The Striped whipsnake (Masticophis taeniatus) is a nonvenomous snake from North America. It is closely related to the California whipsnake (Masticophis lateralis).
The Striped whipsnake is black, dark brown, or gray on its back, often with an olive or bluish tint. Along the center of each of the first four rows of pale dorsal scales, is a dark longitudinal stripe. There is a white to cream-colored stripe down its side that is bisected by either a solid or dashed black line. The coloring on the belly tends to be cream to yellowish, fading to white toward the head, and coral pink toward the tail. This snake also features a lower preocular between the upper labial scales of the mouth.
Striped whipsnakes are found throughout the western United States and northern Mexico. The northernmost part of their geographic range is in south-central Washington and continues southward into the Great Basin between the Cascade-Sierran crest and the continental divide. The southernmost part of their range lies in Michoacán, Mexico. In the Western United States, their range also extends outside of the Great Basin into the Rogue River Valley in southwestern Oregon and northern California. There is a population in Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah and Maryland. Striped whipsnakes live in a wide variety of habitats including shrublands, grasslands, sagebrush flats, canyons, piñon-juniper woodlands, and open pine-oak forests. They favor permanent and seasonal rocky streams, and frequent both flatlands and mountains.
Striped whipsnakes are solitary and diurnal. They are very fast-moving and seek shelter in rock outcrops, small mammal burrows, as well as in trees and shrubs depending on the habitat they occupy. When threatened Striped whipsnakes prefer to escape the danger but if cornered they won't hesitate to defend themselves and will strike at the intruder.
Striped whipsnakes are carnivores. They prey on a wide variety of species including lizards, other snakes (including venomous rattlesnakes), small mammals, young birds, frogs, and insects.
Striped whipsnakes are oviparous. Females lay a clutch of 3-12 eggs, between the months of June and July, usually in an abandoned rodent burrow. The incubation period lasts about 44 to 58 days.
There are no major threats to this species at present. Locally these snakes suffer from mortality on roads and from the destruction of their native habitat.
The IUCN Red List and other sources don’t provide the number of the Striped whipsnake total population size. Currently, this species is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List, and its numbers today are stable.