Storeria dekayi

Storeria dekayi, commonly known as the brown snake or De Kay's snake, is a small non-venomous species of snake in the family Colubridae. Seven subspecies are recognized as being valid.
Geographic range.
"Storeria dekayi" is native to Southern Ontario and Quebec, most of the eastern half of the United States, through Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, and possibly El Salvador.
Description.
Dorsally, "Storeria dekayi" is brown to gray with a lighter center stripe bordered by small black spots; ventrally, it is lighter brown or pink with small black dots at the ends of the ventral scales. Adults usually measure less than in total length (including tail), but the record total length is . It has keeled dorsal scales, and no loreal scale.
Subspecies.
There are seven recognized subspecies of "S. dekayi", including the nominotypical subspecies.
A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than "Storeria".
Reproduction.
Like other natricine snakes such as water snakes (genus "Nerodia") and garter snakes (genus "Thamnophis"), "Storeria dekayi" is an ovoviviparous species, giving birth to live young. Sexual maturity is reached at two to three years. Mating takes place in the spring, after snakes emerge from brumation. Between 3 and 41 young are born in late summer.
Diet.
"Storeria dekayi" primarily feeds on slugs, snails, and earthworms. They have specialized jaws that allow them to remove snails from their shells for consumption. Reports of other invertebrates (such as woodlice, mites, or millipedes) in the diet of "S. dekayi" are more than likely the result of accidental ingestion rather than intentional feeding, in which one of these invertebrates may have adhered to a slug or other prey item being consumed by "Storeria dekayi".
Ecology.
"Storeria dekayi" is a prey item for larger snakes, large frogs and toads, birds, and many mammals including cats, dogs, and weasels.
Etymology.
The specific name, "dekayi", is in honor of American zoologist James Ellsworth De Kay (1792–1851), who collected the first specimen on Long Island, New York, while the generic name, "Storeria", honors zoologist David Humphreys Storer.
This is the only North American snake whose binomial is a double honorific – that is, both the generic name and the specific name honor people.
The subspecific name, "wrightorum" (Latin, genitive, plural), is in honor of American herpetologists Albert Hazen Wright and Anna Allen Wright, husband and wife.