are they mating??

i have pair of kingsnakes that are a few years old... They are all twisted up together and the male has a solid bite-hold on the female. is it normal for him to bite her or should we be afraid that it might be an agressive behavior? Pretty sure they're just mating but this is the first time we've seen him bite her.

A lot of colubrid males bite to hold onto the female, so it isn't unusual....with kings (and milks), though, I'd advise watching them to make sure that's as far as it goes. Sometimes instincts get mixed up, and the feeding drive takes over.

please delete this thread....they definately mated, several times. my only question now is how to get her to lay whatever eggs she may be producing. I know i need to give her a separate area in the tank with some soft/moist substrate so she can burrow and lay eggs, but what should the substrate be? sand, vermiculite, topsoil???