Medium Georgia King snake today

[jamesp]

Heading from water. Frogs or water snakes. They are fond of the water snakes.
Had a big vent. Is that a female ?




Disappearing into bamboo leaves.

[Intheswamp]

Jul 22, 2016 11:20:53 GMT -5 jamesp said:

Heading from water. Frogs or water snakes. They are fond of the water snakes.
Had a big vent. Is that a female ?

A little late to respond but just saw it....these are the type of king snakes that we have around here...about fifty miles north of the north gulf coast.

[jamesp]

Get down to Florida and King's are a myriad of colors.
The only variation here is white markings vs yellow Intheswamp.
Those snakes are king of the jungle around here.
They got the choke thing well figured. Spinning a few wraps behind another snakes head, bad day for that snake.
Have seen them kill much larger water snakes as if just to kill, lest their eyes were to big for their stomach.
Have seen them pushing 7 feet. Mass water snake population probably the source of vittles.

[Intheswamp]

As a kid I grew up thinking that king snakes must look like coral snakes (encyclopedia limited-info). I never saw either one.

Our kings seem to have a tint of green in the yellow....a beautiful iridescence(?) to them.

I've never seen them kill another snake, that would be a treat. The seven foot mark sounds familiar. I see one dead in the road around the house about once every couple of years.   Seems I never see a timber rattler or copperhead in the road, though. Odd.

[Deleted]

I love seeing pics of your yard pets. Always a joy. Please never ever quit!

Intheswamp Jims snake is a common king. Commonly called a a "chain king". Here is what they look like in Cali



Alabamy snakes like this



Mississippi



The coral snake mimic to which you refer is either a mountain kingsnake. This one from rockpickerforever neighborhood.



Or milk snake. This is one from alabamy



Coral snake, also an alabama specimen



I sure hope I remembered right and you are alabama dude!

[jamesp]

Coral snakes always have a black nose @shotgunner ? Jean's western version does.
Why are they called Milk snakes ?

I have seen two King snake attacks in the wild. Both attacks on a water snake much larger.
Both attacks resulted in an escape. The water snake worked his way into the water that happened to be close by.
The king did not want to be in the water.

[Intheswamp]

Yep, Alabama.

The pic of the Bama king is about what we see around here...seems the rings might be a little more distinct/bolder/broader.

The milk snake is cool...only have seen one of them...picked up a piece of plywood down in the swamp and there he laid. I'd never seen one before and wasn't sure what it was...other than it was really cool!

The coral snake...red on yellow kill a fellow. Or something like that... I've never seen one of them.

[captbob]

Red touch yellow kill a fellow
Red touch black friend of jack

is how I learned it as a kid.

[Deleted]

Aug 21, 2016 23:04:57 GMT -5 captbob said:

Red touch yellow kill a fellow
Red touch black friend of jack

is how I learned it as a kid.

Exactly!

Or red touch black venom he does lack. Yours is more common and easier to remember.

[Deleted]

Aug 21, 2016 22:52:20 GMT -5 jamesp said:

Coral snakes always have a black nose @shotgunner ? Jean's western version does.
Why are they called Milk snakes ?

I have seen two King snake attacks in the wild. Both attacks on a water snake much larger.
Both attacks resulted in an escape. The water snake worked his way into the water that happened to be close by.
The king did not want to be in the water.

Jeans western version is a california mountain kingsnake.

In arizona they look like this

Arizona mountain king



Corals in the eastern usa always have a black nose.

Intheswamp for deeper knowledge of your local snakes and other cold blooded vertebrates

www.alabamaherps.com/reptiles.htm