Sunbeam Snakes: Xenopeltidae

Sunbeam snakes and people leave one another alone for the most part, but the snakes are starting to become more popular in the pet trade as more people become familiar with their color-changing scales. They make poor pets, however, because they remain underground most of the time and usually give off a bad odor when handled. They also are very nervous, and the stress is likely one reason they often die soon after they are purchased. In addition, the snakes do not reproduce well in captivity, which means that people must hunt them in the wild to supply the pet trade, rather than raise babies from already captured snakes.