Albino Pine Snake (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus)
The Pine Snake is found in the United States (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia). These snakes prefer pine flatwoods, sandy pine-oak woodlands, prairies, cultivated fields, open brushland, rocky desert, and chaparral.
Adults are large, growing 4 to 5 feet in length, and are powerfully built. The head is small and somewhat pointed. The typical color pattern consists of a light ground color overlaid with black, brown or reddish-brown blotches. However, the albino is considered to be a color morph, consisting of white, muted yellow or tan colors. Some albinos exhibit a faint pattern and some do not have a pattern at all.
When disturbed, it will often hiss loudly, sometimes flattening its head, vibrate its tail and eventually strike at an intruder. Some specimens will use “cloacal popping” as a defense mechanism. To make the sound, the snake contracts its cloacal sphincter, forcing air (and any other material that happens to be there) out. It is an extremely foul smell that sometimes scares away predators.
The Pine Snake is a constrictor and will ambush and forage for its food. When foraging, it will often enter rodent burrows, making multiple kills by pressing the mice against the walls of the burrow. They also prey on moles, small mammals and bird\’s eggs.
These snakes will lay clutches of 3-24 eggs usually between June and August. The eggs are deposited in sandy burrows or under large rocks or logs and hatch after 64-79 days. The eggs are adherent and quite large, up to 2â… inches long by 1 ¾ inches wide. The hatchlings measure between 13 to 17 ¾ inches in total length.
Information courtesy of wikipedia.org/wiki/Pituophis_melanoleucus
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