Snakes 'N' Adders's video: S N A Introducing Series: Episode 43 - Florida King Snake

S’N’A Introducing Series Episode: 43 Florida King Snakes (Lampropeltis getula floridana) Again this is another species that potentially no longer exists to science. This species and the Apalachicola King Snake (Lampropeltis getula meansi) have been synonomised with The Eastern Chain King Snake (Lampropeltis getula getula). This is why we will continue to use defunct trinomial names to more easily differentiate between species, sub species for beginners. By essentially making in this case three subspecies synonymous with one another we may lose the defined standards of how we expect each subspecies to look. Yes they naturally intergrade but Floridas have a network of regular saddles roughly as long as they are wide. With age the centres of many scales also develop a fleck of colour the same shade as the saddles giving them an increasingly diffused appearance. Eastern Chains (getula) have double length saddles to their single width and do not diffuse with age. Apalachicola King Snakes (meansi) are incredibly variable with stripes, blotches and flecks in random arrangements with varying levels of red and yellow pigmentation. Previously referred to as South Florida King Snakes, Brook’s King Snakes (Lampropeltis getula brooksi) have also been rolled in with getula. They hail from a small area of Southern Florida. Brook's essentially were high contrast Florida’s for lack of a better way of describing them with a greater amount of diffusion. Florida King Snakes are available in a range of cultivars including hypomelanistic, amelanistic, anerythrystic, snows and much more. They are hardy personable snakes that become heavy set as adults and generally carry more mass than the Californian King snake for example. Adult size is around 4.5-5.ft in length. In nature they are encountered in a range of habitats including wooded areas, wetlands, farmland and disused human areas. Brumation takes place in crevices, burrows, logs or any other serviceable cover they can find. Florida King Snakes have been a mainstay of the pet trade as far back as I can remember and one of my earliest experiences was holding my friend Simon Allen’s little Florida King Snake is around 1992. He was a lovely snake and really began my love affair with King Snakes. They are relatively easy to provide for and hail from many regions associated with Corn Snakes (Pantherophis guttatus) so there are many parallels to their care. Adult vivariums should be around 48” long. The hot spot should run at around 30 °C during the day And drop off to around 24°C at night. Heat can be provided by most means, heat pad, spot bulb, ceramic or deep heat projector. A thermostat is essential to ensure their onward care. Nowadays the cognitive benefits of UVB radiation above and beyond vitamin D3 synthesis is being extolled by many keepers wanting to advance reptile husbandry. If chosen a small light located at the warm end such as the shade dweller T5 kit from arcadia will be fine. At this point we are still fluid with snakes and UVB if you want to do it that’s fine, if you don’t that’s fine too. A wide variety of substrates can be used including beech, aspen, hemp, lignocel, orchid bark or one of the particulate sand/soil/grity mixes on the market. A warm hide and cold hide should be provided for security, moss boxes are optional and most homes in the UK will see Florida Kings shed without issue. If you begin to have issues the temporary usage of a moss box will be fine. The sexes are usually identical, being snakes eaters in the wild it simply wouldn’t do to have males much smaller than females as they would more than likely be eaten. Sexual maturity generally takes 3-4 years although there are records of animals producing viable eggs from a much younger age although this wouldn’t be recommended. Breeding occurs in spring after a gentle brumation (by most other US snakes standards) – in fact some keepers don’t even bother and just pair them. 12-25 eggs are laid and subsequently incubated for 60 days at 28 °C in a mix of 4:1 Vermiculite to water. Baby Florida King Snakes can be nervous wriggle bums and may even be a little standoffish rearing up in defence posture. When little they can be quite weak bowelled and may wee on you each time you handle the snake. Don’t worry this period will pass relatively quickly once it realises you mean no harm. They are usually ready feeders and grow quickly. As they grow they can become very food orientated and their territoriality may increase, once removed from the enclosure this usually abates pretty quickly. This may be a species that benefits from being fed in another container to disassociate the vivarium with food. Obesity is entirely possible and should be avoided, this is a heavy set snake anyway but because of their ‘foodie’ attitude keepers use them as dustbins with leftovers from other enclosures. First described by Blanchard in 1919 as Lampropeltis getula floridana.