Sexy Rex ..my Pacific Gopher (LTC)

[Aminah Undone]

I mentioned my favorite colubrid in the other "What's your favorite.. ?" thread, but I thought I'd post some pics of my sweet boy here.


He's grown a bit since I got him (maybe 50g or so), but I switched him from adult mice to 6-8 week old rats ..and it shows   


He shed about a week ago.. and I just love the salmon'y color that is on his tail area ..only if I had a better camera (or lighting... we're in the bathroom for this..  ) to make it show up


This mug is usually hanging off the top of my head, flickering my ears or eyes ..freaks his fans out... and generally being "cheeky". He's great with kids and fearful adults   

[JETZEN]

very nice specimen.....and very healthy looking........being fed rats will make him get huge.

is he a WC or a CB?

[Aminah Undone]

Thank you, JETZEN! 

He's a Long Term Captive... so WC, once upon a time.. long, long ago 

[JETZEN]

i believe 8' is the record for them.......huge for a colubrid IMO

[Aminah Undone]

If Rexy gets anywhere near 8', that will be awesome! I think he has the potential to get well over 6' ..as he's just about 2 to 2.5 years old ..he's over 4' now ...and he's well on his way to 500g. I'd have to weigh him again.. he may already be passed that   

[JETZEN]

8' is just the record.......the aveage for a middle aged adult would be about 5' ......for a old adult it is over 6'.

like i said b/4 i used to observe huge gopher snakes occupying highly populated ground squirrel colonies......i imagine they would locate underground squirrel nests and gorge.

[Aminah Undone]

Our marinas are full of ground squirrel "things" ...so I should probably take a closer look for snakes when I'm walking during the warmer months. I might find some good stuff!   

[JETZEN]

Our marinas are full of ground squirrel "things" ...so I should probably take a closer look for snakes when I'm walking during the warmer months. I might find some good stuff!   

marinas? is that a mtn range? it dos'nt sound familier......but i know for a fact ...ground squirrel habitat produces lots of big gopher snakes.

[Aminah Undone]

The marinas are around the various San Francisco Bay outlets/inlets ..where boats are docked, too. I am probably thinking of a different beast than you are, JETZEN.

The "squirrels" around the marinas are in ground dwellings ..random holes, tunnels, etc. ..and I've never seen any snakes nearby ..in 20+ years here... but I see a few little Western Fence Lizards on occasion.

There's probably a different "ground squirrel" up in the Grass Valley Loop ..which is where Rex was first discovered ..when he was a really young juvenile. That region of trails isn't exactly mountainous ..more hill'y than mountain'y. (Don't ya just love my technical banter?     )

When it warms up, I'm definitely going to do some more herping. Of late, I've just been going up and looking for various arachnids ...I like "bugs" too, y'see?  LOL   I think I can get hubby to accompany me for some herping now ..I've been working on him some. He's even been to his first reptile show! Took me 10 years or so.. but he'll stay in the same room when someone is out, too.   

[Franz-maul]

Great snake !!
Awesome colors...I really like this guy !!