Texas rat snakes are very common in Southwest Louisiana. I've encountered and captured dozens since my early childhood and they've all looked pretty much the same. In the past week, however, my brother and I have happened upon what appears to be a small, localized population of extremely dark individuals. They are not solid black. Rather they are very dark brown to black with some normal pattern showing through. They are not especially attractive, just different from the norm. Is anyone out there working with this type of color variation? Would this be classified as HYPERmelanism? We've captured two individuals in the same location, seven days apart. The first we released. The second is a four foot male covered in old scars and new wounds. He appears to be healthy despite the wounds--I believed they were inflicted by a feline. We are treating him right now and will most likely release him. I'll try and post some pics.
I don't know what the Louisiana laws are regarding the collection of indigenous herps(as kids, we just caught them and either released them or kept them as pets), but I may keep an eye on this location and consider breeding these to see what comes out. I wonder if they will continue getting darker.
