Discover the Largest Eastern Indigo Snake Ever Recorded

Written by Kellianne Matthews
Updated: April 11, 2023
Share on:

Advertisement


The Eastern indigo snake is one of the most incredible and beautiful snakes in the United States, with rows of lustrous black scales that shine iridescent in the sunlight. Not only is this snake beautiful, but it is big. In fact, the Eastern indigo snake is the longest native snake in the United States! Their appearance may seem intimidating, but eastern indigo snakes are extremely docile creatures that are completely harmless to humans. Even though these snakes are not aggressive, they certainly are massive—but just how big are they? Let’s look at the largest Eastern indigo snake ever recorded!

What Does the Eastern Indigo Snake Look Like?

The Eastern indigo snake is a long, somewhat thin snake with large smooth blue-black scales that are iridescent purple in the light.

The Eastern indigo snake is a long snake with large smooth blue-black scales that are iridescent purple in the light.

©Patrick K. Campbell/Shutterstock.com

The Eastern Indigo Snake has a sleek, glossy “indigo” blue-black body. Its scales are smooth and shiny, reflecting a variety of iridescent colors when lit by the sun. This striking dark coloring has led to several nicknames for the snake, like “black snake,” “blue bull snake,” “blue gopher snake” and simply “indigo snake.” Although this snake is almost entirely black, some snakes also have red or cream coloring on their cheeks, chins, and throats.

What is the Largest Eastern Indigo Snake Ever Recorded?

The scientific name for the eastern indigo snake is “Drymarchon couperi”. Drymarchon is a Greek term that means “lord of the forest”. This title certainly fits the elegant coloring and massive bulk of this majestic snake. The eastern indigo snake grows between 5-7 feet on average, but there have been many snakes that are closer to 8 feet in length and weigh over 10 pounds. In fact, the Eastern indigo snake is the longest native snake in the United States. The largest Eastern indigo snake ever recorded was an astounding 9.2 feet long!

Where do Eastern Indigo Snakes Live?

Eastern Indigo Snake lying on sand. Some of these snakes have cream or orange-red on its cheeks, chin, and throat.

Some eastern indigo snakes have cream or orange-red on the cheeks, chin, and throat.

©Alan Jimenez G/Shutterstock.com

Eastern indigo snakes are native to the southeastern United States. These snakes live in Florida (but are extremely rare in the Florida Keys), southeastern Mississippi, and southern Georgia. They were once abundant in Alabama but disappeared after the 1950’s. However, the Eastern Indigo Project has been working diligently to reestablish new populations of these snakes. In fact, recently young snakes have been observed in Alabama!

During the warm summer months, Eastern indigo snakes often live and hunt near the edges of wetland areas. In the winter, these snakes are more active in cold temperatures than most other snake species, moving to drier regions. Eastern indigo snakes also utilize gopher tortoise burrows for brumation and to keep warm. They seem to prefer longleaf pine habitats, but may also live in prairies, tropical hardwood hammocks, coastal dunes, and agricultural areas.

Are Eastern Indigo Snakes Dangerous?

Eastern indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi) lyin in grass. The Eastern Indigo Snake is the longest snake in America.

The Eastern Indigo Snake is the longest snake in America.

©Patrick K. Campbell/Shutterstock.com

Although these snakes are massive in size, Eastern indigo snakes are not at all dangerous to humans! In fact, these snakes are extremely docile and almost never bite. Eastern indigo snakes are shy and try to avoid encounters with humans or large animals whenever possible. When it feels threatened, an eastern indigo snake will hiss loudly and vertically flatten its neck. It may also vibrate the tip of its tail, which makes a buzzing-like sound if it is near leaf litter. The snake may also release a foul-smelling musk.

What Do Eastern Indigo Snakes Eat?

Eastern Indigo Snake (Drymarchon couperi) isolated on white background.

The Eastern Indigo Snake’s scientific name,

Drymarchon couperi,

refers to its status as the “Lord of the Forest.”

©fivespots/Shutterstock.com

Eastern indigo snakes are carnivores and are not picky about what they eat. These snakes have very fast metabolisms and eat often. As generalists, they will eat just about anything that is small enough to swallow, once again living up to their name as “Lord of the Forest”. Eastern indigo snakes hunt during the day and use their massive bodies to overpower small prey. Grabbing it with their strong jaws, these snakes will press their prey against the ground until it stops struggling. Sometimes they will swallow it whole while it is still alive. Typically, these snakes seem to prefer eating reptiles, and will even eat most of the venomous snakes available to them. Eastern indigo snakes also eat small mammals, amphibians, and small birds. These snakes are important predators in their respective ecosystems, helping to keep everything in balance.

Conservation Status

The eastern indigo snake is a federally threatened species in the United States. It is also protected by both federal and state laws wherever it is found. Although these snakes were once abundant in the southeast U.S., their numbers have significantly decreased for several reasons.

Threats to the Eastern Indigo Snake

Eastern Indigo Snake

The Eastern indigo snake may be non-venomous, but its ability to grow over nine feet in length makes it daunting.

©iStock.com/sstaton

Habitat loss and degradation has greatly affected the Eastern indigo snake. Long leaf pine forests, the primary habitat of the eastern indigo snake, have continually been eliminated over the past 150 years. An individual Eastern indigo snake can have a territory and range that extends up to 805 acres! Human development also fragments much of the snake’s native territory.

Additionally, these snakes move between habitats between the summer and winter. However, as urban development breaks up their natural corridors, it is harder for them to travel and often must cross dangerous roads. Unfortunately, many people do not see snakes crossing the road, and out of fear some will even purposefully run over these gentle giants with their cars. When people see these massive black snakes slithering nearby, they often attempt to harm or kill them, even though these beautiful snakes are docile and completely harmless.

More direct human interference and violence has also been detrimental to the numbers of Eastern indigo snakes in the United States. Although it is illegal today, for many years these snakes were collected for the exotic pet trade. In addition, both eastern indigo snakes and rattlesnakes utilize gopher burrows, and many have been killed by the illegal use of toxic chemicals by rattlesnake collectors.

However, as demonstrated by the efforts in Alabama, there is still hope for this remarkable snake species as conservationists continue to protect and support the Eastern indigo snake.

Eastern Indigo Snake Look-a-Likes

close up of Southern black racer with tongue out

The southern black racer is also commonly known as the North American racer.

©TjacksonVii/Shutterstock.com

Although it is certainly a unique and one-of-a-kind snake, there are a few snakes that could be mistaken for the Eastern indigo snake. North American racer snakes, for example, also have long bodies covered in blueish-black scales. These snake, however, do not grow quite as long as the Eastern indigo snake. Instead, North American racers are usually between 20-56 inches in length. Additionally, the scales on this snake have a matte finish. They are much duller than the smooth, glossy scales of the Eastern indigo snake. North American racers are also much thinner, with long skinny bodies. Young North American racers are grey, with reddish-brown colored blotches along their backs. 

Other Record-Breaking Snakes

mud snake

Western Mud Snake (Farancia abacura reinwardtii)

©Ryan M. Bolton/Shutterstock.com

One of the many fascinating aspects of snakes is their incredible diversity, ranging from tiny thread snakes to massive anacondas. Among these diverse species are record-breaking snakes that have captured our attention and imagination for years. While the largest snake ever recorded is undoubtedly the green anaconda, there are other impressive examples worth exploring.

One such example is the mud snake, a non-venomous species found in North America. Mud snakes can grow up to 8 feet long and have distinctive red, black, and yellow bands on their bodies. The largest mud snake ever recorded measured an impressive 9 feet in length! This particular specimen was discovered in Florida’s Everglades National Park, where it had likely been feasting on fish and amphibians.

While not as well-known or awe-inspiring as some other large snakes like pythons or boa constrictors, mud snakes are still remarkable creatures with unique adaptations that allow them to thrive in both aquatic and terrestrial environments. Their size alone makes them worthy subjects of study and admiration for anyone interested in herpetology or wildlife biology.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © fivespots/Shutterstock.com

Discover the "Monster" Snake 5X Bigger than an Anaconda

Every day A-Z Animals sends out some of the most incredible facts in the world from our free newsletter. Want to discover the 10 most beautiful snakes in the world, a "snake island" where you're never more than 3 feet from danger, or a "monster" snake 5X larger than an anaconda? Then sign up right now and you'll start receiving our daily newsletter absolutely free.



Share on:
About the Author

Kellianne Matthews is a writer at A-Z Animals where her primary focus is on anthrozoology, conservation, human-animal relationships, and animal behavior. Kellianne has been writing and researching animals for over ten years and has decades of hands-on experience working with a variety of different animals. She holds a Master’s Degree from Brigham Young University, which she earned in 2017. A resident of Utah, Kellianne enjoys creating, exploring and learning new things, analyzing movies, caring for animals, and playing with her cats.

Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us? Contact the AZ Animals editorial team.