[2][4][5] It is part of the Geophis sieboldi species group according to Floyd Leslie Downs.

[6][5][7] This species was named by Schmidt after fellow herpetologist Emmett Reid Dunn[8] "in allusion to his important contributions to our knowledge of this group of snakes".

Snakes of the genus Geophis are fossorial and nocturnal, and as such are rarely observed in their natural habitat even by those actively searching for them.

Also, the snakes of this genus form extensive species complexes in which the only way to tell them apart is by slight differences.

[4] As of 2022, Geophis dunni remains "data deficient" until another individual is collected and a habitat is identified.