Reptile & Amphibian Forums

What type of garter snake eats pinkies as there normal prey species. I'd love to get a garter, but I'd like one that eats mice. It would be a lot easier on me since I have so many other rodent eaters.

my radix and sirtalis eat pinkies scented w/ crawlers.

Well, in the wild the only garters to eat mice regularly or hunt them w/e is the wandering garter T. vagrans. Although, once captive (especially if you get them as babies) most can be switched over to scented mice and eventually mice with relative ease.

>>Well, in the wild the only garters to eat mice regularly or hunt them w/e is the wandering garter T. vagrans. Although, once captive (especially if you get them as babies) most can be switched over to scented mice and eventually mice with relative ease.

I've heard the same about that T. elegans subspecies, but IIRC, there was also another species that would take them regularly.

Would you say that most non-specialized garter species would take mice (of appropriate size) in the wild, if they had the opportunity? I don't mean that they would specifically hunt them.
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1.1 Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis (CB'04,CB'05)
0.1 Pantherophis guttatus guttatus (CB'06)

Yes Stefan I believe that some garters in the wild would certainly eat mice of appropriate size if they had the chance. I don't think its much of a common occurance however as the chance to get pinky mice from a mother mouse doesn't seem easy for a young snake and I don't think anything but a very good sized female of some of the larger species (T. elegans, T. sirtalis) etc would have a prayer of actually takeing down a grown mouse..
-Lee

garter to get on rodents is probably the checkered, T. marcianus. I've had wild-caught adults jump on unscented fuzzy mice as if it were their last meal! I bred these for many years, and the babies are very easy to start out on pinkie parts-some will not even need fish/frog scenting.

Brad Chambers

I would say T.elegans vagrans (wandering garters) would be at the top of the list, along with some of the other elegans sub-species.
T.s. sirtalis (eastern garters), T.s. parietalis (red-sided garters) and T. radix (plains garters)all have voracious appetites, and usually eat rodents with no problem. I have a wild caught eastern garter male that started eating unscented pinks after his second meal. The above garters will eat just about anything in the wild, including rodents if the opportunity arises.
Steve
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SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS

Thank You every one for the help!