California Kingsnake


Classification:
Order Squamata
Family Colubridae
Lampropeltis getulus californiae

Conservation Status:
 Stable

Description:
California Kingsnakes are usually 3 feet long, but can sometimes reach 4 feet in length.  There are two different pattern phases:  banded (with thick bands circling the body) or striped (with thin longitudinal stripes).  They are usually black or brown, with white, cream, or yellow bands or stripes.  Some individuals may have a speckled pattern.  Their scales are smooth and shiny. 

Range:
 Southwestern United States

Habitat:
 Found in a variety of habitats including rocky outcrops, semi-desert areas, and pine forests

Diet:
 In the wild, they eat other snakes (including venomous snakes), mice, birds, and lizards.  In the zoo, they eat mice.

Life Cycle:
 Kingsnakes breed in the spring and early summer.  Females lay 6-25 eggs in a rotting log or an underground chamber, where the eggs will be kept warm by decomposition.  The eggs hatch after about 2 months.  At hatching, the young are about 12 inches long.  A single clutch can produce both striped and banded snakes.

Did You Know?

·        California Kingsnakes have anti-toxins in their blood that allow them to withstand high doses of venom from other snakes.  They are very valuable in controlling populations of venomous snakes and rodents.

·        Their main predators are birds of prey and a variety of mammals.  When threatened, they bite fiercely and sometimes try to smear the predator with feces.  Although they are not venomous, they may vibrate their tail as a bluff.

·        They swim well, and can also climb into shrubs  or low trees in search of birds and eggs.

·        Scientists think that California Kingsnakes come in two pattern forms in order to confuse their prey.  If a prey animal learns to avoid a snake with rings or bands, it might still become prey to a snake with longitudinal stripes. 

·        California Kingsnakes are common in their range.  In order to protect wild populations, California and Arizona have passed laws prohibiting collection of wild kingsnakes for the pet trade.

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