Curiosity and the King snake...

Starbuck · 03-13-14, 06:01 AM

I had my female cali king out last night for some handling and explore time. We were just kind of watching her move around on the floor, and handling sporadically, etc. I had a large black cloth bag in the corner, and wanted to see what she would do if i put it in front of her as a safe retreat (the lights were on and there really wasn't much for her to hide around or feel secure, she kept moving towards us to hide under our legs etc).
I picked up the bag and placed it about a foot in front of her, and she immediately froze, and started tongue flicking. Im guessing she saw this giant blog black thing descend in front of her, and it didn't smell at all familiar so she was scared (?). The bag was used to keep an inflatable mattress, so smelled pretty strongly of plastic/nylon.

I waited for about a minute to see what she would do, whether she would exhibit curiosity and investigate the new object as a potential hiding spot, or whether she would move away from it as something alien and potentially dangerous. Instead she just remained there, completely exposed, with the occasional tongue flick. My boyfriend got tired of waiting and moved her towards the bag, and once the touched it with her nose she decided the shelter was better than the weird smells and she curled up underneath it. When we moved the bag, she acted a little defensive (what i would expect from a snake in the wild when you pick up a rock or whatever), and would then try to move back towards the bag.

Im curious if any of you have seen evidence of curiosity on snakes (please try to be objective) in situations like this, where they are presented with a completely novel object or situation, and how they react.
Has anyone seen the opposite of curiosity, where the snake choses not to interact with the new object?

Obviously my little experiment doesn't count since the snake wasn't given the option/choice to investigate the bag, but i think i may try something similar in the future when i have some of my critters out for handling.

**Pareeeee** · 03-13-14, 09:03 AM

Different species seem to be more curious than others. When I open my Rosy Boa's tub, for example, he will start flicking his tongue and move towards my hand to investigate. Not much fear with him. He really seems to explore more than look for a hiding spot.

My BP, on the other hand, seems to be all about instinct. Open his tub and he will NOT move. He will remain frozen, in his hide, hoping the human will not touch him today. When I take him out, all he wants is a place to curl up and hide.

drumcrush · 03-13-14, 10:32 AM

My Mbk is always curious when she spots my cat. She will also follow my hand around.

sharthun · 03-13-14, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drumcrush

My Mbk is always curious when she spots my cat. She will also follow my hand around.

My MBK is the same way and my Black Milk. Seem very curious and not shy at all and check out anything new inside and outside their enclosures. My albino prairie king is always skid-dish and shy.

drumcrush · 03-13-14, 10:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharthun

My MBK is the same way and my Black Milk. Seem very curious and not shy at all and check out anything new inside and outside their enclosures. My albino prairie king is always skid-dish and shy.

Yeah, mrs. Buttercup is still skiddy and shy. I'm hoping for that to change by the end of this year