Chicken Snake

Adults may attain a maximum total length of 2.7 m (8.9 ft), with the average length ranging from 1.5 to 2 m (4.9 to 6.6 ft). Dorsally, S. pullatus is black with yellow spots which may form crossbands. The tip of the snout is yellow. The head shields may be mostly yellow, or mostly black, or crossbanded with a combination of yellow and black, but the sutures between the shields are always black. Ventrally, it is yellow with irregular black crossbands. The body is relatively slender and somewhat laterally compressed. The head is distinct from the neck. The eye is moderate in size with a round pupil. There are no suboculars, and the loreal is either very small or absent. There are 6 or 7 upper labials, the 3rd and 4th entering the eye, the last two very large. The dorsal scales are pointed and overlapping. The dorsal scales are arranged in 16 (or 14) rows at midbody. Ventrals 198-232; anal plate entire; subcaudals 90-120, divided.

It is found in southern Mexico, Central America, northern and central South America, and Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean.

It is mainly arboreal, but also terrestrial. It is diurnal and an active forager.