If you see one don’t move it or handle it. They are an essential part of the ecosystem and have evolved along with rattlesnakes and help keep that species under control. They are non venomous and don’t harm humans in any way. We were glad to have it there because where you find a “blue indigo” you will not find rattlesnakes.īelow is a photo of a Texas indigo snake from Wikipedia:īlue indigo snakes are protected by law. When I was young and growing up in South Texas we had an indigo snake living under our house for several years. I have seen them picked up and handled with little protest from the snake. These are very tame snakes and their docile nature has been their downfall. Sadly the pet snake trade has reduced their number. For this reason they are loved by farmers and ranchers. The Texas indigo snake can swallow a rattlesnake whole and is mostly immune to the snake’s venom. I grew up hearing stories of blue indigo snakes over ten feet long and have personally seen several over eight feet long in the wild. They can grow to lengths of up to nine feet or more. With such widespread programs of species importation it was not far fetched that the King Ranch imported the indigo snake to Texas. The Santa Gertrudis cattle breed originated on the ranch as well. The King Ranch has been responsible for introducing a number of exotic species, such as the Nilgai antelope to Texas and cultivating hybrid grasses such as King Ranch Bluestem, which has been spread around the state by the Texas Highway Department. This may have caused a concentration of “blue snakes” in the region and people began to associate them as originating from the King Ranch. It is possible that the King Ranch’s owners may have instructed employees to catch any Texas indigo snakes outside of the property and relocate them on the ranch. I suspect that there may be some valid reason for the King Ranch connection with the indigo snake. Texas indigo snakes have been living in the region, as far south as Veracruz Mexico, for thousands of years. The problem with this story is that it is not true.
The story told by many South Texans is that Blue Indigo snakes were imported by Captain Richard King, or the latter owners of the King Ranch the Kleberg family, from India to control rattlesnakes. The King ranch was founded by Captain Richard King and is still in existence today, encompassing over 860,000 acres. The reason that some people call them King snakes is that there is a persistent rumor, passed on through the generations, that this snake was imported by the owners of the famous King Ranch of South Texas. Some locals call them “blue snakes”, “indigo snakes” and even “king snakes.” King snakes are an unrelated species.
Ranchers love this snake because it is fond of eating rattlesnakes. The Texas Indigo snake, also known as the blue indigo or by its scientific name “Drymarchon melanurus erebennus”, is a species of snake that lives in Texas and Mexico.
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