King Snakes

About Snakes -> King Snakes

King snakes are on a par with corn snakes as far as popularity goes and the reasons are very similar.

King snakes are available in a wide range of colors, including some amazing-looking albino forms. They're easy to keep, easy to breed, are generally very calm and so are supremely handleable and are the perfect size for the average reptile keeper.

Common in some areas of the United States of America and Mexico there are numerous king snake species commonly available in the pet trade and most are easy to care for.

The standard coloration is a combination of a black or dark brown background with numerous white, cream or yellow stripes going either around the king snakes body or along it's length.

In addition however are varieties with speckling rather than stripes, and stunning red and orange markings.

A particularly beautiful example of the king snake in my eyes is the Mexican king snake or San Luis Potosi king snake (latin name Lampropeltis mexicana mexicana).

Generally preferring drier habitats, king snakes can be found in savannah areas, mountainous regions and sometimes in woodlands.

Therefore in captivity king snakes favour a dry habitat with places to hide away from prying eyes.

As always, a captive bred specimen is a better choice of king snake than a wild caught example due to the reduced chance of parasites being present, and the snake being used to the captive environment and regular handling.

Interestingly, some king snakes will attempt to rattle their tails when surprised or scared, though they aren't related to rattle snakes and this is just a display.

Like the corn snakes this is an ideal snake for both the beginner and the experienced herpetologist and the range of species and colors available means you can keep quite a range of snakes yet the care is very similar between them.

But let's take a little more of a look at king snakes and keeping them successfully in captivity...

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