-bearing. Colubrids occur in nearly all habitats.

chordate, any member of the phylum Chordata, which has the vertebrates (subphylum Vertebrata), the foremost extremely evolved animals, yet as 2 different subphyla—the tunicates (subphylum Tunicata) and cephalochordates (subphylum Cephalochordata). Some classifications conjointly embrace the phylum Hemichordata with the chordates.

As the name implies, at your time within the life cycle a chordate possesses a stiff, dorsal supporting rod (the notochord). conjointly characteristic of the chordates square measure a tail that extends behind and higher than the opening, a hollow nerve wire higher than (or dorsal to) the gut, gill slits gap from the throat to the outside, ANd an endostyle (a mucus-secreting structure) or its spinoff between the gill slits. (A characteristic feature could also be gift solely within the developing embryo and should disappear because the embryo matures into the adult type.) A somewhat similar body arrange is found within the closely connected phylum Hemichordata.

General options

Ring neck snake measure tiny animals, usually one to 5 centimetres (0.4 to 2.0 inches) long, with a minimum length of regarding one mm (0.04 inch) and a most length slightly over twenty centimetres; colonies might grow to eighteen metres (59 feet) long. Cephalochordates vary from one to 3 centimetres. Vertebrates aim size from small fish to the whales, that embrace the biggest animals ever to possess existed.

Tunicates square measure marine animals, either benthonic (bottom dwellers) or oceanic (inhabitants of open water), that usually type colonies by agamogenesis. They feed by taking water in through the mouth, mistreatment the gill slits as a form of filter. The feeding equipment in cephalochordates is analogous. they need a well-developed muscular structure and may swim quickly by undulating the body. Cephalochordates sometimes live partly buried in marine sand and gravel.

Vertebrates retain traces of a feeding equipment like that of tunicates and cephalochordates. The gill slits, however, ceased to perform as feeding structures, so later as metabolism devices, because the vertebrate structure underwent organic process changes. Except in some early branches of the vertebrate lineage (i.e., agnathans) a try of gill arches has become changed thus on type jaws. The Ring neck snake that patently began with cephalochordates became changed by the event of fins that were later reworked into limbs. With the invasion of the vertebrates into H2O so ashore, there was a shift in suggests that of breathing—from gills to lungs. different modifications, like AN egg that might develop toward land, conjointly emancipated the vertebrates from water. Elaboration of the locomotory equipment and different developments allowed a diversification of structure and performance that made the amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.

Natural history

Reproduction and life cycle

The chordate life cycle begins with fertilization (the union of spermatozoan and egg). In its primitive type, fertilization happens outwardly, within the water. agamogenesis takes place in tunicates and in some vertebrates (females of some fish and lizards will reproduce while not fertilization). Hermaphroditism (possessing each male and feminine generative organs) is found in tunicates and a few fishes, however otherwise the sexes square measure separate. Larvae (very young forms that take issue significantly from the juveniles and adults), after they do occur, take issue in structure from the larvae of nonchordates. Internal fertilization, viviparity (giving birth to young that have undergone embryological development), and parental care square measure common in tunicates and vertebrates.

Harper Harrison

Harper Harrison is a reporter for The Hear UP. Harper got an internship at the NPR and worked as a reporter and producer. harper has also worked as a reporter for the Medium. Harper covers health and science for The Hear UP.