Outside of our exhibit room we have a few animal ambassadors that are used in school and public programs to teach about different species. Our two corn snakes, Cheddar and Pepper Jack, are beloved in all the programs they are presented in. Both corn snakes are orange in hue, Cheddar is an albino corn snake and Pepper Jack is a creamsicle corn snake.

Corn snakes (Pantherophis guttatus) are found in the eastern United States from the southern New Jersey Pine Barrens south through Florida, west into Louisiana and parts of Kentucky.

Although it commonly occurs in other regions, the corn snake was listed as a threatened species in New Jersey in 1979 due to severe habitat loss and illegal collecting for the pet trade. Continued and increased threats led to its reclassification as an endangered species in 1984. Therefore, the collection or possession of wild corn snakes is prohibited in New Jersey and is punishable with fines and/or imprisonment.

Both of our snakes are color morphs that were bred in captivity by licensed breeders and so it is legal to possess them.

In the wild, corn snakes are highly variable in coloration, the upperparts range from brown to light orange or red and are marked with brick red blotches outlined in black.

Corn snakes are primarily nocturnal. They prefer pine-oak forests with an understory of low brush, such as is found in the NJ Pine Barrens. They spend most of their time underground, prowling through rodent burrows, under loose bark and beneath logs, rocks, and other debris during the day.

The corn snake is a constrictor, meaning that the snake suffocates its quarry by tightly wrapping its body around the prey. We do not feed live prey to our captive snakes, so we have not witnessed this activity.

Long and slim, the average length of a corn snake is 30 to 48 inches. Their average life span is up to about 23 years in captivity, but generally much less in the wild.