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i found a small non poisonous snake in my yard-it is 2-3 feet long and about as big around as my thumb,it has a black back with very tiny yellow stripes,its underside is yellow with black spots martialmom2003@yahoo.com

Ok...some questions,

How do you know it is not venomous?

What state are you in?

Are you near water? If so, fresh, salt, marsh, canal or lake?

If not...do you live in a forest area or plains or desert?

Do the scales look rough or smooth?

My first thought is dependant upon the above questions as I am leaning towards a particular type of water snake per your description. there are some other posibilities but I need the answers to the above to be more specific.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

i am assuming its not venomous due to the shape of the head,i live in alabama,near woods,but no water-i found him in an aluminum can,in a pile of aluminum cans i keep to recycle.i'm not sure about the scales but they look pretty smooth-my son wants to keep him-but i dont know how to care for him-not knowing what kind he is-i've looked online and i cant find anything that looks just like it-there is an eastern king snake that is similar-but with not as much color-really narrow stripes

Ok...Now I'm going to ask what might seem to be a silly question, but it is amazing how many people interpret this differently.

Do the stripes run down his body or across...And how many are there? Is there one down the center or two parrallel lines going down him.

This is important because Eastern chain kings rarely have stripes running down their body in Nature*.
You say you live in Alabama Would that be in the northern part maybe a bit to the east side?

If that is so....the best possibilty is that you have a eastern black king snake. These occasionally have traces of pattern that can look like two stripes going down the length of it's body, and may even show traces of cross bars. There would be yellow or white tiny spots on mainly the sides. Try looking up LAMPROPELTIS GETULA NIGER and see if that is closer to your snake.

If that is it they feed on mice, lizards and small snakes and are a great first snake for a child.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

i went to the pet store and he said he thinks its either a speckled king snake or a hognose.the stripes run side to side

Its not a hognose. A 2.5' hognose would be much thicker than your thumb and its "hog" nose is noticeable. Its possible that you have a kingsnake, and its possible its a black racer changing from its juvenile to adult coloration. However, if its not flighty and biting, its probably not a racer. Keep looking for snakes of Alabama sites.
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...and I think to myself, "What a wonderful world."

i looked at the only site i could find but they only have pics of adults-which doesnt do me a lot of good-of the pics i've seen-the speckled king and the hognose are the closest,the head is so small-its hard to tell about the nose-its head is really small(smaler around than its body)it does look a little speckled but it has a lot of bands too,anyway-its a little nervous but hasnt hissed or struck.i read about the speckled king shaking its tail like a rattler-and it doent do that but maybe its too young.maybe i can get a pic to send!

Even on a baby hognose you should be able to see the uplifted "hog nose." It is quite prominent. And you have to remember, just because a behaviour is typical of a certain species doesn't mean that it will do that. Not all kings rattle their tails. Not all hognose puff up and spread their necks and hiss. I almost suggest you go buy a field guide for like 10 or so bucks at the book store. It is always good to have around, and would help you in your endeavor to indentify your little guy.
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Andy Maddox
AIM: SurfAndSkimTx04
MSN: Poloboy32486@hotmail.com
Yahoo:surfandskimtx04
Houston Herp Key
The Reptizone

If you steal in hunger, I will kick you when you try. These stand for me. Name your god and bleed the freak. I'd like to see. How you all would bleed for me.-Alice In Chains

no insult intended to your dealer, but he has no idea what he is talking about.....You are talking about the difference between a dog and a cat.

Lines across the body are called "bands" in reptile circles.

Hognose are blotched gray, brown or orange...or uniform black. They have keeled (rough) scales. They also have a nose that ends in a sharp slightly uptilted point (hog like)and the belly is not spotted.

A king has yellow or white bands and smooth shinny scales...a more normal blunt snake like nose and and a yellow belly with spots and blotches.

A keeled scale has a raised line down the middle of it like a boat's keel like this . it feels rough.

Your description sounds more and more like a king. Nothing else matches what you have said. if it lacks keels then that is what it is.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

Ok I used the keys to give a rough idea of what a keeled scale looks like For some reason it didn't post. I will try it again here.

Each scale will have a raised line down the center of it. lacking keel means that it is definitly a king. If on a three foot snake you cannot tell if the nose is pointed and upturned and the head is tiny...It's a king.

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

thanks for your help! i believe your right,so i'll set him up like the sheet on kingsnakes says!

Good luck! Kingsnakes Rule!

Frank
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"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

Here is a pic of my hatchling black king snake.

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1.0 Corn snake (KY locale)
1.0 Black rat snake (KY locale)
1.0 Albino Black rat snake (Dwight Good stock)
1.0 Everglades rat snake (Dwight Good stock)
0.1 Yellow rat snake (Dwight Good stock)
1.1 California king snake (Coastal phase)
1.0 Prairie king snake (KY locale)
0.1 Black king snake (KY locale)

Good luck and Happy Herping
Brian