Speckled Kingsnake

Prairie chicken tracking day!  I love my day on the prairie.  It is so peaceful and there is always something interesting to observe.   When I hopped out of the tracking truck to open a pasture gate, I noticed that something in the grass at the edge of the road looked “different”.  What do you see here?  I left the gate halfway open and grabbed my camera from the truck.

Speckled Kingsnake

 It is a Speckled Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula holbrooki.  This is gorgeous, native, non-venomous, East Texas snake.  A few years ago, there was a pair of mature Speckled Kingsnakes who liked to bask in the garden and on the patio of the Prairie Preserve office.   Those snakes were 5-6 feet long.  I am sure they managed the rodent population efficiently.

This fellow near the pasture gate was only about 3 feet long.  I got close to snap a photo, but he did not like that one bit.  First he coiled defensively, then he raised his head and made a hasty retreat.  I assured him that I did not eat snakes, but he was taking no chances.  It was just as well that he moved - as close as he was to the road, I might have accidentally driven over him with the truck.

This is a very attractive snake.   The black dorsal scales have a spot of yellow – a light on the shield if you will - thus the Latin name, Lampropeltis.  Lampro refers to torch or lamp.  Peltis refers to a crescent-shaped shield.    Speckled Kingsnakes hunt by scent and kill their prey by constriction.   According to A field Guide to Snakes of Texas by Alan Tennant, Speckled Kingsnakes eat small mammals, birds, lizards, frogs, and turtle eggs.  They also eat other snakes including coral snakes, copperheads, and rattlesnakes.   “Kingsnakes are largely immune to Crotalid venom,” Tennant says.  Cool, right?  King of the snakes!

Speckled Kingsnake, Lampropeltis getula holbrooki

 

Diamondback Water Snake

Juvenile Diamondback Water Snake

I dragged a plastic bag full of old grass clippings and leaves to our new tumbling composter.  This bag was shredded from too many weeks in the sun.  When I peeked into the bag to remind myself of what was inside,   I was surprised to see some round, dark eyes peering back at me.   A young snake, only a few inches long,  flicked a tiny tongue in my direction.  What was my first response?  Right!  “Run to find the camera!”   Obviously the little guy stayed long enough for me to snap his portrait.  But by the time I put down the camera and returned to release him (or her), he was gone.

My copy of  A Field Guide to Texas Snakes by Alan Tennant says that this little fellow was  Nerodia rhombifer rhombifer , a Diamondback Water Snake.  These are non-venomous and are dangerous only to amphibians and small fish.   If molested, they will bite, just as any of us would.   I did not expect to see a Water Snake in my subdivision backward, but we have had lots of welcomed rain recently. 

Snake Killed by Air Conditioner

Side of body and top of head:  Rat Snake killed by Air Conditioner

This is distressing.  I was working in the yard before it got dark.  Evening sounds included birds, cars, chirping frogs, barking dogs and the ubiquitous drone of air conditioners.  Suddenly there was a sharp clanging of rattling metal coming from my air conditioner.  Did my AC unit have a tin can trapped inside with the fan blade?   I was horrified to see that there was an ANIMAL inside the unit.  A snake was being tossed like a pizza by the whirling fan.  Each time the snake’s body slammed against the top of the housing, a flurry of scales and skin would blow out  before he fell back, banging among the spinning blades.  

Aaaaaaa!!!   Panicking, I ran into the house to turn off the electricity, then I raced back outside.  When I returned to the air conditioner, I saw that the poor, broken snake had somehow managed to climb to a metal lip above the blades.  He was curled up, dead.  Seeing his injuries, I cannot imagine how he achieved that final, excruciating climb.  With a coat hanger, I extricated him - like pulling a sad thread through a needle.

Why had he gone in there?  Was he looking for shade, moisture, food, or a rough place to shed skin?   A green anole ( Anolis carolinensis) hangs out in that AC unit.  Maybe the snake was after the anole.  I called our air conditioning service company and asked how this tragedy could be prevented in the future.   I was told that it could not be avoided.   I hate that answer.  The AC technician said that insects, bugs, lizards and shed snake skins are not unusual to find when they perform service on these units.  

I have looked my copy of A Field Guide to Texas Snakes, by Alan Tennant and I think this may be a rat snake, Elaphe spp.   Dear Readers, some of you are experts on Texas snakes.  Please look at the grim photos and identify this unfortunate young ‘un.  Post your identification in the comments for all to see. Thanks!

Dorsal view of his markings:  Rat Snake killed by the Air Conditioner

Ventral view of head and tail:  Rat Snake killed by the Air Conditioner

If his back had not been broken in two places, he might be about 29" long. Poor Snake:  killed by the Air Conditioner Fan.