Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Leeward island racer (Alsophis rijgersmaei), recorded as Endangered
Leeward island racer (Alsophis rijgersmaei). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Endangered

Leeward island racer

Alsophis rijgersmaei

Leeward island racer is a snake in the family Colubridae — Alsophis rijgersmaei, recorded as Endangered.

Status
Endangered
Scientific name
Alsophis rijgersmaei
Taxonomy
Squamata · Colubridae · Alsophis

Appearance

The racers usually have around 200 ventral scales and 100 sub-caudal scales, with females generally having more than males, and 21 dorsal scales at the midbody. It's colouration varies from being light grey to dark brown approaching black. Freshly hatched racers on average weigh 3.9 grams (0.14 oz) and are 23.7 centimetres (9.3 in) long, and adults can reach up to lengths of 108 cm (43 in) from snout to vent, and 138 cm (54 in) from snout to tail.

Range and habitat

The racers are known to inhabit Anguilla, Scrub Island, Saint Barthélemy, Île Bonhomme and Île Tortue, and was last seen in 1996 on Saint Martin, from that it may since have been extirpated. The racer's habitat primarily consists of areas with mostly xerophytic plants. It can be found in areas ranging from sea level to the 286-metre (938 ft) peak of Morne de Vitet, Saint Barthélemy.

The Leeward Island racer is a slender and fast-moving species of snake.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Diet

Racer's diets consist primarily of lizards of the genus Anolis, a common prey for snakes in the Leeward Islands, supplemented by bird chicks, rodents and amphibians, among them the Cuban tree frog on Anguilla, where the frog is an introduced species. The racer varies the method it uses to hunt depending on the size of its prey, with smaller creatures being immediately ingested while larger creatures are first killed by venom or constriction.

In crisis

Leeward island racer is Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Leeward island racer, Wikidata item Q308490. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Same genus

Photograph of Antiguan racer (Alsophis antiguae), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Antiguan racer

Alsophis antiguae
Photograph of Antilles racer (Alsophis antillensis), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Antilles racer

Alsophis antillensis
Photograph of Terre-de-Haut racer (Alsophis sanctonum), recorded as EndangeredEN

Terre-de-Haut racer

Alsophis sanctonum
Photograph of Vaquita (Phocoena sinus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Vaquita

Phocoena sinus

Quick answers

What is Leeward island racer?
Leeward island racer is a snake in the family Colubridae — Alsophis rijgersmaei.
What is the conservation status of Leeward island racer?
Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Alsophis rijgersmaei. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Leeward island racer live?
The racers are known to inhabit Anguilla, Scrub Island, Saint Barthélemy, Île Bonhomme and Île Tortue, and was last seen in 1996 on Saint Martin, from that it may since have been extirpated.
Why is Leeward island racer in crisis?
It is Endangered on Wikidata. Read the official Red List assessment for the criteria.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Alsophis rijgersmaei?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Leeward island racer a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.