Does not bite when handled, but sometimes feigns striking and voids feces and musk. Hibernates in ant hills, rodent burrows, and other retreats below ground. Young 8-15 cm TL hatch in August. In northern populations, female incubates eggs internally for a time by basking, then lays them in a mound of rotting plants or in a sawdust pile, rotting log, or rodent burrow. Food consists of spiders, centipedes, millipedes, slugs, snails, and insects.
Main predators are other snakes, birds, and mammals.
Reduced by habitat destruction and widespread use of insecticides that eliminate populations of food organisms.