Are chicken snakes and rat snakes the same?

Chicken snakes and rat snakes are synonymous terms, which means they are the same thing. All chicken snakes will eat rats, and all rat snakes will eat baby chickens. Remember, the classification of chicken snake isn’t one kind of snake but several snakes that fall into one category.

How do you identify a chicken snake?

How do you identify a chicken snake? They can be identified by the vivid black and yellow or sometimes black, yellow and orange pattern of their scales. They are often very long snakes and quite narrow. Chicken snakes are semi-arboreal and can often be found in trees.

What do Texas chicken snakes look like?

The Texas rat snake is a fairly large snake, capable of attaining lengths past six feet. They vary greatly in color and patterning throughout their range, but they are typically yellow or tan in color, with brown to olive-green, irregular blotching from head to tail.

What does a chicken or rat snake look like?

It is black, with whitish chin and throat—like the true black snake (see racer)—but has slightly keeled dorsal scales. Other races of E. obsoleta are tan, gray, yellow, reddish, or brown, and some are blotched or striped.

Will a Texas rat snake bite you?

They are somewhat aggressive snakes and can bite but remember, they are non-venomous. Their bite is very weak and often leaves nothing more than a scratch. Texas rat snakes can lay up to 20 eggs and they hatch in about 2 months.

Are chicken snakes in Texas?

The Texas Rat Snake is the ONLY large snake in the Austin-area that climbs! It commonly climbs trees, sides of buildings, etc… The Texas Rat Snake is often incorrectly called a ‘chicken snake’, probably because of its fondness for hen’s eggs. It is often misidentified for several reasons.

Why do they call them chicken snakes?

Rat snakes are often called chicken snakes because they hang around chicken coops. Their intent is to eat rats and mice, but after they’ve cleared out the rodents they look around for something else to eat.

Are Texas rat snakes poisonous?

Texas rat snakes are non-venomous, killing their prey by constriction.