Narrow-headed Garter Snake

Thamnophis rufipunctatus (Cope, 1875)

Spanish Name(s)	Culebra de Agua de Cabeza-angosta
U.S. Range	Arizona and New Mexico
Mexican Range	Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango and Sonora
Legal Status	Endangered in New Mexico. Threatened in Arizona. Consult provincial or state pages for legal restrictions on keeping this species in captivity.
Diet	Aquatic prey, mostly fish. Reports of tadpoles and ambystomatid salamander larvae.
Max. Recorded Length	95.3 cm
Pet Trade Availability	Not available or unknown availability.
Captivity Rating	No data available.

Southern Durango Spotted Garter Snake Thamnophis rufipunctatus nigronuchalis Thompson, 1957: Now considered a separate species, T. nigronuchalis.
Chiahuahuan Narrow-headed Garter Snake Thamnophis rufipunctatus unilabialis Tanner, 1985: Rossman et al. consider the diagnostic differences too insignificant to recognize the Mexican populations as a subspecies.

The description for this species has not yet been written.

A website for garter snake enthusiasts, Gartersnake.info provides information on every species of garter snake, including articles, answers to your questions, and the most comprehensive guide to keeping them in captivity on the web.

Gartersnake.info is run by Jonathan Crowe; contact him with your questions or comments. Stay up to date by subscribing to the RSS feed, or go back in time and read earlier articles and blog entries in the archives.

Some Garter Snake Feeding Problems
There are many reasons why captive snakes won’t eat in captivity. Garter snakes have a few more. (Jan 25)
Garter Snakes in Spring
Photographers capture images of garter snakes emerging from hibernation. (Apr 26)
Garter Snakes in Winter
In winter, garter snakes are supposed to be hibernating. This presents some challenges when one turns up in your basement, or when you’re keeping them as pets over the winter. (Jan 7)