Contia (snake) explained

Contia is a small genus of snakes in the family Colubridae. The genus is endemic to North America.

Etymology

The generic name, Contia, is in honor of American entomologist John Lawrence LeConte.^[1]

Species

There are two recognized species:

Image	Scientific Name	Common Name	Distribution
	Contia longicaudae	forest sharp-tailed snake	northern California and southern Oregon
	Contia tenuis	sharp-tailed snake	California, Oregon, and Washington, as well as British Columbia, Canada: Southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia around Victoria, British Columbia,and Pemberton, British Columbia

Further reading

• Baird SF, Girard CF (1853). Catalogue of North American Reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Part I.—Serpents. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xvi + 172 pp. (Contia, new genus, p. 110).

Notes and References

1. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Genus Contia, p. 154).