The Garter Snake!
During my recent camping trip I stumbling across an animal I have seen numerous times while out camping. I even caught one when I was a boy of about 12 years old and kept it as a pet for some 10+ years before it sadly died of old age... if you can't tell from the picture and title above, I am talking about the garter snake.
Most people are fearful of snakes and they absolutely should be. However, there are a couple breeds of snakes that are virtually harmless. The garter snake is one of those snakes. Especially the smaller ones. I have caught maybe 30 or so in my lifetime and only 1 time did one ever try and bite me and it was a larger male.
Background Info:
Garter snakes are sometimes called "gardener snake" or "garden snake". Both terms are used to describe the nearly harmless, small to medium sized snakes that inhabit much of North America. They can be found as high north as Canada and as low south as Central America. It is the state reptile of Massachusetts.
They are a favorite meal of hawks, crows, and some larger frogs/toads.
Habitat:
As mentioned above, they inhabit most of North America. They are able to live in such a diversity of habitats mainly due to their varied diets and ability to withstand a varied temperature. They can be found near water or not near water, however, in the western part of North America garter snakes are much more aquatic than in the Eastern portion. They tend not to be found in hot and dry climates or very cold climates.
Overall, garter snakes can be found in backyards, forests, woodlands, fields, grasslands, high deserts, and near ponds. They are much more numerous in areas with some form of water. Either a nearby pond, stream, lake, or some form of wetland. That is likely reflective of the fact that amphibians make up such a large part of their diet.
Diet:
Garter snakes can eat a wide variety of food. Their diet consists of almost any creature they can over power and fit into their mouths. The following are all on the menu depending on where the snake lives:
- Worms
- Toads
- Leeches
- Lizards
- Most amphibians
- Ants
- Crickets
- Grasshoppers
- Minnows
- Rodents
When living near water they will eat a couple other aquatic animals not mentioned. Basically they are a predator of proximity. If prey is nearby and they can fit it in their mouth, they will eat it. Food is swallowed whole and broken down in their stomachs. They almost exclusively feed on live animals, but can sometimes make an exception for eggs.
The one I had as a pet ate mostly fish, with an occasional small toad or lizard tossed in to change things up from time to time.
Venomous?
Up until recently the overwhelming majority concluded that garter snakes were not venomous. However, recent discoveries have revealed that they do, in fact, produce a mild neurotoxic venom. They cannot kill humans with the small amounts of venom they produce and they also lack an effective means of delivering it, which effectively makes them harmless to humans. They have no fangs like other venomous snakes. They do have teeth in the back of their mouths but their gums are significantly larger keeping the teeth from being exposed, thus the venom is delivered through a chewing action when consuming prey. No venom is injected, unlike most venomous snakes.
This new finding also debunks the theory that all venomous snakes have a triangular head. If in doubt what kind of snake it is, don't pick it up!
In Captivity:
Garter snakes do very well in captivity. As evidenced by the fact that I was able to keep one for over 10 years as a 12 year old boy with a checkered history when it comes to keeping small reptiles alive as pets. They require a 10-gallon terrarium, a water dish, a heat rock, something to climb on, and a heat lamp/UV-B light.
Feeding baby garter snakes can be a bit more tricky as it takes them some time before they feel comfortable enough in a new surrounding before they will eat.
In general they do very well with being handled without getting stressed out the way some other reptiles do. They don't bite much and they aren't very fast. One tip to keep them friendly is to make sure you handle them often and if possible, feed them in a separate terrarium than you handle them in. That way they don't associate you with food.
Don't worry, the snake above was not kept long in a bucket, just long enough to keep my stepson happy for a couple hours:
This was the first snake he has ever held or even touched. Like many people he had a healthy fear of snakes before I introduced him to this one.
Summary:
Garter snakes are some of the best pets you can have from the reptile family. They are very hardy and generally do not bite. They eat a wide variety of foods making finding food for them relatively easy. They get along well with kids and most pets, your cat or dog just might try to eat them. They don't get all that big and they will even sit on your lap if you want to watch a movie with them.
I hope you were able to learn some new information about a great pet that can be found all across the U.S.
And remember, not all snakes are evil and this one in particular can be a lot of fun! :)
Live well my friends!
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garter_snake
All images used are my own, feel free to use them.
Follow: @jrcornel
Thank you for a neat spotlight on this snake. I have seen lots of garter snakes in different places (probably different species, too). As long as they aren't hurting me, I have no problem with them. Paging the herpetology guy...
Haha yea I love reading that guy's stuff. I think he was subconsciously an inspiration for this post. I have always loved garter snakes... any kind of reptile that lets me hold it and doesn't bite me is ok in my book. :)
I've spent my entire life fascinated with snakes. When I was young, my cousin and I were snake hunting . We caught about a dozen or so. Mostly garters and a few milk snakes. One garter had red bands instead of the traditional gold bands. Any way, in regard to venom, all "non-venomous" snakes have saliva that is an irritant to human skin. In most cases it is harmless and not even noticeable, depending on how sensitive a person can be to it. The bigger the snake, the more saliva thus, the more irritant. I've been bitten by various snakes, including a python. The worst I've gotten is a red painless inflammation for day or two. Snakes are good for the environment, even poisonous one. Venom is used more for catching prey and occasionally defense. It is never used to aggressively attack a non-prey such as a human. A rattle snake will do everything in it's power to warn you about it's presence, Hence the rattle. It doesn't use it's rattle when hunting.
Good points and thank you for sharing! I have been bitten by only 1 garter snake in my life, it was a giant one. It scared me more than hurt, although it did draw a tiny bit of blood. The one that I had as a pet for over 10 years never once tried to bite me... he really was a nice snake :)
Garter snakes are mostly docile when they know you don't want to hurt them. They can be aggressive when you first catch them.
Yea that makes sense... when they think you might eat them they fight back! :)
Nice article! I had an albino garter for quite a few years. One of its favorite foods was fathead minnows I'd put in its water dish. It'd watch them swim from the edge of the bowl and dart its face in and grab it. One of the coolest snakes to feed!
Yep same here! I use to feed mine little gold fish... He would rise up over the side of the water dish and strike down nailing the fish... often sending them flying out of the water when he would miss. It was great fun to watch! :)
One of my friends said she felt smooth as a silk the body of a snake. The snake was big, yellow. She loves them now :) I've heard a snake is a clean animal. Yes, maybe a snake is attractive, but it's not easy to be a friend with a snake for me :) Enjoyed your writing.
I agree.... It is not easy! For some reason I have just always thought they were so cool... maybe it is the fact that they could be dangerous that has always intrigued me :)
It's so tiny it's actually quite cute.
Haha yea! We tried to feed him a worm that we were using as fishing bait and it was almost the same size... :)
Lol:)
Reptiles are fascinating. Let me advertise the blog of @herpetologyguy that contains many nice posts about that :)
Yep, I love his stuff! Thanks for sharing :)
@jrcornel though it's teeny tiny, staring at it still raise my hairs - but its cute!
Haha yea a lot of people just really don't like snakes. That's not a bad thing... and will likely keep you from ever being bit! :)
@jcornel gee - thanks! that's sweet!
yes, but I think it's all those too many anaconda and the likes movies I've seen when I was younger I guess but some snakes are actually just innocent.
Haha I liked those movies!
@jcornel prefer this one better
Haha that is funny!
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This is great, thank you! :)
Awereness is the only gateway left to constructive conservation! Thank you for your contribution to help open that gate!
Yep, I love nature and wildlife!
Where I live I encounter snakes regularly, and understanding them and the important role they play is key to our mutualism. Most snakes would give a warning strike or dry bite to scare off any threat they dont intend to eat, thus fatalities are at a minimum compared to other causes of death in humans.
Yup nature lover myself. As a matter of fact, I strongly feel that the more people i meet, the more I love animals
Great photos! -Resteemed
Thank You! You are too kind :)
Great post! Upvoted followed and resteemed!
Thank you! You are too kind :)
Cool post! I may refer to this one for some additional info on snakes when I write a blog post about the pet cornsnake my boys recently got from their aunt.