Contia

a genus of snakes of the family Colubridae. The snakes are 30–60 cm long. There are 11 species, nine of which are found in southwest Asia and southeastern Europe. There is one species in northeastern Africa and one in North America. Five species are found in the USSR, in Transcaucasia and southern Turkmenia. Contia modesta, the largest snake of the genus, is found in the mountains of Transcaucasia (up to 2,000 m). Feeding primarily on insects, it also eats other invertebrates, including mollusks. Some taxonomists separate part of the genus into an independent genus Eirenis, comprising ten species, leaving only one North American species in the genus Contia.