Animal
Eastern coral snake
The eastern coral snake has bright red, yellow and black rings. It hides under leaves and logs. It is venomous, so people never touch it.
The eastern coral snake is a slender snake of the southeastern United States, ringed with wide red and black bands separated by narrow yellow ones. It spends most of its life hidden underground or under logs and leaves, hunting other small snakes and lizards. It is venomous: never touch it, and keep away from any brightly banded snake.
Micrurus fulvius (family Elapidae) is a secretive, largely fossorial snake of the southeastern United States, from southeastern North Carolina through Florida to southeastern Louisiana, with a separate area in central Alabama. Its western relative, the Texas coral snake (M. tener), is now a separate species. Hammerson listed M. fulvius as Least Concern for the IUCN Red List (assessed 1 March 2007, published 2007; marked as needing an update).
Photo: Norman.benton, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Meet the eastern coral snake
The eastern coral snake is thin and shiny.
It has rings of red, yellow and black.
It is venomous, so people never touch it.
The eastern coral snake is a slender snake, usually 60 to 76 centimeters (2 to 2.5 feet) long. Its body is ringed with wide red and black bands, with a narrow yellow band between them, and its smooth scales make it look shiny. Its head is small and rounded, black from the snout to behind the eyes, with a wide yellow band behind that.
It is venomous. Never touch one, and keep away.
The Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (SREL, University of Georgia) describes a slender, medium-sized elapid, typically 0.6 to 0.76 m, the largest recorded about 1.2 m; females are longer than males, but males have relatively longer tails. The small, rounded head is not distinct from the neck and is black from the snout to behind the eyes, followed by a wide yellow band. Broad red and black bands are separated by narrow yellow bands, the rings continue around the belly, and the smooth scales look shiny. It is venomous (SREL; Reptile Database): never handle or approach it.
Quick facts
- Group
- Reptile
- Length
- 0.6 to 0.76 m
Sandy woods of the Southeast
Eastern coral snakes live in sandy woods.
They hide under logs and leaves.
Eastern coral snakes live in the southeastern United States, from southeastern North Carolina south through Florida and west to southeastern Louisiana. They are especially common in Florida.
They like places with deep, sandy soil they can burrow into: pine and scrub sandhills, pine flatwoods, dry oak woods, hardwood forest and the edges of marshes. Sometimes they turn up in neighborhoods next to wild land.
The IUCN gives a range from southeastern North Carolina to southern Florida, west to southeastern Louisiana, with a disjunct area northward in central Alabama. Habitats include hardwood forest, pine-oak woodland, pine flatwoods and xerophytic scrub, often on sandy soils, sometimes marsh edges and residential areas (IUCN); SREL adds sandhills, hammocks, mixed hardwood-pine forest and suburban areas next to natural habitat, and calls it especially common in Florida and across the Coastal Plain. It is highly fossorial, living underground or beneath logs, leaf litter and debris (SREL).
Continent
Its habitat
Where can you find this animal?
- Lives here naturally · Countries and seas named by a scientific source
- Sightings recorded · Records of wild sightings (GBIF)
Lives here naturally · Countries and seas named by a scientific source
Southeastern United States only: from southeastern North Carolina through Florida and west to southeastern Louisiana, with a separate area in central Alabama (IUCN; SREL). The IUCN also lists Mexico (its range text says the species extends into northeastern Mexico), but its detailed range, the Reptile Database and SREL place the species only in the United States (Mexican coral snakes formerly coun
Places: United States.
Source: iucn-red-list · checked November 2026
Sightings recorded · Records of wild sightings (GBIF)
Counts of GBIF records of wild observations (human and machine) and preserved specimens. Records include introduced populations, vagrants, escaped or released animals and misidentifications, so a country with records is not necessarily part of the native range.
Wild sightings have been recorded in United States, Mexico, Honduras, Panama, Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala and 8 more places.
Source: gbif · checked October 2026
Range maps show where scientists say an animal lives, often country by country. An animal may live in only part of a country shown, and sightings records can include animals that wandered far from home.
A snake that eats snakes
Eastern coral snakes eat small snakes and lizards.
Sometimes they eat a frog.
Eastern coral snakes mostly eat other reptiles, especially small snakes that live underground or in the leaf litter, such as worm snakes and crowned snakes. They also eat lizards, and sometimes frogs.
They hunt by searching through fallen leaves, under logs and in burrows, using mostly their sense of smell to find food.
SREL: the diet is mainly other reptiles and amphibians, including small snakes (especially worm snakes, crowned snakes and other fossorial species), lizards and occasionally frogs; it forages actively in leaf litter, under cover and in burrows, relying heavily on chemical cues. As a specialist predator it may influence populations of small burrowing reptiles.
Did you know?
Its name means orange.
Its scientific name, fulvius, means orange or orange-yellow. It seems to have been chosen after looking at old preserved snakes whose red had faded.
Latin fulvius, orange-yellow, apparently from faded preserved specimens (Reptile Database).
Rings that say: keep away
Its bright rings say: leave me alone!
Some snakes that are not venomous look like it.
The coral snake's bright red, yellow and black rings are easy to see. Some harmless snakes, such as scarlet kingsnakes and scarlet snakes, have similar red, yellow (or white) and black bands. Looking like a dangerous snake may help keep them safe from predators. This is called mimicry.
Colors can vary, fade with age, or look different in dim light or under dirt. So the snake experts at the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory say never to rely on colors alone: treat every brightly banded snake with care and keep away.
SREL describes Batesian mimicry: harmless scarlet kingsnakes (Lampropeltis elapsoides) and scarlet snakes (Cemophora coccinea) share red, yellow (or white) and black bands and gain protection by appearing dangerous to predators. Because patterns vary naturally, fade with age and look different with lighting and dirt, SREL warns that color alone should never be used to identify these snakes and that all brightly banded snakes should be treated with caution. Juveniles look like small adults, often with brighter colors (SREL). The name fulvius means orange or orange-yellow in Latin, apparently given after preserved specimens whose red had faded (Reptile Database).
Eggs in a rotting log
The mother lays eggs in a rotting log or a burrow.
The babies hatch at the end of summer.
Eastern coral snakes mate in late spring and summer. In early to midsummer, the female lays 3 to 12 eggs in a rotting log, a burrow or another hidden spot.
The eggs hatch after 60 to 80 days, in late summer or early fall. The babies are 18 to 23 centimeters long and look like small adults, often with even brighter colors.
Oviparous (Reptile Database; SREL). SREL: reproduction in late spring and summer; 3 to 12 eggs laid in rotting logs, burrows or other secluded sites in early to midsummer; incubation 60 to 80 days; hatchlings of 18 to 23 cm emerge in late summer to early fall. The IUCN notes that eggs are probably laid in loose soil or decaying organic matter, or underground or under leaf litter or surface objects.
Out after the rain
Coral snakes stay hidden most of the time.
They come out more after heavy rain.
Eastern coral snakes are very secretive and are seldom seen above ground. They come out most in spring and fall, especially after heavy rains soak the soil and push them to the surface.
They are mostly active by day, but in hot weather they may switch to dawn, dusk or night. Kingsnakes, indigo snakes and some birds of prey eat them.
SREL: highly secretive; peak surface activity in spring and fall, particularly after heavy rains saturate the soil; primarily diurnal, shifting to crepuscular or nocturnal activity in hot weather; predators include kingsnakes, indigo snakes and some birds of prey, though predation is seldom documented. The IUCN notes that the snake is often common and that its secretive habits may give a false impression of rarity (Ernst 1992).
Did you know?
Eastern coral snakes eat other snakes!
Eastern coral snakes eat mainly other reptiles, especially small snakes that live underground, such as worm snakes and crowned snakes.
Diet mainly small fossorial snakes, also lizards and occasionally frogs (SREL).
Common, but rarely seen
There are many eastern coral snakes.
They are just good at hiding!
The eastern coral snake is listed as least concern. It is found in many places, there are probably more than 100,000 adults, and its numbers are probably steady or falling only slowly. Many live in protected areas.
Its biggest problems are the loss of its habitat and cars on roads. In Alabama, numbers went down after fire ants arrived, perhaps because the ants eat eggs and young snakes.
Hammerson assessed Micrurus fulvius as Least Concern (Global; assessed 1 March 2007, published 2007; needs updating): many occurrences (more than 100 collection sites mapped by Campbell and Lamar 2004), adult population unknown but presumably over 100,000, often common; extent, occupancy and population probably stable or declining by less than 10% over 10 years or three generations. It does not appear significantly threatened overall; habitat destruction and motor vehicles are the most serious threats (Ernst 1992; Ernst and Ernst 2003), and Alabama populations declined after the arrival of the fire ant, which may prey on eggs and young (Mount 1981). Many occurrences are in protected areas (IUCN).
IUCN Red List
How is the eastern coral snake doing in the wild?
- Least Concern (this animal)
- Near Threatened
- Vulnerable
- Endangered
- Critically Endangered
- Extinct in the Wild
- Extinct
Least Concern
Not at risk of disappearing from the wild right now.
Amazing facts
-
Eastern coral snakes eat other snakes!
Eastern coral snakes eat mainly other reptiles, especially small snakes that live underground, such as worm snakes and crowned snakes.
Diet mainly small fossorial snakes, also lizards and occasionally frogs (SREL).
-
Coral snakes come out more after heavy rain.
Heavy rain soaks the soil and pushes coral snakes up to the surface, so they are seen most often after storms in spring and fall.
Peak surface activity in spring and fall, particularly after heavy rains (SREL).
-
Some harmless snakes look like coral snakes.
Scarlet kingsnakes and scarlet snakes are harmless, but their red, yellow (or white) and black bands look like a coral snake's. That may help protect them from predators.
Batesian mimicry by Lampropeltis elapsoides and Cemophora coccinea (SREL).
-
Its name means orange.
Its scientific name, fulvius, means orange or orange-yellow. It seems to have been chosen after looking at old preserved snakes whose red had faded.
Latin fulvius, orange-yellow, apparently from faded preserved specimens (Reptile Database).
Words to know
- venomous
- able to make venom, a harmful liquid some animals use to catch food or defend themselves
- mimicry
- when one kind of animal looks like another, which can help protect it
- fossorial
- living mostly underground or burrowing
- secretive
- staying hidden and rarely seen
- clutch
- a group of eggs laid at one time
- least concern
- not currently at serious risk of dying out in the wild
Discovery challenge
-
What does an eastern coral snake mostly eat?
What is the main food of eastern coral snakes?
What makes up most of the diet of Micrurus fulvius?
- Small snakes and other reptiles
- Grass and leaves
- Fish
Show the answer
Small snakes and other reptiles
Small snakes!
Mostly other reptiles, especially small burrowing snakes, plus lizards and sometimes frogs.
Reptiles and amphibians, mainly small fossorial snakes (SREL).
-
Where does a coral snake spend most of its time?
Where do eastern coral snakes spend most of their lives?
Which lifestyle best describes Micrurus fulvius?
- Hidden underground or under logs and leaves
- High in the treetops
- Swimming in the sea
Show the answer
Hidden underground or under logs and leaves
Hidden under the ground and under logs!
They live mostly underground or under logs, leaf litter and other cover.
Highly fossorial and secretive (SREL).
-
Can you always tell a coral snake by its colors?
Is it safe to decide whether a banded snake is harmless just by its colors?
Why does SREL warn against identifying banded snakes by color alone?
- No: colors can vary, so keep away from any banded snake
- Yes, colors are always the same
- Yes, if the snake is small
Show the answer
No: colors can vary, so keep away from any banded snake
No! Stay away from all snakes with bright rings.
Colors vary, fade with age and look different in some light, so treat every brightly banded snake with care.
Patterns vary naturally, fade and are altered by lighting and dirt; harmless mimics are similar (SREL).
-
Where does the mother lay her eggs?
Where does a female eastern coral snake lay her eggs?
Where are Micrurus fulvius eggs laid?
- In a rotting log or burrow
- On a tree branch
- In a pond
Show the answer
In a rotting log or burrow
In a log or a hole in the ground!
In rotting logs, burrows or other hidden spots.
Rotting logs, burrows or other secluded sites (SREL); probably loose soil or decaying organic matter (IUCN).
Places where you might see it
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Describe where eastern coral snakes live and why they are rarely seen.
- Explain what mimicry is, using coral snakes and their look-alikes.
- Explain why color alone is not a safe way to identify a snake.
- Practice the safety rule: never touch a wild snake; keep away and tell a grown-up.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- Why might a harmless snake benefit from looking like a venomous one?
- Why do you think heavy rain brings burrowing snakes to the surface?
- What should you do if you see a brightly colored snake outdoors?
Try at home or in class
- Warning colors: make a paper snake with red, yellow and black bands and another in brown and green. Lay both on a pile of leaves. Which stands out? Why might a warning color be useful?
- Pattern detective: with a grown-up, look at pictures of an eastern coral snake, a scarlet kingsnake and a scarlet snake. List what is the same and what is different, then talk about why colors alone are not a safe test.
Key vocabulary: venomous, mimicry, fossorial, secretive, clutch, least concern
Where these facts come from
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and GBIF Occurrence Search , Global Biodiversity Information Facility (CC0 1.0 (backbone); occurrence counts are facts derived from records under CC0, CC BY and CC BY-NC)
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN terms of use (no redistribution of Red List data or range maps))
- Micrurus fulvius (Hammerson, assessed 1 March 2007, published 2007) , IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Micrurus fulvius: taxonomy, justification, range, population, habitat, threats and conservation text , IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
- Micrurus fulvius: IUCN Red List global assessment record (Hammerson 2007), IUCN checklist on GBIF , GBIF
- Eastern Coral Snake (Micrurus fulvius) , Savannah River Ecology Laboratory Herpetology, University of Georgia
- Micrurus fulvius , The Reptile Database
- File:Coral 009.jpg (Norman.benton, 15 November 2008) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file: Public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA only (credited on each page))
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.