Corn snakes are non-venomous colubrids that belong to the genus Pantherophis. The genus name is interesting and it tells a lot about how corn snakes look. If you ever spot a corn snake, you will see there are beautiful red or maroonish saddle-like marks on an orange background, which resembles pattern skin. Pantherophis means just that– “a panther-like snake”.
However, since corn snakes were discovered in the early 1900s, they had been inbred with their own species to produce hundreds of colorful morphs. There are black, white, red, pink, scale- less and lavender morphs that will take your breath away. In this article, we will discuss the life of white corn snakes. Without further ado, let’s come out of the burrow and explore!
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White Corn Snake: Embrace Yourself In The Softness Of Clouds!
With the classic corn snakes flaunting flame-like colors, it is difficult to imagine a corn snake which is white in color. Nevertheless, there are, and lots of them! Let’s keep reading!
Source: @natternleben
What Do White Corn Snakes Look Like?
White corn snakes have genetic conditions that give them a white coloration instead of the usual red, orange and yellow hues. They could be either fully white, or grayish, or white with specks on them. Some of them give off purple and pinkish hues as well.
Why do they look white? Genetic mutation of a recessive gene causes conditions like amelanism and hypomelanism that inhibit the production of melanin in the body. Melanins are pigments that help manifest black coloration on the snake’s body. A reduced presence or the full absence of melanin causes the snake to not have black on its scales and skin. However, colors like orange, yellow and red remain, though subdued.
Anerythrism and axanthism are other genetic conditions that cause the partial or total lack of red orange, and yellow pigments on the snake’s body. If a snake is both amelanistic and anery- thristic, it will lack both black and the other colorful pigments and will look whitewashed. Different combinations of genes and their expressions manifest varying intensities of colors and colorlessness on the wriggly exterior of the serpent.
There is another condition called leucism that causes a suppressed production of all sorts of pigments in the body of the snake. This condition also makes snakes look white. Palmetto corn snakes are one of the best examples of leucistic snakes.
Source: @linalidenlindblom
What Do The Eyes Of White Corn Snakes Look Like?
Amelanistic corn snakes, as they cannot produce melanins for dark coloration, usually have red or pink eyes. The pinkish appearance is mainly because the blood vessels underneath the eyes are more visible. However, corn snakes that are anerythristic may have dark colored eyes because they do produce melanins. Scaleless white corn snakes have bulgy eyes.
How Many Types Of White Corn Snakes Are There?
Corn snakes that have the genetic materials for both amelanism and anerythrism are purely white in color, with or without stripes and specs of other colors. Let’s get to know them.
- Blizzard: The whitest of all the white corn snakes is the blizzard corn snake. They have faint yellow in their ventral region, but other than that, they are pearly white. There are masque, tessera and motley versions available.
- Powder: There is another white corn snake that can compete with the blizzard corn snakes in the level of whiteness. They are a mixture of amelanistic, anerythristic, charcoal and hypomelanistic genes. They look pinkish as babies, but turn completely white as they mature.
- Avalanche: Avalanche is the second most white snake in the white corn snake collection. When you look closely, you may see light gray, almost unsightly, saddles on their body. They are available in tessera, hypo, green blotch, and pied-sided versions.
- Palmetto: They are white snakes too with brown and gray specks all over their body, and the specks appear to be in clumps. Other types of Palmetto like caramel, amber and hypo, all look more or less similar in appearance.
- Snow: Snow corn snakes are mostly white with faint yellow saddles. There are stripe, tessera, and motley versions available, among many other morphs.
- Phantom: The original phantom snakes look more purple, however, their morph “plasma phantom”, which is a mixture of charcoal, diffused, hypo and lavender, look almost white with light brown stripes all over.
- Ghost: These snakes are hypomelanistic and anerythristic as well, therefore they appear black and white as hatchlings. They become more gray and white as they mature.
- Lavender: Lavender corn snakes are mostly white with purple hues. Other morphs of lavender, such as anery, charcoal and cinder are lighter purple to grayish.
- Creamsicle: They are mostly white with light orange saddles. They are available in dozens of morphs of their own– motley, stripe, sunspot and many more.
- Lava Snow: Lava snow corn snake is an interbreed between amelanistic, anerythristic and lava morphs. They are mostly white when they hatch, but turn slightly beige as they mature.
- Snopal: When they hatch out, they look quite pinkish. However, when they mature, they turn into these creamy pinkish-white when they mature. There are stripes and tesseras available.
- Citrine: They are amelanistic and anerythristic, bred with caramel morphs. They look pinkish- purple when they hatch, but turn into pearly white snakes with faint purple saddles.
Source: @cici.petz
What Do White Corn Snake Babies Look Like?
White corn snakes may look pinkish or purplish when they hatch out from eggs. Snow corn snake hatchlings look mostly pink with white saddles, though slowly grow more yellowish. Blizzard corn snake babies also look light pink. Ghost corn snake hatchlings, that are hypomelanistic, look maroonish and turn more grayish as they mature.
Similarly, powder and quartz corn snake babies look pink when they hatch out from the eggs. They look pink because a lack of dark coloration causes the blood vessels under the skin to be strongly visible. Since white corn snakes are both amelanistic and anerythristic, they usually have pink to red eyes. In cases of hypomelanism, you may see dark brown or black eyes.
How Long Do White Corn Snakes Live?
Corn snakes live for 6-8 years in the wild, but in captivity may live for longer than 15 years. Amelanistic corn snakes have pink eyes and may be quite sensitive to bright lights, so breeders or pet-keepers usually keep them away from direct sunlight. Scaleless white corn snakes should not be fed live prey since they are more vulnerable to scratches and bruises.
Source: @smolderingserpents
Care-Sheet For White Corn Snake!
White corn snakes can be raised in the same way as other corn snakes can be. However, since they are amelanistic, they should be kept away from long exposures of bright lights or UV lights. These babies can grow up to 6 feet long so get them a tank or a vivarium that has a 30 to 40 gallon capacity. For hatchlings, shoeboxes or a 10-gallon tank suffice.
Make white corn snakes feel comfortable as if they are living in their natural habitat. Pick a suitable material for creating the substrate, like leaf litter or cypress mulch, and make it thick so that the snake can hide there when it feels uncomfortable. Get hollowed out logs and caves for them to sneak and explore about. You can also place high-reaching plants for them to climb.
Temperature and humidity is crucial for corn snakes. Maintain a cool side and a basking side. Also provide an automatic mister and a larger water bowl to maintain humidity. Feeding is not that difficult either. Snake breeders usually feed frozen mice and rats once every week or every two weeks to corn snakes. They are docile and shy creatures and rarely ever bite.
How Much Do White Corn Snakes Cost?
Snow, blizzard and ghost morphs are available within a range of $100 to $300, or more if they have tessera or motley patterns on them. Avalanche white corn snakes can be bought between $100 to $200, whereas Phantom Sunkissed versions could be pretty expensive at about $500. You can also browse here for more details and price ranges.
Symbolical Meaning Of White Snakes
White color is one of the most beautiful colors in the world and usually represents purity, clarity, divinity and spirituality. However, seeing a white snake is slightly different because many people see it from a negative perspective. Surely, a snake hissing or biting may bear negativity.
However, some people may consider associating positivity to seeing white snakes. You may see one in a market or in your dreams. Seeing a white snake may mean wisdom, hope and bliss. It may also mean that some kind of transformation is waiting for right around the corner.
Thoughts
It is very difficult to fathom that a white corn snake can exist. Corn snakes are known far and wide for their fiery look– the fierce hues of yellow, red and orange dancing to the tune of their body movement. So where did these white corn snakes come from?
White corn snakes are a result of inbreeding and crossbreeding between different species and morphs of corn snakes. Ones that are amelanistic and anerythristic are either purely or partially white. They look elegant and royal and are cherished worldwide as exotic pets.
