THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY
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Reptilia    Squamata (part-snakes)    Colubridae  

Yaqui Black-headed Snake
Tantilla yaquia Smith, 1942
tan-TILL-ah — yah-KEE-ah

SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
 There are no current SSAR comments for this taxon.

(,   Museum Voucher) (,   Observation) (,   Literature Record), (,   Citizen Science), (  Fossil)
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Occurrences:; 198 Total; 119 Museum; 79 Other
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Province/State Distribution:
United States: Arizona New Mexico

Taxonomic Etymology:
Named for the region and river of the Yaqui people.
Tantilla — A diminutive form of Tantillus, itself likely derived from Latin tantus, meaning “so small” or “so little.” The name refers to the small size of these snakes.
yaquia — Named after the Yaqui River and the Yaqui people of Sonora, Mexico. The species was first described from the vicinity of the river basin, making it a geographically derived name.

First instance(s) of published English names:
No historic English names have been assigned to this taxon yet.

Taxon Links:

  
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
  
The Reptile Database
  
NatureServe
  
iNaturalist
  
GenBank
  
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database

Selected References:
1938 Blanchard, Frank N. Snakes of the genus Tantilla in the United States. Field Museum of Natural History. Zoological Series 20(28):369-376
1942 Smith, Hobart M. A resume of Mexican snakes of the genus Tantilla. Zoologica 27:33-42
1964 McCoy, Clarence J., Jr. The snake Tantilla yaquia in Arizona: An addition to the fauna of the United States. Copeia 1964(1):216-217
1966 Tanner, Wilmer W. A re-evaluation of the genus Tantilla in the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. Herpetologica 22(2):134-152
1977 McDiarmid, Roy W. Tantilla yaquia.. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (198):1-2
1982 Wilson, Larry David. Tantilla. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles (307):1-4
2014 Wilson, Larry D. and Vincente Mata-Silva Snakes of the genus Tantilla (Squamata: Colubridae) in Mexico: Taxonomy, distribution, and conservation. Mesoamerican Herpetology 1(1):5-95

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Monday 10 August 2026 03:05 CT