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Hello together,

can anybody help me with identifying this juvenile DOR snake from southern France (Verdon canyon). We collected it in July.

Best regards,
Patrick

If you look at the form of the body (which seems to be short and thick) you could think it's a Natrix maura or a Coronella girondica: I know the habitat in Verdon and it would be ok for both species.
But we must think that the body is compressed and surely the shape of the body had to be more slender in the living specimen.
I think we have a good hint for a right determination: if you look carefully at some midbody dorsal scales (a few are actually intact) you can notice that they have a central longitudinal groove.
And the only snake in Provence with grooved dorsal scales (not keeled ones but grooved ones) is the Malpolon!

Judging from the (labial) scales and of the remaining pattern (top right), I would also go for Montpellier snake.

My first thought was Malpolon too, but I'm wondering if seemingly grooved scales could be caused by post mortem dessication...?

Jeroen Speybroeck wrote:My first thought was Malpolon too, but I'm wondering if seemingly grooved scales could be caused by post mortem dessication...?

Right thought, Jeroen, but I think, even if this fact "could" maybe also happen, those scales have too deep longitudinal grooves for this being due to pure desiccation processes...

Last year I've photographed two "old" bodies of a DOR girondica and maura, found in the same day in my province, and, even if the pictures are rather blurred, there is no or very little sign of longitudinal grooving of the dorsal scales...

Interesting the fact that the girondica had freshly eaten at least one podarcis, as you can notice from the body (bodies?) of the lizard(s) on the lower (and probably also mid) left side of the picture!

Thanks for the help!
That would make it the third Malpolon on our trip (though only one alive).