In many cases, snakes are of direct economic value. In Kansas, snakes are protected by state law. You should obtain a collecting permit from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks before attempting to catch and keep a snake. With the warm days of spring, snakes emerge from their winter quarters and begin searching for food and mates. After mating, the male and female snakes separate, and each goes its own way to forage for food until the fall.
Some snakes lay eggs while others produce live young.
Kansas snakes are about evenly divided between the two. Kingsnakes, rat snakes, bullsnakes, racers and many smaller snakes lay eggs in early summer and deposit them in a spot suitable for hatching, generally beneath a rock or in the soil. When they hatch, the young fend for themselves. In Kansas, water snakes, garter snakes, poisonous snakes and some smaller snakes give birth to living young in late summer or early fall. Again, the young are on their own after birth.