What is your definition of a "true bond"? I'm not challenging you or anything like that. I'm just wondering because there could be many definitions, the broadest of which I would think would be like you said, tolerating each other for mutual benifit.



Whatever one's definition is, I do think it's likely that many types of snakes, if not all, seek to form social groups. This is contrary to what I can remember reading as I was growing up.



My readings left me with the overall impression that all snakes are loners and that species like kingsnakes especially were likely to fight to the death if they should happen to encounter one another anytime other than breeding season. Also that the babies must disperse quickly upon hatching lest the mother find them and eat them.



Now I believe this is very wrong and that they do form pairs and/or breeding groups and that the hatchlings trail the adults via scents in order to locate favorable thermoregulation, hibernation, hunting and watering/humidity grounds. I also believe that the reason one so often finds kingsnakes suface active at the same time is not solely because they are hunting. I think they instictively move during certain weather conditions so they can expand their territory by locating others of their own kind.
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