Striped Corn Snake
The Striped Corn Snake is a pattern morph of the corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus), a hardy North American rat snake kept widely in the hobby.
🗓️ Last reviewed: July 2026
Overview
The Striped Corn Snake is a pattern morph of the corn snake (Pantherophis guttatus), a hardy North American rat snake kept widely in the hobby. Instead of the usual saddle blotches, this morph carries clean longitudinal stripes that run head to tail. It is a recessive trait, so it can appear on top of many different colour morphs.
What it is
A normal, wild-type corn snake shows a row of dark-edged dorsal blotches (saddles) down the back with matching smaller blotches along the sides, over an orange to brownish ground colour. The Striped morph replaces that saddle pattern with continuous stripes that travel lengthwise along the body, giving a very different, streamlined look while the underlying colour genetics stay the same.
The genetics
Stripe is a simple recessive pattern trait. A snake needs two copies of the stripe gene (one from each parent) to actually show stripes. A snake with only one copy looks normal but is a carrier, usually called "het" (heterozygous) for stripe, and can pass the gene on. Because it is recessive and affects pattern rather than colour, it can be combined freely with colour morphs such as amelanistic or anerythristic.
Appearance
The signature feature is a pair of bold dorsal stripes running the full length of the body, often with thinner side stripes and a cleaner, less broken look than a normal corn snake. Expression varies: some individuals show crisp unbroken lines, while others have stripes that waver, connect, or break into dashes, and this can differ along the body. Ground colour depends on whatever colour genes the animal also carries. As with most corn snakes, hatchlings tend to look more contrasting and slightly duller, with colours brightening and settling as the snake matures.
How it is bred
Because stripe is recessive, both parents must contribute a stripe gene for striped babies to appear. Pairing two striped snakes produces striped offspring. Pairing a striped snake to a het carrier yields a mix of striped and het animals, and pairing two hets produces a smaller fraction of striped young alongside normal-looking carriers. Colour morphs are stacked in by breeding stripe together with lines that carry those colour genes over successive generations, which is how combinations like striped amelanistic ("striped snow" and similar) are produced.
Cost and availability
Striped corn snakes are well established and generally affordable, especially in plain or single-gene colour forms. Prices rise for cleaner, more complete striping and for multi-gene combinations that pair stripe with sought-after colours. Availability is good, with animals commonly offered by hobbyist and specialist breeders.
Health and ethics
Stripe is a pattern trait with no known health problems tied to it, so a Striped corn snake should be as robust as any standard corn snake. There is no lethal gene or structural defect associated with this morph. As always, choose reputable breeders who can share accurate genetic history and hatch details, and take any sick or off-colour animal to a qualified reptile (herp) veterinarian.
Care
Care is identical to a standard corn snake - the stripe gene changes appearance only, not needs. A Striped corn snake wants the same enclosure, temperatures, humidity, and feeding as any corn snake. For a full setup, follow reputable corn snake husbandry guidance and consult a herp vet for health questions.
Striped Corn Snake - frequently asked questions
Is a Striped corn snake a separate species?
No. It is the same species, Pantherophis guttatus, just a pattern morph. The stripes come from a recessive gene, not from a different kind of snake.
Will two normal-looking corn snakes ever produce striped babies?
Yes, if both parents secretly carry one copy of the stripe gene (are het for stripe). Two hets bred together can produce a portion of striped offspring even though neither parent shows stripes.
Does striping affect how I should keep the snake?
No. Housing, heating, humidity, and feeding are the same as for any corn snake. The morph only changes the look.