The Gopher Snake (Pituophis catenifer) is one of North America’s most widespread non-venomous snakes. This large constrictor can reach lengths of over eight feet and occupies a vast range stretching from southwestern Canada down to northern Mexico. The species is a significant ecological agent, playing a crucial role in controlling rodent populations across diverse habitats, including gophers, mice, and ground squirrels.
Apex Avian Hunters
The greatest threat to a fully grown Gopher Snake often comes from powerful raptors. These avian predators possess the size and strength to overpower the long and muscular reptiles. Red-tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) are common diurnal hunters that survey open fields and grasslands where Gopher Snakes bask or hunt.
Great Horned Owls (Bubo virginianus) represent the nocturnal threat, using their keen eyesight and silent flight to ambush snakes moving after dark. Hunting snakes carries a risk for the bird; documented cases show the constrictor coiling around the owl, resulting in a mutual fatality.
Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) will opportunistically take snakes they spot from high altitudes, though they prey mostly on mammals. The eagle’s hunting technique involves a swift dive, aiming to pin the snake’s head with its powerful talons.
Ground-Based Mammalian Threats
A number of terrestrial carnivores actively hunt or opportunistically consume Gopher Snakes. Coyotes (Canis latrans) and foxes, such as the Kit Fox (Vulpes macrotis), use their acute sense of smell to track the reptiles. These canids pounce on a snake in the open, pinning it to the ground with their forepaws before delivering a fatal bite.
The American Badger (Taxidea taxus) is a specialized threat, given that Gopher Snakes often use rodent burrows for hunting and shelter. The badger is a powerful fossorial predator known for its ability to rapidly excavate dens. It will dig into the snake’s subterranean refuge, trapping and consuming the reptile underground.
Bobcats (Lynx rufus) are stealthy hunters that stalk their prey in brush and rocky areas, and they will readily attack Gopher Snakes. Smaller mammalian predators like raccoons and skunks also pose a threat, though they typically target the more vulnerable hatchlings and eggs.
Intraspecies and Juvenile Predation
The threat to Gopher Snakes includes other snakes, as some species are ophiophagous. King Snakes (Lampropeltis species) are well-known predators with a natural resistance to the venom of pit vipers. They regularly consume non-venomous snakes, including Gopher Snakes, using superior constricting force to subdue the victim before swallowing it whole.
Hatchlings and young Gopher Snakes are much smaller and less capable of defending themselves, facing a wider array of threats. Juveniles are susceptible to predation by large frogs and toads that ambush prey from vegetation or water. The smallest hatchlings can even fall victim to invertebrates like large spiders or insectivores such as shrews.
Gopher Snake Defense Strategies
To survive these numerous threats, the Gopher Snake has evolved an elaborate suite of defensive behaviors. Its most recognized tactic is Batesian mimicry, where a harmless species imitates a dangerous one to deter predators. The snake will coil its body, flatten its head into a triangular shape to resemble a venomous pit viper, and inflate its body to appear larger.
The acoustic component of this defense is a loud, forceful hiss produced by a specialized epiglottal fold in the throat. Simultaneously, the snake rapidly vibrates its tail. When resting against dry leaves or debris, this produces a buzzing sound very similar to a rattlesnake’s rattle. This combination of visual and auditory deception often convinces a potential predator to retreat.