CreatureData

Balkan racer

Hierophis gemonensis (Laurenti, 1768)

Status not recordedsnakes

The balkan racer (Hierophis gemonensis) is a species in the family Colubridae, order Squamata. Recorded adults weigh about 384 g.

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Quick facts about the balkan racer

Weight
384 gsrc for Weight
Length
up to 1.48 msrc for Length
Lifespan
Not recorded
Diet
Carnivoresrc for Diet
Longest recorded lifespan
33 years
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
shrubland, woodlandsrc for Habitat
Young per litter or clutch
6.5src for Young per litter or clutch
Reproduction
Eggssrc for Reproduction
Active
By day (diurnal)src for Active
Lifestyle
Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Which animals does the balkan racer eat?

Species recorded in published studies and collections.

Recorded prey of the balkan racer

4 on record

  1. Balkan green lizard Lacerta trilineata2 sources
  2. Dalmatian wall lizard Podarcis melisellensis2 sources
  3. Italian wall lizard Podarcis siculus2 sources
  4. Balkan wall lizard Podarcis tauricus2 sources

Each pair is recorded by at least two independent datasets. A record shows the animal was seen or found to have eaten the other, including scavenged carcasses and young animals; it does not say how often. Compiled by Global Biotic Interactions (CC0 1.0).

References for these records
  • https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/95549352
  • Valakos E.D., Pafilis P., Sotiropoulos K., Lymberakis P., Maragou P., Foufopoulos J. 2008. The Amphibians and Reptiles of Greece. Chimaira, Frankfurt am Main.
  • https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/214241448
  • https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/55023832
  • https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/160402447

Where does the balkan racer live?

Not recorded

Where has it been introduced?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the balkan racer as introduced in 1 country.

  1. Austria

Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).

Is the balkan racer endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the balkan racer classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classReptilia
  4. orderSquamata
  5. familyColubridae
  6. genusHierophis
  7. SpeciesHierophis gemonensis (Laurenti, 1768)

Synonyms Coluber gemonensis, Coluber laurenti, Natrix gemonensis

Other names and names in other languages (21)
  • Balkan whip snakeEnglish
  • štíhlovka balkánskáCzech
  • BalkanpilsnogDanish
  • Balkan-ZornnatterGerman
  • ΔενδρογαλιάGreek
  • ΔεντρογαλιάGreek
  • Serpiente Látigo de los BalcanesSpanish
  • Culebra de los BalcanesSpanish
  • RuskopiiskakäärmeFinnish
  • Couleuvre des BalkansFrench
  • šara poljaricaCroatian
  • balkáni haragos siklóHungarian
  • Colubro dei BalcaniItalian
  • バルカンムチヘビJapanese
  • Балкански смокMacedonian
  • Балкански жолт смокMacedonian
  • PijlslangDutch
  • BalkantoornslangDutch
  • Балканский полозRussian
  • BelicaSlovenian
  • Shigjeta e shkurterAlbanian

Catalogue of LifeiNaturalistITISWikidata

Relatives of the balkan racer

Other species in the same genus Hierophis.

CompareBalkan racer vs Dark green snakeBalkan racer vs Cyprus whip snake

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the balkan racer?

An adult balkan racer weighs 384 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the balkan racer an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the balkan racer as introduced in 1 country: Austria, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

What kind of animal is the balkan racer?

The balkan racer (Hierophis gemonensis) belongs to the family Colubridae in the order Squamata.

Which animals does the balkan racer eat?

Animals recorded as prey of the balkan racer include balkan green lizard, dalmatian wall lizard, italian wall lizard and balkan wall lizard. The records are compiled by Global Biotic Interactions from published studies; each pair is reported by at least two datasets.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Balkan racer (Hierophis gemonensis). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/balkan-racer

MLA

“Balkan racer (Hierophis gemonensis).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/balkan-racer.

BibTeX
@misc{balkan_racer_2026,
  title = {Balkan racer (Hierophis gemonensis)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/balkan-racer},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}