Orange snakes are a unique and captivating type of snake. With their brightly colored scales, orange snakes stand out among other snake species.
If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: There are a small number of snake species in the world that sometimes display orange coloring, such as milksnakes and corn snakes. These brightly hued snakes are generally harmless to humans.
In this comprehensive guide, we will delve deep into the world of orange snakes. We’ll discover what specific snake species are known to have orange color variants, we’ll learn about the genetic mutations that produce their vibrant hues, and we’ll uncover some of the coolest orange snakes in herpetoculture.
What Snake Species Can Be Orange
Milksnakes
Several different subspecies of milksnakes exhibit brilliant orange coloration. The strikingly pigmented eastern milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum) sports hues of red, black, and yellow bands interspersed with orange blotches. Pretty awesome!
Meanwhile, the scarce coastal milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum elapsoides) boasts a grey body accented with orange-red blotches surrounded by black. Stunningly gorgeous!
Vibrant orange is also seen in milksnake locales like the Pueblan milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum campbelli), whose tricolor pattern features a grayish background with brick red saddles edged in black and centered with orange. Totally rad!
The Honduran milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis) also joins the bright-orange club with its gray and cream scales complemented by reddish-orange bands outlined in dark brown or black.
Corn Snakes
Several color morphs of the docile corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus) exhibit exotic orange tones. The amelanistic corn snake lacks dark pigment, revealing scintillating hues of orange and red. Meanwhile, the amber and bloodred varieties showcase gorgeous orange patterning.
The creamsicle morph is a sight to behold, with sharp contrasts between gooey orange and creamy white bands down its length. Awesomely amazing!
Other morphs like the coral snow corn snake display powdery orange sprinkled with red freckles on a clean white background. Equally stunning is the lava corn snake, boiling over with intense orange flooded with yellow and crimson. With so many lovely options, it’s no wonder corn snakes make rad pets!
Kingsnakes
Several subspecies of kingsnakes can also don fierce orange hues. The regal California kingsnake shows off white scales trimmed in charcoal bands with bright orange interspersed. Meanwhile, the speckled kingsnake’s black hide is decorated with white and bright coral dots. Stunning!
Other kings exhibiting rad orange tones include the Florida scarlet kingsnake, whose rose-orange sheen sizzles atop jet black scales, and the brooksville kingsnake, cloaked in charcoal with pops of tangerine bands along its length.
Thanks to unusual pigment mutations, even the common kingsnake sometimes appears in creamsicle shades of orange and vanilla white. Awesomely cool!
Genetic Mutations That Produce Orange Coloring
Lack of Melanin
Melanin is the pigment primarily responsible for skin, hair, and eye color in animals. A lack of melanin leads to albinism, causing animals to have white or very pale skin and hair. However, some snakes with a lack of melanin demonstrate orange or reddish coloration rather than pure white.
This effect results from xanthin, a yellow pigment, showing through the transparent layer of skin on snakes that lack dark melanin pigmentation.
Certain morphs or genetic mutations in snakes, such as albino and hypomelanistic mutations, reduce melanin production. So snakes with these mutations often appear orange or red rather than black, brown, or green.
Well-known examples include albino and Sunfire/Ghost morphs of corn snakes and milk snakes. The orange coloring results from a light refraction effect rather than actual orange pigment.
Selective Breeding
Snake breeders have selectively bred various species over multiple generations to produce morphs exhibiting vibrant orange coloration. Through combining rare natural mutations affecting pigmentation, breeders have created varieties of corn snakes, milk snakes, and king snakes that display stunning orange patterns and highlights.
By selectively breeding those snakes exhibiting desireable traits each generation, mutations can become concentrated and enhanced. Popular examples include Sunkissed, Butter, and Creamsicle morphs of corn snakes and milk snakes.
The intense orange hues result from genetic factors including hypoerythrism, hypomelanism, and anerythrism interacting.
Temperature-Dependent Sex Determination
In many reptiles, including several snake species, sex chromosomes do not determine sex of offspring. Instead, ambient temperature during a critical phase of embryonic development influences whether eggs hatch as male or female, a phenomenon called temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD).
Interestingly, high incubation temperatures can also affect snake coloration.
A 2015 study found king snakes incubated at relatively lower temperatures hatched with normal coloration. But warmer incubation led to excessive reddish-orange pigmentation. Researchers believe temperature affects activity levels of certain color-influencing enzymes during development.
Care for Pet Orange Snakes
Housing
When housing pet orange snakes like corn snakes or milk snakes, bigger is usually better. These nonvenomous snakes are active explorers, so provide an enclosure with a minimum length equal to the adult size of the snake (at least 20 gallons).
The enclosure should have a screen top for ventilation and substrate like aspen shavings or reptile bark to allow burrowing. Be sure to include plenty of hiding spots, climbing branches, and enrichment elements to keep your snake engaged and healthy.
Temperature & Humidity
Orange snakes thrive at slightly warmer temperatures of 75-80°F. Provide a heating pad on one side of the tank to allow for a thermal gradient, and use digital thermometer/hygrometers ($15 on Amazon) to monitor the enclosure climate. The humidity level should be maintained at 40-60%.
Sprinkling the enclosure and providing a humid hide will aid shedding. Proper heating and humidity is key for pet snakes to properly digest food and strengthen their immune system.
Feeding
Hatchling orange snakes can be fed pinky mice once every 5-7 days. Adult snakes fare well on adult mice or rat pups every 7-10 days. It’s important to pick appropriate prey size – about the same width as the widest part of the snake.
Before feeding, move the snake to a separate enclosure without any substrate to prevent accidental ingestion. Never handle the snake for at least a day after feeding to allow proper digestion.
Handling
Gentle and deliberate handling will allow orange snakes to become comfortable interacting with their owners. Start handling sessions when the snake is young and aim for consistency. Always support the snake’s entire body and move slowly as you handle it.
Limit handling to 15-20 minutes 1-2 times a week, and never handle during the shed cycle or for at least a day after feeding. With regular gentle handling, your orange snake will come to enjoy your interactions!
Notable Orange Snakes in Captivity
Tangerine Honduran Milk Snake
The Tangerine Honduran Milk Snake is a brilliant orange color morph of the Honduran Milk Snake species (Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis). They are docile, easy to care for, and make excellent pets.
Tangerine Honduran Milk Snakes hatchlings have vivid reddish-orange bands that fade to a bright tangerine orange color as adults. Their contrasting black and white markings between the vibrant orange bands stand out beautifully.
These snakes thrive at a temperature range of 75-85°F and do well on a diet of mice. Expect adult lengths of 2-4 feet for Tangerine Honduran Milk Snakes. Proper housing requires an escape-proof terrarium or rack system with adequate hides, clean water, and substrate.
According to reptile breeding websites like MorphMarket.com, Tangerine Honduran Milk Snakes remain quite popular in the pet trade for their striking colors and pleasant temperament.
Sunkissed Anery Corn Snake
The Sunkissed Anery Corn Snake morph has a delightful orange hue. As hatchlings, these corn snakes exhibit a muted peach undertone with grayish coloring. After a few sheds, the orange and cream tones become more vibrant and pronounced.
Compared to normal Corn Snakes, the Anery gene eliminates most red pigment, allowing the lighter peach and yellow tones to show through prominently. The Sunkissed line selectively bred those Anery Corn Snakes exhibiting the brightest tangerine and melon shades.
Adults reach lengths of 3-5 feet. Care requirements are like most Corn Snake morphs, including housing them singly at 75-85°F and feeding an appropriately sized mouse every 5-7 days. Their calm demeanor and reasonable adult size make Sunkissed Anery Corn Snakes an exceptional pet snake choice.
Flame Western Hognose
The Flame Western Hognose Snake morph has striking patterns in shades of dark and light orange. Their base color is a rich reddish-orange with darker brownish-orange saddles and blotches. The high contrast makes their markings stand out boldly.
These snakes are somewhat small, only reaching lengths of 2-3 feet as adults. Despite their relatively tiny size compared to other pet snake species, Flame Western Hognoses have quite the appetite. Their favorite treat is amphibians like frogs and toads.
In captivity, though, they readily accept frozen-thawed mice or frogs.
Fun fact: When threatened, Western Hognose Snakes will flatten their neck and hiss loudly, putting on an impressive threat display. If the perceived threat continues, they will roll onto their back and play dead, going as far as to emit a foul musk from their cloaca to complete the act!
For more details on keeping and breeding vibrant orange morphs of pet snakes, check out websites like:
World of Ball Pythons
Corn Snakes
Hognose Snakes
Conclusion
Orange snakes captivate herpetoculture enthusiasts and casual observers alike with their vibrant, unexpected colors. As we’ve discovered, just a few specific snake species have the potential to display brilliant orange hues thanks to genetic mutations that limit melanin production.
With their eye-catching looks and generally docile dispositions, orange color morphs of milksnakes, corn snakes, kingsnakes and more make excellent pet snakes when cared for properly.
The future looks bright for orange snakes as breeders continue to selectively breed for increasingly vivid color mutations.