The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake is a relatively small species of snake that is native to parts of Arizona.
These snakes are also referred to as the Sonoran Mountain Kingsnake as their range extends into the Northern parts of Sonora, Mexico.
Arizona Mountain Kingsnake Taxonomy
In the Animal Kingdom, Taxonomy is used as the science and practice of classifying different species and sub-species based on their biological and genetic makeup.
Family
The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake belongs to the Colubridae or Colubrid family of snakes. This is the largest family of Snakes in the world consisting of many popular species such as Corn Snakes and Milk Snakes.
With around 250 different genera of Colubrids, these snakes can be found on every continent except Antarctica which also makes them the most widely distributed family of snake in the world.
The vast majority of Colubrid snakes are non-venomous, or at least contain a venom that isn’t considered to be medically significant to humans.
However, there are a number of species of Colubrid snakes that contain venom capable of killing humans. This includes species from the Boiga and Rhabdophis genera as well as other snakes such as the Boomslang.
Genus
The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake belongs to the Lampropeltis genus. This genus contains the New World Kingsnakes and Milk Snakes.
The Kingsnake gets its name from the fact that they often eat other snakes, including Rattlesnakes. Similarly, the King Cobra gets its name from its tendency to also eat other snakes.
The scientific name ‘Lampropeltis’ comes from the Greek words ‘lampro’ and ‘pelte’ which loosely translates to ‘shiny shield’. This is a reference to these snake’s smooth, enamel-like dorsal scales.
Species
The scientific name for the Arizona Mountain Kingsnake is Lampropeltis pyromelana.
Arizona Mountain Kingsnake Description
The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake is a relatively small species of snake that only grows to around 3 feet in length.
They have a series of red, black and white bands that run along their entire body. This makes them look similar to a number of Milk Snake species as well as a Coral Snake.
The red bands are thicker and surrounded by smaller white bands. The outline of the white bands is separated with an even thinner black band, so the white and red scales generally don’t touch.
bands are very thin around the sides of the snake but often thicken as they move up towards the back of the snake.
They have a black and white head with large eyes that are located on the side of the snake’s head.
Natural Habitat and Distribution
While most of the Arizona Mountain Kingsnakes range is in the mountains of Arizona, these snakes can also be found in some of the surrounding areas.
To the North, they can be found in parts of Nevada and Utah while to the East they can be found in parts of New Mexico. These snakes can also be found in a small region of Sonora, Mexico.
The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake is generally found at elevations between 3,000 – 9,000 feet or roughly 1,000 – 2,700 metres.
They can be found in a variety of different habitats but they tend to prefer scrubland, woodland or conifer forest type terrain. They are often found near sources of water.
They share some of the same geographical range with species such as the Desert Kingsnake, California Kingsnake, Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, Eastern Racer, Mojave Desert Tortoise, Ornate Box Turtle and the Prairie Rattlesnake. However, they don’t necessarily share the same habitats with these species.
Arizona Mountain Kingsnake Behaviour
The Arizona Mountain Kingsnake is a secretive snake and will spend most of its time hiding under piles of rock, under fallen logs or among dense vegetation.
These snakes generally wont venture too far from the security of their homes. They even prefer to thermoregulate by moving to a warmer or colder area within their hiding place as opposed to coming out to bask.
They feed on a variety of different prey and will even eat other snakes, including venomous Rattlesnakes. Kingsnakes have a tolerance to snake venom.
These snakes are completely harmless to humans but they will bite if you attempt to pick them up. They may also produce a foul-smelling musk in an attempt to get you to put them down.