milk snake
Noun: 1. A nonvenomous, constricting snake (Lampropeltis triangulum) of the king snake family, native to the Americas. It is characterized by a tan or brown body with darker blotches or bands, often including an arrowhead-shaped marking on the head. Some regional varieties, particularly in the southeastern United States, have red, black, and yellow or white banding that closely resembles the venomous coral snake.
- As a subject: "The milk snake is often mistaken for the venomous coral snake due to its similar coloration."
- As an object: "We found a milk snake hiding under the old log pile."
- With a modifier: "The eastern milk snake is a common resident of farmland and forests."
- The common name "milk snake" originates from the folk belief that these snakes would sneak into barns to drink milk from cows, which is biologically impossible.
- Its scientific name, , refers to its smooth, shiny scales ("lampro") and the often triangular-shaped blotches ("triangulum").
- The resemblance to the coral snake is a classic example of Batesian mimicry, where a harmless species evolves to imitate the warning signals of a harmful one.
- King snake (n): The broader family of constrictors to which the milk snake belongs. All are nonvenomous.
- Lampropeltis triangulum (n): The scientific binomial name for the milk snake.
- Scarlet kingsnake (n): A specific color morph of the milk snake (, sometimes classified as a subspecies of ) with bright red, black, and yellow bands, making it a near-perfect mimic of the coral snake.
- House snake (regional name)
- Checkered adder (regional name)
- Coral snake mimic (descriptive term)
A common rhyme used in North America to distinguish a milk snake (and other harmless mimics) from a coral snake is: "Red on black, friend of Jack; red on yellow, kills a fellow." This refers to the order of the colored bands. A milk snake typically has red bands touching black bands, while the venomous coral snake has red bands touching yellow bands.
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nonvenomous tan and brown king snake with an arrow-shaped occipital spot; southeastern ones have red stripes like coral snakes
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