Record Length BK Found!

From 2006…..

    “When Phil Peak and I first formed our partnership and began documenting and cataloguing Kentucky’s reptiles and amphibians we discovered some giant black kingsnakes. Many of them were photographed, but not measured. We eventually began to carry measuring tapes, and the big snakes disappeared accordingly! We knew what we had seen though, and figured that it was just a matter of time before we found one that exceeded the 58 inch record in The Peterson Field Guide.”

    “On 18 September 2006 we finally found a snake that we thought filled the bill. It was discovered in Hopkins County, Kentucky under a giant piece of artificial cover composed of metal sheets held together by wooden beams. We temporarily collected the male specimen and took it to Murray, Kentucky where one of our colleagues, Michael O’Brien, resided. Together the three of us allowed the snake to crawl along the floor where it met a wall. After three attempts we came up with the same measurement of 60 1/8th inches.”

      “This warranted a call to The Louisville Zoo, where The Taxonomic Curator, Bill McMahan, arranged to have the specimen gassed and measured by The Zoo’s Animal Health Center Staff. A few days later I met with Lead Reptile Keeper Gary Johnson at The AHC and we measured the snake while waiting for AHC Staff to arrive. Since we knew that we were about to gas the snake we did not try to get an exact measurement, but did want to make sure that it was worth the resources to perform the procedure. We came up with just over 60 inches with each of several measurements.”

      “Dr. Zoltan Gymesi and Vet Tech, Elizabeth Hayden soon arrived and the specimen was placed in a tube and gassed. The kingsnake did struggle when the gas was first delivered, but soon relaxed. While relaxed but still conscious the snake was laid across the exam table while we waited for it to become completely unconscious. The table was covered with a towel and measured 59 inches with a little bit of snake hanging over both ends…as expected.”

      “After around 15 minutes we determined that the snake was completely relaxed. It was removed from the exam table and placed on the floor where we had measured it prior to gassing. Much to my surprise, it measured 58.50 inches long. The expression on my face elicited laughter from everyone in the room, but a new record had been documented! We measured it again and again but came up with the same measurement each time.”

      “We soon contacted Dr. Joseph T. Collins and explained the circumstances. He opted to go with the measurement of 58.50 inches and declared this a new record length for nigra! The previous record came from New Albany Indiana prior to 1958 and was reported by Anthony Wilson. It was great for Phil and myself to bring this record home to Kentucky. The conservative measurement gives all of us who live in the range of The Black Kingsnake to continue our search for more record-sized giants and Phil and I encourage everyone to do just that!!”

Will Bird