Comments: These non-venomous snakes are often confused with the coral snake and are known as coral snake mimics. The rhyme "Red on black is a friend of Jack; red on yellow can kill a fellow" is a good way to identify which snake is venomous based on the ring pattern. The Milk snakes' name comes from the old wives' tale that Milk snakes found in the barn were "milking" the cow. Milk snakes do eat mice and probably were in search of their prey when found in the barn. In Louisiana they primarily feed on lizards.