The bright red of the milksnake can also cause people to confuse it with the venomous coral snake, but you can tell the two apart by the yellow band that lines a coral snake and not a milksnake. But unlike the copperhead, the milksnake has round pupils, the pattern on its back looks like spots rather than an hourglass shape and its belly has a checkerboard pattern as opposed to a solid cream color. When the milksnake takes on a darker tan color it is commonly mistaken for the venomous copperhead snake. Milksnakes exhibit what’s known as Batesian mimicry, which is when a harmless species evolves to look like a dangerous species to keep itself safe from predators. However, considering the wide variety of tones displayed by milksnakes, the color is not a significant indicator of age. Each snake displays its most intense colors when it hatches and will become darker as it grows. The critter is known for its display of brilliant red spots surrounded by black borders and off-white stripes, though the coloration of the snake can vary greatly depending on what region it’s living in.Their base color can range from cream to tan to a light grey and the large red spots can vary from a vivid, bright red to a darker copper color. The beauty of the eastern milksnake is rarely seen due to the reptile’s habit of burrowing underground and hiding under rocks and logs, but even if you do see one, they can be particularly tricky to identify. 1/3 (Photo courtesy of dfambro/iNaturalist CC BY-NC) (An eastern milksnake in Cockeysville, Maryland shows the bright red blotches and cream-colored base that milksnakes are known for.
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