Bull snakes

The Bull snake is one of North America's longest snakes, growing to a maximum length of roughly 8 feet (and the United States). These snakes are not poisonous and are thought to be a subspecies of gopher snakes (Pituophis catenifer).

These snakes have skin that ranges in color from white to black to brown to yellow with some reddish blotching. They have three spots on each side, and their tail has several black bands.

Bull snakes are extremely potent constrictors that consume ground-nesting birds, bird eggs, and lizards in addition to small animals including mice, moles, rats, pocket gophers, and ground squirrels. They may attack bird nests (and birdhouses) using their climbing skills to consume the nestlings or the seated mother. Five tiny birds can be consumed by a snake in 15 minutes. Bull snake young are reliant on tiny lizards, frogs, and young mice.

Bull snakes may occasionally consume rattlesnakes, which is commonly cited as a justification for humans not to harm bull snakes when they come into contact with them in the wild. This is a highly uncommon event, since just 2 of the 1000 bull snakes studied in the research had a rattlesnake in their stomach contents.