SPECIES SPOTLIGHT

The wonderful world of exotic pets

Rough green snake (Opheodrys aestivus)

It’s often said that there’s no such thing as a vegetarian snake, but that’s not strictly true. Several species of snake eat an exclusively egg-based diet which makes them vegetarian. Unfortunately, these species are not easy to keep and rarely available to buy as pets.

However, there is one snake that is easy to keep, often available and doesn’t eat vertebrate prey. Rough green snakes eat a wide variety of insects, such as crickets, mealworms, calci worms and earthworms, which makes them an ideal snake for people who don’t fancy feeding rodents to their pet.

While rough green snakes can be gently handled occasionally, they are often nervous, fl ighty and fast moving. Most keepers agree that rough greens are more fun to watch than handle, particularly when they’re hungrily chasing insects around their enclosure.