Texas Rat Snake

Description:

Fairly large, capable of attaining lengths past 6 feet. Vary greatly in color and patterning throughout their range, but are typically yellow or tan in color, with brown to olive green irregular blotching from head to tail. Specimens from the southern area of their range rend to have more yellow, while those from the northern range tend to be darker. They are the only ray snakes with a solid grey head. Some specimens have red or orange speckling. Their belly is typically a solid gray or white in color. There are several naturally occurring color variations, including albinos, high orange or hypomelanistic, and a few specimens which display leucism which have become regularly captive bred and are popular in the pet trade.

Habitat:

The Texas Rat Snake has a voracious appetite, consuming large amounts of rodents and birds, and sometimes lizards and frogs which they subdue with constriction. They are generalists, found in a wide range of habitats from swamps, to forests to grasslands, even in urban areas. They are agile climbers, able to reach bird nests with relative ease. They are often found around farmland, and will sometimes consume fledgeling chickens and eggs, which leads them to be erroneously called the chicken snake. They are known for their attitude, and will typically bite if handled, though their bite is harmless.

Notes:

Many sources continue to refer to the Texas Rat Snake by its scientific name, Elaphe obsoleta lindheimeri, though all North American rat snake species were suggested for reclassification to the genus Pantherophis. A further revision of Pantherophis obsoletus has recommended the elimination of the various subspecies entirely, considering them all to be merely locality variations. However, the ICZN has rejected the renaming, and thus Elaphe remains the genus name.