Pedigree and places of natural residence, behavior features of the maize snake, reproduction, characteristics of appearance, advice on maintenance and care, price. There are people who dream of a pet from early childhood, but they don't like dogs and cats, another thing is a reptile. You can safely say to such people that their time has come, now you can easily get any snake and buy everything you need to keep it, probably in any pet store.
Snakes are truly amazing creatures, one can only envy their beauty and graceful behavior, it seems that you can look at the terrarium in which such a miracle of nature lives for hours and that will not be enough.
In the event that you want some special and beautiful pet from the snake world, but you have absolutely no experience in dealing with such extraordinary creatures, turn your attention to the patterned maize snake. This is just a godsend for fans of everything extraordinary. Delightful exterior, ease of maintenance - that's all about him.
The origin and range of the patterned maize stripe
It is not a great discovery for anyone that the large and diverse world of snakes has long tickled the interest of not only people who are engaged in science, but also all those who, at least once in their life, had such an opportunity to contemplate this creation of nature with their own eyes. Since ancient times, more and more new varieties of these delightful representatives of the kingdom of fauna have become known to the world. The patterned maize snake is no exception, which the inhabitants of our large planet Earth learned about back in 1773. The study of this species continued for many years, at the end of all research, scientists still managed to make a single decision and classified this miracle of nature into the class of reptiles, the order of scaly, the suborder of the snake and the family of the already-shaped. In addition, a separate genus was distinguished called climbing runners.
If we talk about the natural distribution area of this climbing snake, then we can say without hesitation that it is quite wide. This amazing reptile inhabits countries such as Korea, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan. It is also found in Afghanistan, Northern Iran, Mongolia, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, China and many other states. As for the area in which this already-like one prefers to live, it is safe to say that not only a person, but also any other animal can envy such an ability to adapt to the most varied environmental conditions, like his. In the event that you find yourself in a steppe area or in a desert or semi-desert region, you can be sure that there is an opportunity to meet this living phenomenon of nature. The patterned snake feels quite excellently in a dense overgrown area of coniferous and mixed forests. Some individuals can settle near rivers and swampy locations, in alpine meadows, on rocky slopes and even in mountainous areas, while rising to an altitude of over 3000 meters above sea level.
Patterned maize behavior in open nature
The period of activity of this original scaly falls in the daytime, throughout the daylight hours this representative of the world fauna is in motion all the time, since by nature he has got so many skills and talents. He is simply a “master of sports” in mountaineering, so he can easily conquer the tops of not only tall trees and bushes, but even the average height of mountains and rocks. In addition, he is a good swimmer, with great pleasure he dives into a wide variety of reservoirs, where he can afford to dive and even go fishing a little. Due to such a diverse activity, it is impossible to say for sure which way of life he prefers - terrestrial or still arboreal. This reptile can move at an enviable speed, both on the surface of the earth, sometimes wrapped in a forest litter of fallen leaves and branches, and along the branches of trees.
The diet of the patterned maize snake strongly depends on the conditions and in what territories it lives. Like all other members of the snake family, this patterned creature has a strong love for various small mammals as food. In addition to them, his daily diet includes small birds, snakes, a wide variety of insects, fish, amphibians. If this bright reptile has such an opportunity, then it will never give up bird eggs, which are located in nests high in the trees. There are also cases when there are very few food products on the territory occupied by these snakes, then a real struggle for survival among their entire population begins, because they can devour their closest neighbor, who is their blood relative, without much remorse.
At night, these "hard workers" prefer to rest, while safely hiding from all the inhabitants of the area. As a personal dwelling, the maize snake chooses for itself crevices and voids between rocky ruins, rhizomes of trees and shrub thickets, hollows and holes previously constructed by other animals. They also tend to fall into winter sleep, which often begins in November and lasts until April, but these periods are very relative. Indeed, in some corners where snakes live, the cold begins earlier, for example, in September, then the scaly begins its wintering, and in the southern part of the reptile's habitat, spring comes earlier, therefore, awakening should be expected by mid-February.
Continuation of the genus of the patterned maize snake
In these amazing living creatures, the mating season begins approximately in mid-April, when the winter cold will definitely not return and lasts somewhere until the end of May, in some even until the end of June. After a successful mating process, the female goes in search of a safe place where she could lay her eggs. Most often, for such a responsible procession, the expectant mother chooses a thick forest litter, overripe grass or the dust of rotten trees, it is there that her future babies are reliably protected from the cold. The number of eggs in one such clutch is about 6 to 30 pieces. The incubation period lasts about one to four weeks, if a female individual could not find a place for her clutch for a long time, then this period can be reduced to about two weeks, and all because the embryos begin to actively develop while still in the oviducts of their mother. After the end of the incubation period, small snakes are born, the length of their miniature bodies does not exceed 25 cm, and their body weight ranges from 3 to 10 grams.
Characteristics of the external appearance of the patterned maize snake
If we talk about the outer shell of such a miracle of nature, then we should start with the parameters of the body. This figured handsome man is rather big in size, its delightful body is approximately 130–160 cm long, while the length of the caudal process is about 20–35 cm. The entire surface of its body is wrapped in scales, which differ in structure depending on what part of the body they cover. So the scales located on the lateral sides of the reptile are smooth in texture, but those elements that are located on the dorsal side of the snake are distinguished by the presence of fine ribbing.
The color of the skin is probably the most important attraction of this reptile, because it is not only not uniform, but also decorated with many different patterns. So the basic tone of the color of the snake is brownish-gray, in some individuals with a slight brownish tint. Against the main background, you can easily see four beautiful regular stripes, which are placed longitudinally, two of them stretch to the very tail. These linear decorations are painted in a dark brown color, along with small specks of charcoal black. The upper part of the head is also not devoid of ornament, and its peculiarity is that every year the shape and complexity of this pattern in the snake tends to change. A dark stripe begins from the interorbital region, which reaches approximately to the middle of the neck. The projection of the abdominal cavity is painted either in light gray or in a light yellowish color scheme. Against this background, one cannot fail to notice beautiful reddish blotches, and in some specimens, large dark spots. Often in nature there are maize snakes, which are presented in coal-black colors, these are the so-called melanists, they are not some separate subspecies, like, for example, albinos, which are extremely rare. After each molting process, the color changes significantly, becoming more pronounced, rich and beautiful.
The maintenance of the maize snake, care
If you have made the decision that you want such an extraordinary pet, then before you bring him into your house or apartment, you need to make sure that he immediately has his own roof over his head. A spacious horizontal terrarium is perfect as a personal home for a maize snake. When choosing a terrarium, be sure to take into account the fact that this exotic creation of nature is already very mobile, for this reason it will need plenty of space.
It is good to lay a fairly wide layer of substrate at the bottom of his personal house, as the latter it is best to use large sawdust, tree bark or gravel, it is better not to pour sand, since the snake can eat it, which will certainly backfire on the state of the pet's gastrointestinal tract. It is imperative that this amazing companion has his personal pool in his possession, there he will dive and swim, and during his natural "wardrobe renewal" your pet will spend most of the time there, as water makes molting less painful and unpleasant. In addition, do not forget that the reptile will drink water from there, so make sure that it is always clean.
The air humidity coefficient is one of the most important components of the comfortable life of a patterned snake at home. In addition to the fact that a container with water is already a source of moisture, you will have to regularly spray the terrarium with a spray bottle, just remember that in no case should you spray directly on its inhabitant. Although the snakes are not famous for their aggressive character, but nevertheless it will not be some kind of stress for them, after that the scaly one may start to be afraid of you and even show aggression, you do not need the same. It will be very good to place a little sphagnum moss in one of the corners of the terrarium, because your patterned maize snake will not be able to soak in the water for the entire duration of the molt, but it will be pleasant for him to wrap himself up in such moss.
The air temperature in the room with the snake should be constant and optimal, sudden changes can lead to serious health problems for your exotic friend. When choosing a heater for your terrarium, it is better to focus on a thermal cord or thermal mat, as incandescent bulbs can leave their imprint in the form of a severe burn on the delicate skin of your reptile. Such heating devices must be installed in one of the corners of the terrarium, where the thermometer should not fall below 33-35 degrees in the daytime, the farther from this hot spot, the cooler it will be, so you leave the choice of microclimate for your domestic snake. The temperature at night should be between 20 and 24 degrees.
The duration of daylight hours for the maize snake should be at least 12 hours, it seems possible to maintain it with the help of an ultraviolet lamp, which will also irradiate the body of your pupil with its rays.
As for winter sleep, then you need to be one hundred percent sure where your pet reptile came to you from. If you know for sure that your friend was bred in captivity, then he does not need to hibernate, it will be enough to slightly lower the air temperature in the terrarium for about one month and stop offering food, such a rest will be more than enough for him. But if the snake that lives next to you was caught in the wild, then in no case should you disrupt its natural biorhythms - this will be a very destructive measure for your friend, therefore such individuals need to arrange a full hibernation, gradually lowering the temperature and the length of daylight hours …
Do not forget that although it is a snake, it also needs somewhere to sleep and somewhere to retire, so take care of shelters, you can make them with your own hands from soft improvised materials, or buy such houses at a pet store. In addition, your pet's housing needs to be decorated with different branches, trees and shelves, it will be both beautiful and useful for him. Indeed, in nature, he is accustomed to an active lifestyle, and the availability of various climbing devices will not only prevent your scaly friend from getting bored, but will also well maintain his physical shape and health in general. Feeding such a pet as a patterned maize snake is not difficult. As a main meal for this wilderness, you can offer laboratory mice, quails, chickens, quail eggs and even hamsters. The frequency of feeding of adults is about once every five days. Of course, if you feed the snake every other day, it will not refuse, but this cannot be done. It is very easy to overfeed such a pet, and obesity is a direct path to the death of the already-like one, so watch carefully when your pet has isolated the products of its vital activity, then you can already treat it to something tasty.
Remember to improve your friend's health from time to time with a variety of beneficial supplements. It is good to add some alkaline mineral water to the snake pool about once a month. Also, the snake needs calcium, you can offer it in the form of crushed eggshell, or sprinkle the feed with vitamins, which include this element. If you decide to buy special combined feeding for your scaly, then you should consult with your veterinarian before starting such treatment procedures.
Purchase and price of a patterned maize snake
Today, snakes are quite common domestic reptiles, so it is completely unproblematic to buy them even within our homeland, the main thing is, do not hesitate to demand from the sellers all the necessary documents for the scaly one. After all, if you buy a patterned snake caught in the open nature, you not only contribute to the development of such a bad craft as poaching, but big problems can arise with such a pet. For example, a living creature torn from its natural environment hardly adapts to new living conditions or does not get used at all, not to mention the fact that a snake can be infected with many diseases. The average cost of such a beautiful exotic varies from 1,000 to 4,000 rubles.
The content and description of the maize snake in the video below:
