Species Guide
There are 35 species of garter snake. The goal of this section is to provide information on each one.
Each species page has some basic data about the species, including length, range, legal status, diet, and availability to (and suitability for) the pet trade.
This section has always been in a half-unfinished state. I continue to add details to each species page, but could always use some help. If you’d like to add your contributions, by all means contact me.
If you’d like to know about the garter snakes in your area, select your province, state or country.
If you’re interested in garter snakes, you might also be interested in their closest relatives, such as brown, red-bellied, queen and water snakes. Here’s a list of North American natricine snakes.
Garter Snake Species Pages
- Santa Cruz Garter Snake Thamnophis atratus
- Bogert’s Garter Snake Thamnophis bogerti
- Short-headed Garter Snake Thamnophis brachystoma
- Butler’s Garter Snake Thamnophis butleri
- Golden-headed Garter Snake Thamnophis chrysocephalus
- Conant’s Garter Snake Thamnophis conanti
- Sierra Garter Snake Thamnophis couchii
- Black-necked Garter Snake Thamnophis cyrtopsis
- Western Terrestrial Garter Snake Thamnophis elegans
- Mexican Garter Snake Thamnophis eques
- Mexican Wandering Garter Snake Thamnophis errans
- Exiled Garter Snake Thamnophis exsul
- Mesoamerican Highlands Garter Snake Thamnophis fulvus
- Giant Garter Snake Thamnophis gigas
- Godman’s Garter Snake Thamnophis godmani
- Two-striped Garter Snake Thamnophis hammondii
- Liner’s Garter Snake Thamnophis lineri
- Checkered Garter Snake Thamnophis marcianus
- Mexican Black-bellied Garter Snake Thamnophis melanogaster
- Tamaulipan Montane Garter Snake Thamnophis mendax
- Southern Durango Spotted Garter Snake Thamnophis nigronuchalis
- Northwestern Garter Snake Thamnophis ordinoides
- Tepalcatepec Valley Garter Snake Thamnophis postremus
- Western Ribbon Snake Thamnophis proximus
- Yellow-throated Garter Snake Thamnophis pulchrilatus
- Plains Garter Snake Thamnophis radix
- Rossman’s Garter Snake Thamnophis rossmani
- Narrow-headed Garter Snake Thamnophis rufipunctatus
- Eastern Ribbon Snake Thamnophis sauritus
- Mexican Alpine Blotched Garter Snake Thamnophis scalaris
- Mesa Central Blotched Garter Snake Thamnophis scaliger
- Common Garter Snake Thamnophis sirtalis
- Sumichrast’s Garter Snake Thamnophis sumichrasti
- Madrean Narrow-headed Garter Snake Thamnophis unilabialis
- Mexican Pacific Lowlands Garter Snake Thamnophis validus
By Location
If you’re not sure what species you want to learn more about, or you’re interested in learning about which garter snakes live in your area, choose one of the following state, province and country pages:
- Canada
- Alberta
- British Columbia
- Manitoba
- New Brunswick
- Newfoundland and Labrador
- Northwest Territories
- Nova Scotia
- Ontario
- Prince Edward Island
- Quebec
- Saskatchewan
- United States
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- Mexico
- Aguascalientes
- Baja California
- Baja California Sur
- Campeche
- Chiapas
- Chihuahua
- Coahuila
- Colima
- Durango
- Guanajuato
- Guerrero
- Hidalgo
- Jalisco
- Mexico
- Mexico City
- Michoacan
- Morelos
- Nayarit
- Nuevo Leon
- Oaxaca
- Puebla
- Queretaro
- Quintana Roo
- San Luis Potosi
- Sinaloa
- Sonora
- Tabasco
- Tamaulipas
- Tlaxcala
- Veracruz
- Yucatan
- Zacatecas