# Corn snake (*Pantherophis guttatus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/corn-snake  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus), also called the Red ratsnake, Red Cornsnake or Eastern corn snake, is a snake in the family Colubridae and subfamily Colubrinae. It is a small snake by body mass, with a representative adult body mass of 900 g and a body length of 1.13 m. It lays 1 clutch per year of 12 eggs, which incubate for 61 days, and reaches sexual maturity at 1.6 years. Its lifespan is given as 23 years, with values up to 32.3 years, and it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 900 g |
| Length | 1.13 m |
| Lifespan | 23 years – 32.3 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Egg incubation | 61 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 12 |
| Age at maturity | 18.9 months – 2.25 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Reptilia
- order: Squamata
- family: Colubridae
- genus: Pantherophis
- species: *Pantherophis guttatus* (Linnaeus, 1766)

Synonyms: *Coluber carolinianus*, *Coluber compressus*, *Coluber floridanus*, *Coluber guttatus*, *Coluber guttatus sellatus*, *Coluber maculatus*, *Coluber molossus*, *Coluber pantherinus*, *Coluber rosaceus*, *Coryphodon pantherinus*, *Elaphe emoryi intermontana*, *Elaphe guttata*, *Elaphe guttata guttata*, *Pantherophis guttata*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is a corn snake?

The corn snake is a reptile, a snake in the family Colubridae within the order Squamata.

### How big is a corn snake?

A corn snake has a representative body length of 1.13 m and an adult body mass of 900 g, placing it in the small size class.

### How long does a corn snake live?

Its lifespan is given as 23 years, and the highest value reported by sources is 32.3 years.

### How many eggs does a corn snake lay?

A corn snake lays 12 eggs per clutch, with 1 clutch per year, and the eggs incubate for 61 days.

### When does a corn snake reach sexual maturity?

It reaches sexual maturity at 600 days (1.6 years), with reported values from 1.6 to 2.2 years.

### Is the corn snake endangered?

No. The corn snake is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/corn-snake