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Project Noah Nature School
Elaphe obsoleta lindheimeri
The Texas rat snake is a fairly large snake. It can reach 6 feet or 1.8 meters. They vary greatly in color and patterning throughout their range, but they are typically yellow or tan in color, with brown to olive-green, irregular blotching from head to tail. The belly is typically a solid gray or white in color.
This one seems to live in the garden and I see it a couple of times a year sliding across the doorways or driveway.
The Texas rat snake has a voracious appetite, consuming large numbers of rodents and birds, and sometimes lizards and frogs which they subdue with constriction. This one had several small lumps along its length.
Spotted on May 24, 2013
Submitted on May 24, 2013
5 Comments
Thanks Maria :)
Nice spotting
That's nice to have him around, and great you are getting the neighbors to not kill him! I saw one of these today and just let him crawl across the road instead of grabbing him and getting bitten. After he crossed the road, I got to see him swim then climb a tree. It was pretty cool :)
No fear AshleyT; I am not a grabber type of person. It makes me grumpy when I get grabbed, though I have learned biting is frowned on in polite society. This guy loves to hang in my yard and I beg the neighbors, who hate ALL snakes, to leave it alone. :)
Love these guys! So pretty, but if you ever go to grab one, I'm warning you now they are quite grumpy and you should expect a bite! Still great to look at though :)