Combinations

• Calamaria tenuis Baird & Girard, 1852: 176 [original combination]
• Lodia tenuis — Baird & Girard, 1853: 116 [subsequent combination]
• Contia tenuis — Stejneger & Barbour, 1917: 91 [subsequent combination]

Synonyms

• Contia mitis Baird & Girard, 1853: 110
  • Holotype: USNM 2034, collected by J.L. LeConte.
  • Type locality: “San Jose, Cal. [=California]”
  • Paratypes (n=2): USNM 8075, from “Oregon”, collected by A.J. Skilton, and USNM 7289, from “California”, collected by U.S. Exploring Expedition in 1841.

• Ablabes purpureocauda Günther, 1858: 245
  • Syntypes: BMNH 1946.1.5.34–35 (formerly 1858.6.2 1.9–10), both ♂, Bridge's Collection.
  • Type locality: “California”.

Primary references

• Baird, S.F. & Girard, C. 1852. Descriptions of new species of Reptiles, collected by the U. S. Exploring Expedition under the command of Capt. Charles Wilkes, U. S. N. First part. — Including the species from the Western coast of America. Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 6: 174–177. BHL Reference page. 
• Baird, S.F. & Girard, C. 1853. Catalogue of North American Reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Part 1.–Serpents. Smithsonian Institution: Washington. xvi + 172 pp. BHL Reference page. 
• Günther, A. 1858. Catalogue of Colubrine Snakes in the Collection of the British Museum. British Museum (Natural History): London. xvi + 281 pp. BHL Reference page. 
• Stejneger, L. & Barbour, T. 1917. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Harvard University Press: Cambridge. iv + 125 pp. BHL Reference page. 

Additional references

• Feldman, C.R. & Spicer, G.S. 2002. Mitochondrial Variation in Sharp-Tailed Snakes (Contia tenuis): Evidence of a Cryptic Species. Journal of Herpetology 36(4): 648–655. DOI: 10.1670/0022-1511(2002)036[0648:MVISTS]2.0.CO;2 Reference page. 
• Feldman, C.R. & Hoyer, R.F. 2010. A New Species of Snake in the Genus Contia (Squamata: Colubridae) from California and Oregon. Copeia 2010(2): 254–267. DOI: 10.1643/CH-09-129 Reference page. 

Links

• Uetz, P. & Hallermann, J. 2024. Contia tenuis. The Reptile Database. Accessed on 2 June 2023.
• Hammerson, G.A. 2019. IUCN: Contia tenuis  (Least Concern). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T90066866A90067130. DOI: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T90066866A90067130.en. Accessed on 02 June 2023.