Kingsnake

Kingsnakes are a type of colubrid snake that are members of the Lampropeltis genus, which also includes the milk snake along with another four species and 45 sub-species.

Lampropeltis means "shiny shield" (from Greek λαμπρος, "shine" + πελτα, "small shield"), a name given to them in reference to their dorsal scales. The majority of kingsnakes have quite vibrant patterns on their skin. Kingsnakes use constriction to kill their prey and tend to be opportunistic when it comes to their diet; they will eat other snakes (ophiophagy), including venomous snakes, lizards, rodents, birds, and eggs. The Common Kingsnake genus are known to be immune to the venom of other snakes and are known to eat rattlesnakes (note - Kingsnakes are not necessarily immune to the venom of snakes from different localities.). The "king" in their name (as with the king cobra) references their taste for other snakes.

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:

"Red and black, venom lack; red and yellow, kill a fellow."
"If red touches black, it's OK, Jack. If red touches yellow, you're a dead fellow."
"Red and yellow, kill a fellow. Red and black, friend of Jack."
"If yellow follows red, you're dead."
"Red band near black, venom lack. Red band near yellow, bite a fellow."
"Red touch yellow, kills a fellow, red touch black, put him back."

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 different 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.

Kingsnakes are commonly kept as pets, due to their ease of care. Kingsnakes are overall hardy and simple to care for. Their captive diet usually consists of appropriately sized rodents, prekilled. Giving live rodents is an illegal offense in some countries and may be bad for the snake's health, as the rodents are high in fat. Kingsnakes are generally docile, curious and gentle. Kingsnakes seem to enjoy being handled. They also seemed to be mesmerized by patterns flashing on a television.

Species

Grey-Banded Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis alterna'' (Brown, 1901)
''Lampropeltis calligaster''
Prairie Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis calligaster'' (Harlan, 1827)
South Florida Mole Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis calligaster occipitolineata'' (Price, 1987)
Mole Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis calligaster rhombomaculata'' (Holbrook, 1840)
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 meansi'' (Krysko & Judd, 2006)
Speckled Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis getula holbrooki'' (Stejneger, 1902)
Black Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis getula niger'' (Yarrow, 1882)
Western Black Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis getula nigrita'' (Zweifel & Norris, 1955)
Desert Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis getula splendida'' (Baird & Girard, 1853)
Isla Santa Catalina Kingsnake Lampropeltis "getula" catalinensis (Van Denburgh & Slevin, 1921)
''Lampropeltis mexicana''
''Lampropeltis mexicana leonis'' (Günther, 1893)
Durango Mountain Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis mexicana greeri'' (Webb, 1961)
Nuevo Leon Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis mexicana thayeri'' (Loveridge, 1924)
''Lampropeltis pyromelana''
Utah Mountain Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis pyromelana infralabialis'' (Tanner, 1953)
Sonoran Mountain Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis pyromelana knoblochi'' (Taylor, 1940)
Arizona Mountain Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis pyromelana pyromelana'' (Cope, 1866)
Ruthven's Kingsnake, ''Lampropeltis ruthveni'' (Blanchard, 1920)
''Lampropeltis triangulum''
See: ''''''milk snake''''
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)

Translation of "Kingsnake"

German: Königsnattern, French: Lampropeltis, Lithuanian: Karališkosios gyvatės, Japanese: キングヘビ属.