Description of Milk Snake
Milk snake have smooth and shiny scales and their typical color pattern is alternating bands of red-black-yellow or white-black-red. However, red blotches instead of bands are seen in some populations. Some milk snakes have a striking resemblance to coral snakes and this mimicry likely scares away potential predators. While both milk 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.
Milk Snake's Physical characteristics
Although all milksnakes have smooth, shiny scales, they can look quite different from one region to the next. Some have large red or brown blotches that are often lined in black on a gray to tan background; others have bands of red, black, and yellow or white. A few are solid black. Adults range from 20 to 60 inches in length. Most milks snake hatchlings are red with black-and-white stripes. This distinctive color pattern is similar to coral snakes, which are often found in the same places as milksnakes. Coral snakes are venomous, but they are not.
Geographic range of Milk Snake
Milk snakes are found across a wide range. They live in southern Canada and most of the United States, except deserts and high mountains. These snakes are also found throughout Central America south to the foothills of the Andes Mountains in Ecuador. In general, the largest adults are found in warmer, tropical regions farther south. The smallest live in the northernmost parts of the snake’s range. There is one exception, however. The milksnakes found in warm, subtropical Florida are much smaller than milks snakes from the northeastern United States.