turtles lizards snakes
frogs
Reptiles of the United States  
  Home Email Site map
A Guide to the Reptiles &
Amphibians of the United States
Home snakes lizards Turtles turtles salamanders
Snakes of the U.S.
UDG-Banner (55K)
 



Eastern Garter Snake Range Map






Eastern Garter Snake Video




Eastern Garter Snake Juvenile

Home »» Snakes »» Colubridae (Colubrids) »» Common Garter Snakes »» Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis)


Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis)STATUS





Description: Eastern garter snakes average between 18 to 26 inches long. The largest recorded length was 48.7 inches long. Females are typically larger than males. They are either a greenish, brown, or black color and have a distinct yellow or white stripe.


Habitat: The eastern garter snake will live in a variety of environments, with a preference for grassy or shrubby fields, including abandoned farmland, outbuildings and trash dumps. In particular the snake likes to inhabit stone walls that separate the forest from fields. It is also found along moist habitats such as lakes, rivers, streams, swamps, bogs, ponds, drainage ditches, and quarries. Snakes are present in urban environments in habitats that include "city parks, cemeteries and suburban yards and gardens". Eastern garter snakes like to conceal themselves under logs, stones and other debris that allow them to bask in the sunlight and quickly seek refuge from predators.


Range: The eastern garter snake has a wide range across eastern North America, as far north as southern Ontario and Quebec to the Gulf of Mexico in the south, along the eastern shores of America to the Mississippi River.


Found in these States: AL | AR | CT | DE | FL | GA | IA | IL | IN | KS | KY | LA | MA | MD | ME | MI | MN | MO | MS | NC | NH | NJ | NY | OH | OK | PA | RI | SC | TN | TX | VA | VT | WI | WV


Diet: Eastern garter snakes mostly eat frogs, toads, slugs, and worms, but they will eat almost anything they can overpower.


Reproduction: Eastern garter snakes are ovoviviparous, giving birth to live young. Many males may try to mate with one female, resulting in a "breeding ball". The young are 5 to 9 inches long at birth.


Status: Listed as Least Concern in view of its extremely wide distribution, presumed large population, and because populations are unlikely to be declining.


Taxonomy:

»» Kingdom: Animalia - Animals
   »» Phylum: Chordata - Chordates
     »» Subphylum: Vertebrata - Vertebrates
       »» Class: Reptilia - Reptiles
         »» Order: Squamata - Scaled Reptiles
           »» Suborder: Serpentes
             »» Superfamily: Colubroidea
               »» Family: Colubridae - Colubrids
                   »» Genus: Thamnophis
                     »» Species: Thamnophis sirtalis - Common Garter Snakes
                       »» Subspecies: Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis - Eastern Garter Snake

This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Eastern Garter Snake", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0. Content may have been omitted from the original, but no content has been changed or extended.

 

 

 

 


Recommended Books at Amazon.com


U.S. Guide to Venomous Snakes and Their Mimics     Venomous Snakebite in the Western United States     Venomous Snakes Of The Southeast     The 10 Most Dangerous Snakes in the United States and Canada



DISCLAIMER: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated websites.

 

 
 

Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

 
Copyright © 2008 - Herpedia™.com