Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Im sure the belly is called something more scientific, but I am still new to this. My Black Rat Snake has a very light colored belly towards her head and a very motly, multicolored belly towards her tail. My question is how will it turn out in the long run? I have only had her for a couple of months so I don't know if it is getting darker or lighter, or will always look the way it does now. One of my previous questions asked about the coloration on her back. Everyone seems to think that she will probably trade her pattern, or most of it for more black.
The wild snakes that I have seen around here have usually had very light colored bellies as adults. Granted, they were very dark on top, so I don't know if it is the contrast I noticed or reality. Either way, I never got too close to them, they are very defensive and usually the people I am with are terrified. That meant that I drove them off to save thier life from shovels.
Sorry for the long post, I'll end it now with a pic of the recently named "Cleopatra" on "Slim", our class skeleton. I will follow this post with a poor (sorry)picture of the darker part of her belly showing as well.
I haven't figured out the two pics in one thing yet.
Thanks for any responses.
Jason

Here is a poor pic of both ends. Sorry, this new digital camera is kicking my tail.

Jason

How old or how long is your snake now? She might get a little more black in the body as she gets older, but I don't think you will see much change in her vetral scale coloring at this point. The red coloration that you see in her ventral scales is not seen very often in the Black Rats found in S.E. Virginia. She is a very nice example of a Black Rat Snake from your area.

Thank you, we think she's outstanding as well. I think Cleopatra was born this past spring. I'm not sure if she is big enough to have been born in 2003. She is a very agressive eater. She is 23 inches long and weighs 1 ounce (30 grams). Is this size about right for a yearling?

Jason

Since yours is only 23 inches long but has turned dark, I would guess that she is an 03 snake.

You might want to think about getting bulk frozen mice for her. Buying them one at a time from a pet shop can get expensize.

Sounds like you are taking good care of her. Have your students seen her feed yet? Do you keep her at the school?

Take care,

Rick

yes, my students usually feed her, but we were out for the massive 1" snowfall. I went in just to feed her and the dekayis brown snake. That was a chore, do you know how hard it is to dig up an earthworm here with snow on the ground.
Anyway, I reward a few of my classes on Fridays with feeding the snake. She has always been an agressive feeder. The kids love it and I think it may save a few snakes in the future from being diced up with hoes and shovels.
By the way, I caught a mouse in the school with my humane trap. I let it go in the 6th grade hall instead of feeding it to Cleopatra for fear that it could have parasites or something. I know she was wild caught as well but I decided to be safe just as well.
Thanks for the advice, I will look into bulk mice. Do they come vacuum packed or frozen? Or do I have to pick them up at the pet store?