California kingsnake
Scientific name: Lampropeltis californiae (Blainville, 1835)
Overview
The California kingsnake is a nonvenomous colubrid snake endemic to the western United States and northern Mexico, and is found in a variety of habitats. Due to ease of care and a wide range of color variations, the California kingsnake is one of the most popular snakes in captivity.
From the Wikipedia article “California kingsnake”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2022.2.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: USA (California, S. Oregon, W/S Nevada, S Utah, Arizona.
Common names
Also known in English as Black Desert Kingsnake [nigrita], Mexican Black Kingsnake.
Names in other languages (5)
- Chinese
- 加州王蛇
- German
- Kalifornische Königsnatter
- Japanese
- カリフォルニアキングヘビ
- Persian
- شاهمار کالیفرنیا
- Spanish
- Barila de California
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Reptile Database.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q3216841, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “California kingsnake”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — Calibas, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026