Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i am trying to identify a snake for a customer at the petstore i work at. he apparently found it in south carolina and is now trying to find out what kind it is because it wont eat anything.. he said it is about 3-4 feet long, grayish with black horizontal stripes... turtles and amphibians are my specialty and i admit that snakes are my weak point.. so im hoping someone knows what it is by the description.. he is supposed to bring it in the the store on thursday so i can take a picture.. i will post if i havent gotten any suggestions by then.. thanks in advance..

*dana
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my pets: clown treefrogs, reed frogs, big eyed treefrogs, tiger leg monkey frogs, gray treefrogs, milk frogs, cuban treefrogs, whites tree frog, green treefrogs, squirrel treefrogs, blue webbed gliding treefrog, red eye treefrogs, chameleon treefrogs?, mossy treefrogs, dusky salamanders, tiger salamander, box turtles, mud turtle, map turtle, yellowbelly slider, florida softshell, two saltwater tanks, five cats, two chinchillas, and a boyfriend.

Not really enough info to be certain. One possibility is a garter snake. What has he offered it to eat? If just rodents, & the first guess is accurate, have him try fish or (shudder) amphibs.

~~Greg~~
Florida's Venomous Snakes

>>grayish with black horizontal stripes...

Not quite sure which way "horizontal" is on a snake... Do you mean cross bands that go around the body or lines that start near the head and run towards the tail? Or are you just repeating what he told you?

The first might possibly be a water snake, the second could be a garter. Either way try a few feeder fish. I'm sure there are other possibilities. A picture would help a lot...

Sounds like a yellow ratsnake, or a "greenish" ratsnake. A greenish ratsnake is an intergrade (natural cross) between the black rat snake & the yellow rat snake. In SC yellow rats are often green or grey snakes with 4 clearly defined thick black stripes. "Greenish" rats can be the same color, or darker, but adults have traces of a blotched pattern between the stripes. Pure yellows are found along the coast. Greenish rats are found farther inland.

The best food choice for captives are rodents, although they will also feed on birds, lizards & frogs.

Check out the pix at this site for an ID:
http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/yrat.htm
http://www.snakesandfrogs.com/scra/snakes/images/yellowratsnake4.jpg

Paul B