📸 PhotoPhoto: Bladerunner8u · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Eastern Hognose Snake
Heterodon platirhinos (Eastern Hognose Snake · トウブシシバナヘビ)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 Its maximum length of 105 cm is around the height of a lower-grade elementary school child (Comparison).
- 💡 Animal Diversity Web notes that because it feeds heavily on toads, this snake plays a role in limiting toad populations.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Eastern Hognose Snake is a thick-bodied snake with a slightly upturned, pointed snout that feeds mainly on toads.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
It has a stout body, a wide head, and an upturned snout tip. Juveniles are pinkish with alternating dark brown blotches, while adults vary widely in color including light brown, grey, red, and black.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It eats toads most frequently, along with frogs, reptiles, birds, rodents, fish, salamanders, and insects, and its digestive fluids neutralize toad toxins. Active by day, especially around midday, it often swallows prey alive.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List LC (2007) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/63820/12718733
- • IUCN Red List category LC — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • catalogueoflife.org — 3L99B
- • iucnredlist.org — 12718733
- • wikidata.org — Q2699564
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Eastern Hognose Snake.jpg
- • animaldiversity.org — Heterodon platirhinos
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Mason McNair · CC0 1.0
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.