Speckled Kingsnake
Lampropeltis holbrooki • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Colubrinae, Genus: Lampropeltis, Species: Lampropeltis holbrooki
Central United States, ranging from southern Iowa and Nebraska south through Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, into Texas and Louisiana, extending as far east as Alabama and Mississippi.
Look up Speckled Kingsnake in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Colubridae, Subfamily: Colubrinae, Genus: Lampropeltis, Species: Lampropeltis holbrooki
Conservation
Least Concern (IUCN), though populations are declining in some local areas due to habitat loss, road mortality, and pollution.
Physical Description
Characterized by a solid black or dark brown ground color with a yellow or cream-colored speckle in the center of almost every scale, creating a 'salt and pepper' appearance. The head is small and barely distinct from the neck, with large head shields and round pupils. Scales are smooth.
Size & Dimensions
Specimen appears to be an adult of approximately 90-110 cm. Typical adult size range is 90 to 122 cm (3-4 feet), with a record length of about 183 cm (6 feet).
Habitat
Inhabits a wide variety of environments including prairies, grasslands, swamps, marshes, forest edges, and agricultural lands. It is often found near water or in moist microhabitats such as under logs, rocks, or debris.
Diet & Feeding
An opportunistic feeder that uses powerful constriction. Diet includes small mammals, birds, lizards, and other snakes, including rattlesnakes and copperheads.
Reproduction
Oviparous (egg-laying). Clutch sizes typically range from 6 to 23 eggs, laid in early summer; hatchlings emerge in late summer or early fall.
Conservation Status
Least Concern (IUCN), though populations are declining in some local areas due to habitat loss, road mortality, and pollution.
Cultural Significance
Highly valued by horticulturalists and farmers for its role in controlling rodent populations and its habit of hunting and consuming other snakes. Often referred to as the 'salt and pepper snake.'
Notable Features
Renowned for hunting and consuming North American pit vipers (rattlesnakes, copperheads, and cottonmouths).