'It's a snake eat snake world': Video of kingsnake eating larger snake goes viral; watch

A man in Georgia, United States, stumbled upon a snake eating another snake when he was out to get his mail. A video of the event has grabbed eyeballs on the internet. Eighty-year-old Tom Slagle saw a kingsnake devour a poisonous timber rattlesnake. The horrifying clip shows the lower half of the rattlesnake’s body protruding out of the kingsnake’s mouth. It appears that the rattlesnake is of a heavier girth than the reptile swallowing him. The kingsnake moves its mouth around the rattlesnake and keeps on devouring it. The video was shared by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “It’s a snake eat snake world out there,” was part of the caption. According to the agency, if the snake being eaten is longer than the kingsnake, it will get folded before it is swallowed. The video has received over 284,000 views till now. Watch:

One user wrote, “Looks like the rattlesnake had just finished his meal when the king got him”, while another commented, “It’s amazing that they can swallow something so huge.” According to the Georgia DNR, kingsnakes are known for their ability to overcome and consume venomous snakes. The reptile can often be identified by a white or yellow chainlink fence-like pattern on its back. The species kills its prey by striking and grasping it near the head, coiling around it and constricting the animal, before swallowing it headfirst. According to Newsweek, kingsnakes can reach up to a length of six feet. Their diet mostly consists of rodents, rabbits, lizards, amphibians, turtle eggs and other snakes. They are resistant to the venom from rattlesnakes, pit-vipers, copperheads and cottonmouths; all of which can be fatal to human beings. While they can bite if provoked, these snakes are relatively tame and are sometimes kept as pets. What are your thoughts on the story?