Squamata suborder
Serpentes
Lampropeltis getula -- Common Kingsnake
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Squamata suborder
Serpentes
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Search for another IL amphibian or reptile Search for IL amphibians & reptiles by county Go to the INHS Amphibian & Reptile Collection homepage Search the INHS collections data for amphibians & reptiles Search the INHS Type Specimen Data for amphibians & reptiles |  
Purple shade indicates vouchered specimens. Light blue (cyan)
shade indicates photographic records. Yellow shade indicates verified
sighting. |
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Key Characters: Some or all back and side scales black with a small light dot in the center; belly checkered black and yellow; back scales smooth; anal plate not divided. Similar Species: Racer, rat snake, plainbelly water snake. Subspecies: Speckled kingsnake, L. g. holbrookii; black kingsnake, L. g. niger. Description: Large (up to 125 cm TL) glossy black snake with white dot in the center of each scale. In L. g. niger, the small light dots form 40&endash;50 narrow crossbands with intervening scales lacking dots. Habitat: Wooded hills. Natural History: Mates in spring and lays 8-12 eggs in June in rotting logs or tree stumps. Young hatch in August or early September at 20-30 cm TL. Like many snakes, it is largely nocturnal during summer and more active during the day in spring and autumn. Slow and deliberate in its movements, this is a constricting predator of other reptiles, especially snakes (even venomous ones), lizards and their eggs, birds, and small mammals. Main predators of juveniles are other snakes; main predators of adults are hawks, raccoons, skunks, and opossums. Status: Locally common in the Shawnee Hills and along the southern Mississippi River bluffs (see distribution map, above). |
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