The kingsnake is considered one of people's best friends in the snake world. The kingsnake can coexist with people in rural areas, showing little aggression when encountered and usually making no attempt to bite even when handled. When confronted with another snake however, the kingsnake reveals another aspect of its character - the one from which its name derives. In such a confrontation it is a deadly, almost always victorious combatant that preys on other snakes, including rattlesnakes and even other kingsnakes. It is immune to a rattlesnake's venom.
Kingsnakes are primarily crepuscular and nocturnal ground snakes.
They shed their skin starting in the mouth region. It first loosens around the mouth and then is rubbed against a rock or log and pushed back over the head. While the old skin is held back by these objects, the snake can slowly crawl out of it, leaving it behind as a complete inside-out replica showing every scale and often a trace of the color pattern. When snakes are about to molt, their eyes turn cloudy. Kingsnakes eat rodents, lizards and frogs.