# Colubrids > Pituophis >  Learning more about Pituophis species.....

## EyeLashViper

Hey everybody,
                     Well, I have been slithering around on the web and have been learning more about Pituophis species of snakes...the Bull,Pine and Gopher family. As I have already told all of you guys and gals I purchased what is either a Pine or a Bullsnake about a month ago and I have been spending time taming him/her down. I am making a lot of progress.He/She no longer hisses at me or makes those silly closed mouth strikes anymore.Diesel ( thats the name I selected for this snake .....) is still rather wiggly and squirmy, but I chalk that up to youth....Diesel is still a baby considering that he or she will get to be about 6 to 7 feet long when an adult. Diesel is also a very good feeder - a real vacuum cleaner for sure.These are truly underappreciated snakes...they get big, they eat like marines, and they are very easy to care for...they like it on the cool side ( I keep mine with an 85 degree hot spot and about 75 degrees on the cool end ) 

Seems as though these snakes are local to the Southeastern part of the United States...so this is sort of a novelty for me stuck out here  in Los Angeles. I really recommend these snakes for all snake hobbyists out there.Lord knows I love Ball Pythons but until I am in a better situation I have to make due with the snakes I have got....I am staying with my father at this time and he is a devout snake hater......he grew up in West Virginia where he tells me that whenever they saw a snake, they would run and get a shovel and chop its head off...sheesh.....I am amazed that he tolerates the snakes that I have.After my mom passed away he vetoed me keeping my big Ball Pythons....really sucked. Alas, but I digress...I am prone to ruminating on stuff these days that I can not do anything about.I will say one thing though....soon as I can I am gonna get me a couple of truly cool Ball Python morphs...I have my heart set on an albino for starters.Well, until then it is just me and my four snakes out here in La La land....

                                                             The EyeLashViper

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## JLC

That's just awesome!  Truly, _Pituophis_ are one of the most underappreciated genus of snakes out there.  There are such a huge variety of both species and locales that it is hard to generalize them, but they are all beautiful and wonderful!  The larger species are found in the southeastern US, Texas, and up into the plains some.  But there are many different species found all over the US and down into Mexico. 


My Cape Gopher is probably going on 3 years old now, and doesn't mind being handled at all.  Never hisses or shows any defensive behavior.  But he is rarely still in your hands...always wants to be moving.  I put him on my new scale to weigh the other day and it was quite a challenge getting him to sit in the tray long enough to get a measurement. LOL

I would really love to see some pictures of yours!

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