Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I bought some baby snakes from John Cherry and they all seem to have the same quirky behavior. When you have them out and are holding them they key in on things on the floor. If you notice in the picture of my adult Cape male he is looking at my miniature dachshund with some interest. My baby snakes, male 277, male Lubbock red, and to a lesser extent my female 277 all key in on things moving on the floor. The male 277 absolutely hates my big feet when I hold him and walk around. He will hiss, rattle his tail, strike at my feet. It is a great show and very amusing. All the time he is in my hands, its like he has no idea this "tree" thats holding him has roots that move. This is the first batch of Pit babies I have had. All the others I have had have been adults. Maybe they shared the same behavior and outgrew it. It IS very intertaining.

Mike B

My sonoran gopher snakes tend to aim downward too. They are quite adamant about their direction when being handled. Down is the place to be. Even adjusting their tailflaps for more aerodynamic lift does little to deter them.

My ratsnakes are just the opposite. They have too much lift, ever ascending atop my head, onwards to high bookshelves and stacks of unpaid bills.

My kingsnakes prove that shirt sleeves are a perfectly viable alternative to the upward/downward tendencies of their colubrid bretheren.

So it's all instinct. They move towards areas they see as offering security: gophers seek out burrows, ratsnakes are comfortable in trees, and kingsnakes prefer cheap polo shirts.

This is an oversimplification, obviously, which does nothing to serve our science. Truth be told, kingsnakes prefer any type of polo shirt.**

**Literature cited:
C. Kauffeld, "Herping the Okeetee in Izods"
L. Klauber, "Removing Stubborn Hemotoxin Stains from Polyester"

Lol, your Polo shirts must remind your kingsnake of the musty smelling "cow-poop" lands of his natural habitat!! j/k

Actually, my northern pines dont do that. At least they havent yet. I think it may be because they are more at home on the ground. Some snakes dont like to be off of the ground because that is where they normally dwell. They shall adjust with time.