Colubridae
Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake
HarmlessNinia schmidti
6 photographs of the Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake. (c) John G. Phillips, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by John G. Phillips.
The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake (Ninia schmidti) is a non-venomous snake in the Colubridae family.
- Family
- Colubridae
About the Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake
The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake belongs to the Colubridae family, colubrids. The largest snake family, and the one most snakes you meet belong to.
Colubridae is by far the biggest family of snakes, with roughly two thousand species worldwide. It is a catch-all of mostly slender, agile, day-active snakes: ratsnakes, kingsnakes, gartersnakes, watersnakes, racers, whipsnakes, and hundreds more. The vast majority are harmless to people and kill prey by grabbing or constricting rather than with venom.
Its genus, Ninia, covers coffee snakes. Small, secretive forest-floor colubrids of Central and South America that hunt slugs and earthworms and pose no danger to people.
The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake is non-venomous and harmless to people. Like most snakes it is a quiet predator that helps keep rodents and other small prey in check.
Field-guide summary compiled from taxonomy and verified occurrence records. Detailed natural-history notes for this species are still being added.
Frequently asked: Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake
- Is the Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake venomous?
- No. The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake (Ninia schmidti) is non-venomous and is not considered dangerous to humans. Like most snakes, it will retreat rather than bite when given the chance.
- Is the Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake poisonous?
- Snakes are venomous, not poisonous. "Poisonous" means harmful to eat or touch; "venomous" means injecting toxins through a bite. The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake is neither poisonous nor venomous.
- Is the Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake dangerous?
- The Schmidt’s Coffee-Snake is not dangerous to humans. It has no medically significant venom and bites only defensively if cornered or handled.
More Colubridae snakes
Classification
How scientists group this snake, from the broadest category down to the exact species. Each step narrows to its closest relatives.
- OrderThe broad group of scaled reptiles: all snakes and lizards
- Squamata
- FamilyA group of related snakes that share key traits
- Colubridae
- GenusA close-knit group of very similar species
- Ninia
- SpeciesThis exact snake, named in the two-part scientific name
- Ninia schmidti
Keep learning
- What to Do If You Find a SnakeFound a snake at home or on a trail? Here is how to stay calm, give it space, identify it safely, and know when to call a professional.
- Venomous vs Nonvenomous: How to Tell the DifferenceThe folk rules for telling venomous snakes apart, where each one fails, and why location-based identification beats guessing by sight.
- What Is a Snake? Anatomy and the BasicsA clear overview of what makes a snake a snake: limbless body plan, anatomy, evolution from lizards, species diversity, and why they are ectothermic.
- How to Keep Snakes Out of Your Yard and HomeA practical guide to keeping snakes out of your yard and home using habitat changes that work, plus what to skip and what to do if one shows up.
Distribution from GBIF & iNaturalist. Venom status per CDC. Informational only. Never handle a snake to identify it.