Bull Snake      Pituophis melanoleucus sayi

The bullsnake has a tanish/yellowish body with dark blotches along the back. The blotches in the center are paler and then darker at each end. The belly is a pale yellow with black spots.  A dark band is found from eye to eye. Another dark band is angled from each eye to the jaw with a band of lighter band above it. The scales are keeled (ridged.)

The bull snake lives in prairies and sand prairies and though terrestrial, it will climb on occasion. Primarily diurnal (active in the day) this snake hunts and hides in vegetation, rock piles and mammal burrows. When disturbed, the bull snake will hiss and vibrate its tail. It over-winters in small mammal burrows, under rock piles or in rock crevices.

As mating occurs in the spring, the female deposits her eggs in rotten wood between June or July. As with other snake species, the eggs stick to each other as they are being laid. The eggs will hatch in August or September long after the egg-layer has moved on.  The act of constricting prey to kill it is an inborn survival trait.