Milk Snake
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{{Taxobox
| name = Milk Snake
| image = Red milk snake.JPG
| image_width = 235px
| image_caption = Red milk snake ''Lampropeltis triangulum syspila''
| regnum = [[Animal]]ia
| phylum = [[Chordate|Chordata]]
| classis = [[Reptile|Reptilia]]
| ordo = [[Squamata]]
| subordo = [[Serpentes]]
| familia = [[Colubrid]]ae
| genus = ''[[Lampropeltis]]''
| species = '''''L. triangulum'''''
| binomial = ''Lampropeltis triangulum''
| binomial_authority = [[Bernard Germain Étienne comte de La Ville-sur-Illon La Cépède|LaCépède]], [[1788]]<ref name="Grzimek" />
}}
The '''milk snake''' (''Lampropeltis triangulum''; French: ''Couleuvre tachetée''; Spanish: ''Culebra-real coralillo'')<ref name="Grzimek" /> is a species of [[kingsnake|king snake]]. There are 25 [[subspecies]] among the milk snakes, including the commonly named [[scarlet kingsnake]] (''L. t. elapsoides'').<ref name="Grzimek" /> The subspecies have strikingly different appearance, and many of them have their own [[common name]]s. Some authorities suggest that this species may be split into several separate species.<ref name="Grzimek">{{citation
| title = Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia
| author1-last = Savitzky
| author1-first = Alan H.
| editor1-last = Hutchins
| editor1-first = Michael
| editor2-last = Evans
| editor2-first = Arthur V.
| editor3-last = Jackson
| editor3-first = Jerome A.
| editor4-last = Kleiman
| editor4-first = Devra G.
| volume = 7: Reptiles
| edition = 2<sup>nd</sup>
| place = Detroit
| publisher = Gale
| year = 2004
| page = 477
| url = http://go.galegroup.com
}}</ref> They are distributed from southeastern [[Canada]], through most of the continental United States, to Central America, down to western [[Ecuador]] and northern [[Venezuela]] of northern South America.<ref name="Grzimek" /><ref name="Armstrongetal2001">{{citation
| title = Analysis of sympatric populations of Lampropeltis triangulum syspila and Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides, in western Kentucky and adjacent Tennessee with relation to the taxonomic status of the scarlet kingsnake
| last1 = Armstrong
| first1 = Michael P.
| last2 = Frymire
| first2 = David
| last3 = Zimmerer
| first3 = Edmund J.
| journal = Journal of Herpetology
| volume = 35
| issue = 4
| date = December 2001
| year = 2001
| pages = 688-93
| issn = 0022-1511
| url = http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com/hww/jumpstart.jhtml?recid=0bc05f7a67b1790e050a2140da939dde29bfd13582719af621eb734dba33044f9d443e023694dc49&fmt=P
}}</ref> They grow 20 to 60 inches (50-152 cm) long.<ref name="Grzimek" />
==Appearance==
Milksnakes have smooth and shiny [[Scale (zoology)|scales]] and their typical color pattern is alternating bands of red-black-yellow or white-black-red.<ref name="Grzimek" /> However, red blotches instead of bands are seen in some populations.<ref name="Grzimek" /> Some milk snakes have a striking resemblance to [[coral snake]]s and this mimicry (known as [[Batesian mimicry]]) likely scares away potential predators. While both milksnakes and coral snakes possess [[transverse]] bands of red, black and yellow, a common mnemonic can be used to properly distinguish between the deadly coral snake and the harmless milksnake:
:*''"Red touches black, you're OK Jack; red touches yellow, you're a dead fellow."'' or;
:*''"Red next to black, is a friend of Jack; red next to yellow, will kill a fellow."'' or;
:*''"Red to yellow, kill a fellow. Red to black, venom lack."'' or;
:*''"Red and yellow, kill a fellow. Red and black, friend of Jack."'' or;
:*''"Red touch yellow, will kill a fellow. Red touch black, Cant do Jack."''
However, the Eastern Milk Snake (''L. t. triangulum'') does not resemble a [[coral snake]]; instead it tends to have similar markings to that of several other snakes, particularly the [[fox snake]] and the [[Copperhead]]. There is enough distinction to make the Eastern Milk Snake fairly easy to identify. Eastern Milk Snakes also have a light colored v-shaped or y-shaped patch on their neck. One subspecies is [[melanistic]] (almost all black).<ref name="Grzimek" />
Milksnakes have no eyelids and instead have a transparent covering that rests over their eyes called [[brille]]s to protect their eyes from dust and dirt.<ref name="encyc" /> The brilles give them a "glassy-eyed" blank appearance.<ref name="encyc" />
==Habitat==
Across the wide range of this species, habitat varies. Typically, milksnakes live in forested regions, however, in some regions they can be located in open prairies. In various parts of across its distribution, milksnakes often abide in rocky slopes.<ref name="Grzimek" />
==Behavior==
Milksnakes activity is mostly [[nocturnal]]. They are primarily [[Terrestrial animal|terrestrial]], except the [[scarlet kingsnake]] sometimes takes shelter under the bark of standing dead [[pine tree]]s.
==Diet==
Young milksnakes typically eat slugs, insects, and earthworms.<ref name="encyc" />
Adult diet frequently includes lizards (especially [[skink]]s), snakes, and small mammals.<ref name="Grzimek" /> They are also known to eat birds and their eggs, frogs, fish, and other snakes.<ref name="encyc" />
Milk Snakes are much more opportunistic eaters than the fox snake or [[Corn Snake|corn snake]]. They have been known to consume a variety of [[animal]]s including rodents, [[Egg (biology)|eggs]], [[bird]]s, [[reptile]]s, [[amphibian]]s, and [[invertebrate]]s. Nevertheless the [[Diet (nutrition)|diet]] of an adult milk snake still primarily consists of rodents. They are nocturnal eaters and are often found during the day in old barns and under wood.
Like other members of the king snake family, the milk snakes sometimes eat other [[snake]]s, and do have at least some immunity to their [[venom (poison)|venom]].
An early myth about milksnakes is that they suck cow udders to get the milk.<ref name="Grzimek" /> The myth is entirely false.<ref name="Grzimek" /> The milksnake does not have the physical capabilities to suck milk out of a cow. Milksnakes are, however, frequently found in and around [[barn]]s,<ref name="Grzimek" /> making use of their cool and dark environments, and for the easily accessed populations of rodents<ref name="Grzimek" /> to feed on. This proximity to barns, and therefore cows, probably gave rise to the myth.<ref name="Grzimek" />
==Reproduction==
Milksnakes are [[oviparous]], laying an average of about 10 eggs per [[Clutch (eggs)|clutch]], although that number may vary by region.<ref name="Grzimek" /> The milk snake mates from early May<ref name="encyc">{{citation
| title = Encyclopedia of Animals (Milk snake entry)
| journal = EBSCO Animals
| publisher = EBSCO Publishing
| url = http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ani&AN=9500200390&site=ehost-live
}}</ref> to late June. In June and July, the female lays three to twenty-four eggs beneath logs, boards, rocks, logs and rotting vegetation.<ref name="encyc" /> The eggs [[incubate]] for approximately two months, and hatch around August or September.<ref name="encyc" /> Milksnakes typically live around twelve years.<ref name="encyc" />
==Conservation status==
The milksnake is not listed by the [[IUCN]], but in some areas, there may face significant pressure due to pet trade collection.<ref name="Grzimek" /> Because this species' high value in the pet trade, many subspecies are now being bred in captivity for sale.<ref name="Grzimek" />
== Subspecies ==
*[[Guatemala]]n Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum abnorma|L. t. abnorma]]'' ([[Marie Firmin Bocourt|Bocourt]], [[1886]])
*[[Louisiana]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum amaura|L. t. amaura]]'' ([[Edward Drinker Cope|Cope]], [[1861]])
*[[Andes|Andean]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum andesiana|L. t. andesiana]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*[[Mexico|Mexican]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum annulata|L. t. annulata]]'' ([[Robert Kennicott|Kennicott]], [[1861]])
*[[Jalisco]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum arcifera|L. t. arcifera]]'' ([[F. Werner|Werner]], [[1903]])
*Blanchard's Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum blanchardi|L. t. blanchardi]]'' ([[L.C. Stuart|Stuart]], [[1935]])
*[[Pueblo|Pueblan]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum campbelli|L. t. campbelli]]'' ([[H.R. Quinn|Quinn]], [[1983]])
*[[New Mexico]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum celaenops|L. t. celaenops]]'' ([[Leonhard Hess Stejneger|Stejneger]], [[1903]])
*[[Roger Conant (herpetologist)|Conant]]'s Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum conanti|L. t. conanti]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*[[James R. Dixon|Dixon]]'s Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum dixoni|L. t. dixoni]]'' ([[H.R. Quinn|Quinn]], [[1983]])
[[Image:Lampropeltis triangulum annulata.jpg|235px|thumb|Mexican Milk Snake, ''L. t. annulata'']]
*[[Scarlet Kingsnake]] ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides|L. t. elapsoides]]'' ([[John Edwards Holbrook|Holbrook]], [[1838]])
*[[Black]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum gaigae|L. t. gaigae]]'' ([[Emmett Reid Dunn|Dunn]], [[1937]])
*Central Plains Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum gentilis|L. t. gentilis]]'' ([[Spencer Fullerton Baird|Baird]] & [[Charles Frédéric Girard|Girard]], [[1853]])
*[[Honduras|Honduran]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis|L. t. hondurensis]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*[[Ecuador]]an Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum micropholis|L. t. micropholis]]'' ([[Edward Drinker Cope|Cope]], [[1860]])
*Pale Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum multistrata|L. t. multistrata]]'' ([[Robert Kennicott|Kennicott]], [[1861]])
*[[Edward William Nelson|Nelson's]]<ref name="Belletal2003">{{citation
| url = http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/pdf/575/57509006.pdf
| title = An Annotated List of the Species-Group Names Applied to the Lizard Genus Sceloporus.
| first1 = Edwin L.
| last1 = Bell
| first2 = Hobart M.
| last2 = Smith
| first3 = David
| last3 = Chiszar
| year = 2003
| journal = Acta Zoologica Mexicana
| volume = 90
| pages = 103–174
}}</ref> Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum nelsoni|L. t. nelsoni]]'' ([[Frank N. Blanchard|Blanchard]], [[1920]])
*[[Pacific]] American Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum oligozona|L. t. oligozona]]'' ([[Marie Firmin Bocourt|Bocourt]], [[1886]])
*[[Atlantic]] [[Central America]]n Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum polyzona|L. t. polyzona]]'' ([[Edward Drinker Cope|Cope]], [[1861]])
*[[Sinaloa]]n Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum sinaloae|L. t. sinaloae]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*[[Hobart Muir Smith|Smith's]]<ref name="Belletal2003" /> Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum smithi|L. t. smithi]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*Stuart's Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum stuarti|L. t. stuarti]]'' ([[K.L. Williams|Williams]], [[1978]])
*[[Red]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum syspila|L. t. syspila]]'' ([[Edward Drinker Cope|Cope]], [[1889]])
*[[Utah]] Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum taylori|L. t. taylori]]'' ([[Wilmer W. Tanner|Tanner]] & [[R.B. Loomis|Loomis]], [[1957]]
*Eastern Milksnake, ''[[Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum|L. t. triangulum]]'' ([[Bernard Germain Étienne comte de La Ville-sur-Illon La Cépède|Lacépède]] [[1788]])
== References ==
{{reflist}}
*{{EMBL species|genus=Lampropeltis|species=triangulum}}
==External links==
* [http://www.herpnet.net/Iowa-Herpetology/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=51&Itemid=26 Species account of the Eastern Milk Snake in Iowa]
* [http://www.pet-care-portal.com/milk-snake.html Milk Snakes as Pets]
[[Category:Colubrids]]
[[Category:Fauna of Mexico|Snake, Milk]]
[[Category:Reptiles of North America|Snake, Milk]]
[[Category:Reptiles of South America|Snake, Milk]]
[[Category:Fauna of Delaware and Maryland|Snake, Milk]]
[[cs:Korálovka sedlatá]]
[[de:Dreiecksnatter]]
[[fr:Lampropeltis triangulum]]
[[lt:Pieniškoji gyvatė]]
[[nl:Melkslang]]
[[ja:ミルクヘビ]]
[[pl:Lancetogłów mleczny]]