Taxon: Reptile 

Range:  Lower Florida Keys, Monroe County, Florida 

Status: Under Review

Adult Key ring-necked snakes are 6 to 10 inches in total length, tiny even compared to other ring-necked snakes in Florida.  It has a grayish-black dorsal surface.  Its underbelly shows a progression of yellow, orange, and red with two rows of dark half-moon spots aligned on the center.  The neck ring is most often incomplete or missing in this subspecies.  Juvenile coloration is similar to that on adults. 

This little snake is found on only seven lower Florida Keys within limestone substrate and outcropping in pine rocklands and tropical hardwood hammock habitats.  Residential and commercial development has eliminated its habitat and fragmented or degraded what remains.  Sea level rise projections show a complete loss of its habitat in the lower Florida Keys in 20 to 40 years without intervention.  The Service seeks to help this subspecies by reducing development of its habitat, eliminating invasive species invasive species
An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.

Learn more about invasive species , especially vegetation, managing a fire regime, and maintaining freshwater sources.  

Threats  

1. Majority of suitable habitat has been lost due to residential and commercial development, 
2. Remaining habitat is fragmented and/or degraded, 
3. Fire suppression,  
4. Sea level rise projections show a complete loss of suitable habitat in the lower Florida Keys in 20 to 40 years. 

The Key ring-necked snake is a narrow endemic that inhabits a limited range.  Though individual populations are no longer likely to be lost to development, degradation associated with urbanization and fire suppression of pine rocklands continues to decrease the quality of remaining habitat.  Climate change and sea level rise are the biggest threats facing the Key ring-necked snake into the foreseeable future.  All effects associated with climate change climate change
Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

Learn more about climate change are interrelated, with increases of severe storms and flooding that can eliminate entire populations of the Key ring-necked snake as well as more frequent storms that accelerate habitat modification and further reduce population resiliency.  In the next 10–20 years, the species is anticipated to begin experiencing significant losses associated with sea level rise, and by 2080 the species may be entirely gone. 

Partnerships, Research and Projects  

The Key ring-necked snake is listed in the State of Florida as “state-designated threatened,” and is protected against intentional harm, harassment, possession, or selling.  In addition, the Florida’s Imperiled Species Management Plan created by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) addresses the conservation needs of multiple species through a comprehensive approach.  The plan provides incidental take permitting standards and guidelines, and integrated conservation strategies and actions. 

Some habitat protections are currently in place for the Key ring-necked snake.  Monroe County implemented a Habitat Conservation Plan for Big Pine and No Name Keys in 2006, which requires development projects to fulfill the plan’s mitigation requirement of conserving native habitat such as pine rocklands.  Additionally, suitable habitat for the Key ring-necked snake is protected within Federal preserves such as the National Key Deer Refuge.  Also, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is implementing the 10-year Florida Keys Wildlife and Environmental Area Management Plan covering an archipelago of small sites totaling 4,250 acres (1,720 ha) and stretching 80 miles (129 km) from Key Largo to Sugarloaf and Saddlebunch Keys lying immediately northeast of Key West.  This plan recommends management actions and some monitoring for the Key ring-necked snake.  Lastly, the Monroe County Year 2030 Comprehensive Plan recommended that Monroe County continue its land acquisition and restoration programs.