milk snake
Harmless tricolored serpent
A milk snake is a nonvenomous North American snake with colorful banded patterns of red, black, and white or yellow.
The name comes from the folk belief that these snakes drink milk from cows—they actually frequent barns to hunt rodents.
Milk snakes are often confused with venomous coral snakes due to similar coloring.
Taxonomic rank beneath species
- kingsnakeSerpent that preys on serpents
- serpentCunning, limbless reptile
- reptileCold-blooded scaled vertebrate
- herpetologyStudy of reptiles, amphibians
cold-blooded · ectotherm · vertebrate · oviparous · scales · shedding · constrictor · nonvenomous
Musical performing groups
- redPrimary color, warm
- blackDarkest possible hue
- yellowHue between green and orange
- whiteAbsence of pigment
stripes · tricolor · patterns · colorful · vibrant · bright · contrasting · glossy
Producing no poison
- docileEasily controlled or taught
- gentleSoft and kind
- safeFree from peril
- pet-friendlyAccepting of domestic animals
nonaggressive · tame · innocuous · benign · handleable · beginner-friendly · calm · placid
Inclined to conceal
- crepuscularRelating to dusk
- burrowingDigging to create shelter
- hidingStaying out of sight
- leaf litterDecomposing ground debris
nighttime · twilight · darkness · dusk · reclusive · ground-dwelling · cover · rocks
Surface hue arrangement
- warningAlert about danger
- bandsMusical performing groups
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- imitationCopy of the original
survival · adaptation · lookalike · copycat · false advertising · protective · evolution · cryptic
subspecies
Taxonomic rank beneath species
- kingsnakeSerpent that preys on serpents
- serpentCunning, limbless reptile
- reptileCold-blooded scaled vertebrate
herpetology · cold-blooded · ectotherm · vertebrate · oviparous · scales · shedding · constrictor · nonvenomous · species
bands
Musical performing groups
white · stripes · tricolor · patterns · colorful · vibrant · bright · contrasting · glossy · slender
nonvenomous
Producing no poison
pet-friendly · nonaggressive · tame · innocuous · benign · handleable · beginner-friendly · calm · placid · peaceful
secretive
Inclined to conceal
- crepuscularRelating to dusk
- burrowingDigging to create shelter
- hidingStaying out of sight
leaf litter · nighttime · twilight · darkness · dusk · reclusive · ground-dwelling · cover · rocks · logs
coloration
Surface hue arrangement
imitation · survival · adaptation · lookalike · copycat · false advertising · protective · evolution · cryptic · disguise
- kingsnakeskingsnake, California king
- reptileslizard, turtle, crocodile, alligator, python
- limbless animalscobra, python, viper, boa, mamba
- snakescobra, anaconda, boa, viper, python
- mimicrychameleon, cuttlefish, stick insect, leaf insect, mockingbird
- reptile keepingterrarium, terrariums, vivarium, vivariums, enclosure
milk snakecoral snake
Venomous striped serpent
venomous snake · rattlesnake · copperhead · cottonmouth · black mamba
milk, snake, milky, milking, milked, milkman, buttermilk, milkmaid, milkweed