The Corn Snake is not native to Canada; it is endemic to Florida and the surrounding areas, including Mississippi, Louisiana, and up to New Jersey. It prefers mature upland forests, particularly pine forests, where it can hide in hollow or rotted logs, under loose bark, or in low brush. As a fossorial species, the Corn Snake shelters underground in rodent burrows, stump holes, or by digging into sandy soils.

The Corn Snake is carnivorous, hunting primarily in fields and along forest edges where rodents are plentiful. Its diet includes small mammals, as well as birds, their eggs, and occasionally frogs and lizards particularly for younger (juvenile) snakes. The Corn Snake is not venomous, killing its prey through constriction and swallowing it whole, headfirst.

The Corn Snake begins breeding in spring (March-May), shortly after emerging from winter dormancy. Over 1 month after mating, the female lays 3 to 30 soft-shelled eggs in a warm, damp, hidden location (rotting log, tree cavity, sawdust pile), leaving them without parental care. After roughly 10 weeks (July-September), hatchlings use a specialized egg tooth to break free from shell-most do not survive to adulthood, though those that do can live up to 6-8 years.

The Corn Snake is especially nocturnal in the summertime to align its activity with its prey (rodents) and avoid the daytime heat. Like most snakes, a special bone at the back of the skull (the quadrate bone) acts as a hinge, letting it stretch its mouth wide enough to swallow prey larger than its head. In contrast to the typical cylindrical snake body shape, the Corn Snake has a flattened underside and angled sides, which may help it climb more effectively.