Kingsnake
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 Grey-banded Kingsnake
Lampropeltis alterna |
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- King snake redirects here. The term can also refer to the "king brown snake", Pseudechis australis, a native of Australia.
The genus Lampropeltis of colubrid snakes includes the Kingsnakes and also the milk snake.
Lampropeltis means "shiny skin" and the majority of kingsnakes have quite vibrant patterns on their skin. Kingsnakes are constrictors and tend to be opportunistic when it comes to their diet; they will eat other snakes (ophiophagy), lizards, rodents, birds, and eggs. They are highly resistant to the venom of other snakes and are known to eat rattlesnakes. The "king" in their name (as with the king cobra) is a reference to their taste for other snakes and their ability to overpower other snakes. Kingsnakes are commonly kept as pets.
Some species of kingsnake, such as the Scarlet Kingsnake, have coloration and patterning which can cause them to be confused with the venomous coral snakes. There are several mnemonic rhymes to help people distinguish between the coral snake and its non-venomous look-alikes, such as "If red touches black, it's OK, Jack. If red touches yellow, you're a dead fellow." These rhymes refer to the color of the rings on the snake, and only apply to those coral snakes found in the United States.
Taxonomic reclassification is an ongoing process, and differing sources often disagree, granting full species status to a group of these snakes that another source considers a subspecies. In the case of Lampropeltis catalinensis, for example, only a single specimen exists, and therefore classification is not necessarily finite. In addition, hybridization between species which have overlapping geographic ranges is not uncommon, confusing taxonomists further.
[edit] Species
- Grey-Banded Kingsnake, Lampropeltis alterna (Brown, 1901)
- Lampropeltis calligaster
- Santa Catalina Island Kingsnake, Lampropeltis catalinensis (Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1921)
- Common Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula
- California Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula californiae (Blainville, 1835)
- Florida Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula floridana (Blanchard, 1919)
- Eastern Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula getula (Linnaeus, 1766)
- Apalachicola Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula goini (Neill & Allen, 1949)
- Speckled Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula holbrooki (Stejneger, 1902)
- Black Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula niger (Yarrow, 1882)
- Black Mexican Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula nigrita (Zweifel & Norris, 1955)
- Desert Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula splendida (Baird & Girard, 1853)
- Outer Banks Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula sticticeps (Barbour & Engels, 1942)
- Lampropeltis mexicana
- Lampropeltis pyromelana
- Ruthven's Kingsnake, Lampropeltis ruthveni (Blanchard, 1920)
- Lampropeltis triangulum
- See: 'milk snake'
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- Scarlet Kingsnake, Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides (Holbrook, 1838)
- Lampropeltis webbi (Bryson, Dixon & Lazcano, 2005)
- Lampropeltis zonata
- San Pedro Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata agalma (Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1923)
- Todos Santos Island Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata herrerae (Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1923)
- Sierra Mountain Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata multicincta (Yarrow, 1882)
- Coast Mountain Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata multifasciata (Bocourt, 1886)
- San Bernardino Mountain Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata parvirubra (Zweifel, 1952)
- San Diego Mountain Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata pulchra (Zweifel, 1952)
- St. Helena Mountain Kingsnake, Lampropeltis zonata zonata (Blainville, 1835)
[edit] References
- Genus Lampropeltis at the EMBL Reptile Database
[edit] External links
- Kingsnake.com: A now extensive reptile community site originally centered on the Grey-banded Kingsnake
- The HC Network: An expanding reptile community site covering numerous species of reptile including Kingsnakes
- Desert USA: Common Kingsnake
- Common Kingsnake Care Sheet
