The average length of the Common Garter Snake is usually between 60 and 80 centimeters. Humans and Garter snakes can live in relative harmony together. Many snakes vary greatly and are listed under several categories. Young common garter snakes are born at 12.5 to 23 cm long and are similar in appearance to the adults. Usually, they have a lighter belly color. The color ranges from green or grey to almost black. There are many dozens of recognized regional populations of common garter snakes that have distinct color patterns. Generally, the stripes on the back of the slithering bodies of these small to medium-sized snakes are gray, brown, black or olive in color. Common Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis): . Listed below is a guide to help you identify snakes by predominant color. Their body color can range from blue, prominent in Florida blue garter snakes, to the many shades of red visible in West Coast species. Species: sirtalis is Latin and means "like a garter".. Subspecies: sirtalis is Latin and means "like a garter".. Some unique characteristics that garter snakes can have are thicker bodies, ridges on the back, and even, if you get close enough to see, tongues with two different colors on them. Common garter snakes grow to be 46 to 137 cm in total length. Red/Pink The largest Thamnophis species is the giant gartersnake (T. couchi gigas), found in central California, which can reach a length of 4 feet or more. They are found in different color combinations with hues of red, gray, turquoise, orange, yellow, green, etc. But a quick search will show that there are 35 species of garter snake belonging to the genus Thamnophis , so they come in many different colors and patterns. Garter snakes are incredibly common, but thankfully they are not dangerous for humans. If possible, use a camera with a zoom lens to take photographs of the snake's head, body color and overall body shape. Above are four different varieties of Garter Snakes one might encounter in the garden (photos Wikipedia) Closely related to Garter Snakes are Water Snakes (Nerodia species) and these are also found frequently in gardens, particularly in the northeastern US.
Vernacular Names: and outer coast of the Olympic Peninsula), T. s pickeringii (Puget Sound lowlands) and T. s fitchi (east of the Cascade crest). looks like.Garter snakes are the most common type of snake in North America that is likely to be venture into your garden. Beautiful in appearance, the gopher snake is spotted with a base color of yellow to beige with dark brown spots. Unlike Garter Snakes, Water Snakes are relatively boring in color and appearance- brown with some darker colors mostly.