Plains/Western Hognose
Heterodon nasicus
Megara is a female Western Hognose hatched in 2023 and the newest member of the Reptile Buddies crew. Western hognose snakes are a fossorial (burrowing) species of snake native to the western half of the US, and in some parts of southern Canada and northern Mexico. They prefer shortgrass prairie (grassland), dry rocklands, and coastal inland areas with sandy soil. As a fossorial species, hognose snakes spend a significant amount of time underground.   Hognose snakes are popular because of their compact size, but they can be tricky to keep because of their picky eating habits. In the wild they’re toad specialists, and hognose snakes are known to have some trouble digesting prey with too much fur. Providing a variety of different prey keeps mealtime interesting and balances your snake’s nutrition. More notably, hognose snakes are rear-fanged venomous. Their venom is not considered medically significant in humans, but it can cause significant discomfort in bite victims.  As with most snakes the female of the species is larger than the male and this is definately the case with Megara vs Hades
Age 3	Species size (feet) 1-2	Life span (years) 15-20	Weight (grams) ***