Oh yes, one more item to report. Before I moved my snakes into the new enclosures, and before I had the dimmer switch running, I put a full grown corn snake into the enclosure, on top of the heat tape that was running at nearly 120 degrees. I have odd behavior to report.



The snake moved around the tank by slithering along the floor, as normal. As it passed the heat tape, it raised its body over the tape in a shallow arch, perhaps an inch high in the middle. As the head passed the tape, the snake again resumed contact with the floor of the tank. As the rest of the snake's body moved past the heat tape, it moved up and through the arch, so the snake never actually touched the heat tape.



I reached in and pushed the snake onto the heat tape, since I wanted to see what would happen. The snake immediately moved that portion of it's body sideways, until it reached the edge of the heat tape. No matter what I did, that snake would never let itself touch the heat tape directly for any length of time.



It's hard not to draw the conclusion that this adult snow corn snake was very well aware of the 120 degree heat tape, and was actively avoiding that hot spot.



Michael Kraft

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