Pine Snake
Pine Snake (Pituophis melanoleucus)
Born: unknown Arrival Date: February 15, 2007, from Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA)
Pine Snake is the most expressive of our snakes. He has an attitude, and he’ll let his handlers know it! He tends to prefer certain handlers, so he is not commonly brought to our programs. Our pine snake entered our care as a result of a TWRA confiscation. Pine snakes are rarely seen in nature by people because they spend a majority of their lives underground. As the only snake in our region that can actively dig, they prefer loose, loamy soils.
We want to emphasize that it is illegal to own any native animal as a pet in the state of Tennessee, including this species. Please be respectful of native animals and leave them be in their natural habitat.
Pine Snake is visible to the public on the boardwalk near our Welcome Center. He is also in our program rotation, which means he is a possible candidate for our educational wildlife programs. We believe in the animal’s consent, so we will only bring out an ambassador who feels up to the challenge for any given program.