Weird thing produced by king snake

Question

Snake Discharge   QUESTION: I'm looking after an adult king snake for my son who's abroad for a few days. We think it's a male. He shed successfully on Friday and was very active in the evening so I offered him food which he (unusually) refused. He's continued to be really active and been pooing & weeing normally but refused food again this afternoon. On returning him to the tank I found the weird thing in the photo; it feels dry and firm to the touch but feels soft inside when gently squeezed. I have no idea what this is. In all his activity the snake has several times gone up on a narrow ledge at the top of the tank and the fallen off and I've been concerned about him injuring himself, but we've handled him and seen no outward sign of injury
I'd be really grateful if you can throw any light on what it might be!
Thanks for your attention, Gill

ANSWER: Gill,
  I believe that your snake is a female and that is an unfertilized grouping of eggs. Note the distinct circular or oblong groupings. It is certainly not fecal matter as there is no trace of uratic acid or what is typically seen in feces.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you so much for your quick response. We had begun to wonder if the snake might be female and if this is anything to do with eggs, but..... a) are they normally laid in groups within a 'case'? b) Are they normally this colour? I would have expected them to be white. c)Is it normal for a snake to be frantic with activity but not eating at this time and can I do anything to make her more settled? d)When is she likely to eat again?
This is new territory for me! THANKS AGAIN! Gill

Answer
Not normally, when they are federalized, they come out one at a time and are positioned in a circle for the snake to incubate. The ones I have seen are usually an off white color, but I have seen unfertilized eggs be this cellular, hard, yellow clump before. It is a very odd substance and I really had to do some googling the first time I saw it. There is really nothing you can do to settle her down. She should go back to herself in a couple or 3 days. She should eat again within the next 2 weeks. As a rule of thumb, a snake can go 1 month per foot of snake without eating, and still be OK.