User:Kennedyltaylor/sandbox

Behavior
The California kingsnake is a cathemeral species of snake; they may be active day or night depending on ambient temperatures. During colder months they retreat underground and enter a hibernation-like state called brumation. When disturbed, California kingsnakes will often coil their bodies to hide their heads, hiss, and rattle their tails, which can produce a sound somewhat resembling that of a rattlesnake. When they are nervous they tend to twitch their tails. They are considered harmless to humans, but if handled it is common for this species to bite, as well as excrete musk and fecal contents from their cloaca. It is also common for this musky odor to be excreted when the snake feels threatened.

California Kingsnakes, along with other reptiles and amphibians in winter months brumate, to regulate body temperatures during cold temperatures. Also in efforts to regulate body temperatures, California kingsnakes tend to burrow underneath vegetation or other coverings to cool down, and bask in the sun to increase their internal temperatures.

Reproduction
The typical clutch size is five to 12 eggs with an average of nine, though clutches of 20 or more eggs are known. The hatchlings usually emerge another 40–65 days later and are approximately eight to 13 inches in length. Newly hatched kingsnakes stay in their nest for about one week, before shedding their first coat of skin and eventually leaving the nest. Adult California kingsnakes are most commonly 2.5–3.5 feet in length, and rarely exceed four feet.