Image: David Penning/Missouri Southern State University
It's a snake-eat-snake world out there.
Predators usually chase after smaller (and thus easier) prey, but king snakes "just don't seem to be abiding by that rule," said biologist David Penning of Missouri Southern State University to National Geographic. "When we pair a small king snake with a larger rat snake, they don't avoid it. They actively and directly will attack a larger individual.... "
Marcus Woo of National Geographic has the explanation of how the king snake is truly deserving of its name.
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