Yellow Snakes
Did you know that…
● Yellow snakes are better known as Yellow Rat Snakes, or Chicken Snakes?
● Yellow snakes devour birds and their eggs?
● Yellow snakes can imitate Rattlesnakes when they feel threatened?
● Yellow snakes fulfill roles as both predators and prey in the natural food chain?
If you want to know more about yellow snakes, read on!
Yellow snakes or Yellow Rat Snakes are named for their appearance. Adult Yellow Rat Snakes are distinguished by 4 dark stripes against a lighter, olive-to-yellow background, and can stretch as long as 42-72 inches. Young Yellow Rat Snakes, however, are blotchy against a gray background, making them easy to mistake for a different subspecies. These yellow snakes are usually about 18 inches long.
All yellow snakes are non-venomous, but they may bite if handled carelessly. Yellow snakes are also constrictors, meaning they suffocate their prey. What do Yellow Rat Snakes eat? They prey upon small mammals, frogs, lizards, and yellow snakes frequently climb trees, even very tall ones, in order to reach and devour birds and their eggs. However, Yellow Rat Snakes are known to especially feed on chickens. In fact, this practice is how they came to earn their common name, “Chicken Snake”!
Yellow Rat Snakes are aggressive, so care should be taken when handling yellow snakes. When they feel threatened, Yellow Rat Snakes will vibrate their tails to mimic Rattlesnakes and they will rear up and try to strike. However, some people do decide to keep yellow snakes as a pet. If you want to own a Yellow Rat Snake or Chicken Snake, you will need a cage of about 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with a basking area at about 85 degrees, and a temperature in the low 70s at night. Yellow snakes are also arboreal, which means you should provide them with ample branches and shelving so that they can exercise.
However, if you just want to catch a glimpse of yellow snakes, they can be found in many places: pine flatlands, pine scrub, swamps, deciduous hardwoods, and most commonly around citrus groves, pastures, and abandoned buildings.
And here is one last piece of trivia about yellow snakes: Since Yellow Rat Snakes are relatively slow moving, they freeze when they first encounter danger and take on a rippled posture, looking like a big crumpled ribbon. Unfortunately, you might also spot yellow snakes on our roadways, where many of them are killed.
