Lampropeltis getula nigra: Black King Snake

Black Kings' scales are characteristic for being very smooth and shiny. These snakes can grow as long as anywhere from 91 to 122 centimeters. They live in parts of Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Tennessee, and also northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. Black Kings live in edge habitats, where fields meet forests, and in the burrows of rodents and ruins of abandoned buildings. They are not particularly located based on bodies of water and they require temperatures of 81 to 91 degrees Fahrenheit.

King snakes will primarily eat hognosed snakes, red-bellied snakes, black rat snakes, fence lizards, red spotted newts, house mice, and meadow voles. In captivity, these snakes need to eat as often as every 7 to 10 days. For mating male king snakes will pin each other to the ground and once one of them admits defeat the winner will go entangle himself with the female that was disputed over. The males are known to bite the females' necks during reproduction. A female may produce anywhere from 3 to 24 offspring. Black king snakes help their ecosystems by maintaining the populations of rodents, frogs, rattlesnakes, and cottonmouths. They also are prey for larger snakes, mammals, and birds of prey. They are also very helpful to humans by keeping the venomous snake populations down.

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Lampropeltis_getula/#food_habits
http://www.the-livingrainforest.co.uk/living/images/caresheet/fRAIXEGOn-mexican%20black%20king%20snake.jpg
http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/information/?s=030030
http://www.thekingsnake.co.uk/Common_king_snakes_care_sheet.htm
http://www.blackkingsnake.com/about/habitat