Common Kingsnakes

CHAPTER 1

General Information

There is a bit of a name game to play when it comes to the common kingsnake. The scientific name is Lampropeltis getula. The name Lampropeltis is derived from the Greek words lampro, meaning "shiny," and peltis, meaning "shield," no doubt referring to the glassy sheen and smooth appearance of the scales.

If you pick up a book written before about 1990, you may see the species names given as getulus instead of getula. Technically that was a mistake, as the word Lampropeltis is a feminine generic name and therefore requires that the species name also be feminine. Thus getulus (masculine) had to be changed to getula (feminine), as did L. g. niger to L. g. nigra and nigritus to nigrita.

What is probably of more interest to today's hobbyists than that bit of history, however, is the seemingly constant changing of status between species and subspecies. Is it Lampropeltis getula holbrooki or Lampropeltis holbrooki, for instance? Currently all the North American reptiles are being investigated with new technological methods, especially those used in molecular genetics, and the results often change well-established usage. As the changes have not yet been accepted by all specialists, this book has tried to steer a middle course, using traditional names but trying to let readers know that changes are probably coming.

The California kingsnake is one of the most popular captive-bred kingsnakes in the reptile trade today. The species is available in many types of morphs, such as the 50-50 shown here.

Distribution

Common kingsnakes have a widespread North American distribution, ranging from southern New Jersey to Florida in the East, across the central plains states, and into the Southwest. They are also found in the West from southern Oregon down to northern Mexico. Kingsnakes inhabit a range of environments, including deserts, farmlands, prairies, riverbanks, and deciduous forests as well as pine forests. Kingsnakes can be found anywhere there is an abundance of rodents (barns, for example).

Where to Find Common Kings for Pets

The most frequently offered wild-collected common kingsnakes are the Florida kingsnake, the eastern kingsnake, and the speckled kingsnake. Most of the other kingsnakes now available to the public are captive-bred and sold to reptile wholesalers or directly to specialty stores. The most popular of these are the California kingsnake, its various morphs, and the albino speckled kingsnake. For those able to attend any of the reptile expos and sales that occur with regularity around the country, all of the subspecies (an exception may be the Outer Banks kingsnake) and most of the variants of common kingsnakes are available as captive-bred hatchlings. Many of the adult kingsnakes available are wildcaught, although some may be either "old breeders" from a reptile breeder's overstock or captive-raised pets that owners no longer want to keep. It is a good idea to inquire about the origin and age of an animal before purchasing it.

This speckled kingsnake has a high contrast pattern-a trait that makes this species desirable.

The black kingsnake (L. getula nigra) has not achieved much popularity in the trade because of its lack of color, its faded pattern, and its aggressive temperament.

Size

Common kingsnake hatchlings range from 6 inches (15 cm) for runts to 13 inches (33 cm). Adults measure from 36 inches (91 cm) in speckled kings (L. g. holbrooki) to 60 inches (1.5 m) in California kings (L. g. californiae) and Florida kings (L. g. floridana) to 84 inches (2.1 m) in eastern kingsnakes (L. g. getula).

Sexing

Immature kingsnakes do not demonstrate any obvious sexual characteristics. Hatchlings and subadults are best sexed either through manual eversion of the hemipenes or with the use of sexing probes. Adult kingsnakes usually show a marked difference in the degree of tail taper past the vent. The tails of males, because they contain the inverted hemipenes, will appear markedly thicker at their bases and not taper as sharply as do the tails of females. If you're in doubt about the sex of a kingsnake, consult a breeder or a veterinarian to manually sex your snake or use a sexing probe to avoid injuring the snake.

Shown here are a female (top) and a male (bottom) albino California kingsnake. Note the male's thicker tail base.

A professional inserts a sexing probe into this Brook's kingsnake. If the probe reaches a depth of seven subcaudal scales, it is an indication that this snake is male.

By manually everting the hemipenes in this Brook's kingsnake, you can tell it's a male. Lack of an everted hemipene indicates a snake is either female or a male with extremely strong muscles at the hemipenal bases.

Pattern and Color Variations

There is some variation of skin color and pattern within all subspecies of common kingsnakes, but none demonstrates more distinct morphs than the California kingsnake, which ranks as one of the most variable of all snakes, and the blotched kingsnake (L. g. "goini"). In terms of pattern variation in common kingsnakes, one finds in herpetoculture an emphasis on breeding for such desirable traits as width of banding and definition of pattern. In California kingsnakes, herpetoculturists emphasize width of striping, asymmetrical patterning, broken patterning, or reduction of pattern (as in the 90 percent yellow California kingsnakes, also marketed as banana kings). In other subspecies of kingsnakes, herpetoculturists focus on pattern definition or pattern reduction. For example, a clean, clearly defined, high-contrast pattern will be emphasized by aficionados of the beautiful desert kingsnake. A reduction of dark patterning will be sought by herpetoculturists seeking to produce high-quality golden-phase (or "brooksi") morphs of the Florida kingsnake. As should be evident from the information presented so far, California kingsnakes, because of their phenotypic variability, rank among the best candidates for genetic studies on pattern and color in snakes.

The reduced black pigmentation of this juvenile hypomelanistic Brook's kingsnake makes this species an eye-catcher.

This sharp-looking hatchling is a blaze-phase blotched kingsnake.

The most popular and widely produced color morphs of the common kingsnake are amelanistic (lacking black pigmentation) albino California and speckled kingsnakes. In the California kingsnake, the coastal phase (brown and yellow) and desert phase (black and white) are selectively bred to emphasize these characteristics. In other kingsnake subspecies, color morphs are also being selectively bred, such as the black and orange phase of the blotched kingsnake. There also are a few anerythristic (lacking red pigmentation) south Florida kingsnakes currently in captivity that should eventually become more available. Additional color and pattern morphs are expected to become available because of the large-scale efforts to commercially breed common kingsnakes.

A Note on Subspecies

Quotation marks appear around subspecies that herpetologists no longer recognize taxonomically but species that are still recognized as a phase by hobbyists and dealers in herpetoculture. (Herpetoculturists are interested in keeping and breeding reptiles and amphibians of all types to fulfill both personal goals and commercial purposes, while herpetologists study reptiles and amphibians from a more scientific view and are not necessarily interested in keeping them in captivity or breeding them. Some herpetologists are, of course, herpetoculturists.)

Shown here is a juvenile Brook's kingsnake (also called the South Florida kingsnake) displaying a reduced dark pattern, which is more prominent in true Florida kingsnakes.

Crossing the albino trait with other pattern and color variations has led to new remarkable morphs, such as this lavender albino speckled king.

Among captive-bred species, albino California kings, as shown here, are widely available specimens.

Albino Kingsnakes

Several specimens of albino kingsnakes have been collected from the wild and have formed the foundation for the large numbers of albino kingsnakes now produced in captivity. Currently, albinos of two subspecies, the California kingsnake and speckled kingsnake, are commercially bred on a large scale. More recently, an albino black kingsnake (L. g. nigra) has been produced in captivity. There are several genetic lines of albino California kingsnakes currently established in captivity and characterized by variations in eye color (e.g., ruby-eyed) and skin color (e.g., lavender). The albino trait has been introduced into most other color and pattern morphs of the California kingsnake. This has led to interesting morphs, such as the albino desert-phase striped California kingsnake and the recently developed snow king, which resulted from introducing the albino trait into the chocolate (patternless) morph of the California kingsnake. A solid lemon yellow albino is but a few years ahead. In terms of breeding, the albino trait is considered and dealt with as a simple recessive trait.

This albino California king carries the ruby-eye trait.

Herpetocultural Trends

When it comes to color and pattern, the herpetocultural trend is toward crisp, well-defined patterns and clean,...