RE: oops
California King Snake
ORDER: Squamata
FAMILY:Colubridae
GENUS: Lampropeltis
SPECIES: getulus californiae
I. DESCRIPTION:
Skin has various patterns (bands, stripes, speckles) and colors (black and white, brown and yellow, etc). Adults are usually 3 feet long, rarely as long as 4 feet.
II. GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE AND HABITAT:
Western U.S. from Baha California, north to Oregon and Southern Utah and east to western Arizona. Lives in rock outcrops, semi-desert, brushy hillsides, or pine forests.
III. DIET:
Mice, lizards, birds, other snakes. Crepuscular, but nocturnal during hot, summer months.
IV. LIFE CYCLE/SOCIAL STRUCTURE:
Oviparous. Lays around two dozen eggs in rotted logs, etc. Young hatch in two months and are about a foot long.
V. SPECIAL ADAPTATIONS:
King snakes are wholly or partially immune to the venom of rattlesnakes and will kill and eat them. This behavior gives them a good reputation with humans in rural areas.
VI. STATUS IN WILD:
Not considered endangered.
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