Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Around my area, the eastern garters are very variable, though some traits seem to be linked. The best looking one i found in summer of '03, and it was gorgeous. I don't know that it would have been a very sellable individual, because it was more subtle than other morphs. It had brownish-red sides, and similarly colored sides. I kept it for about a month, and it displayed the same eating habits as all the other snakes i've found around here. It absolutely refused to eat golfish or guppies. It would accept 'crawlers, local salamanders and fowler's toads (bufo woodhousei fowleri). Also, the only fish it would eat were black-nosed dace minnows i netted out of a pond on our property. Unfortunately, I decided to release it. Now i really wish i had kept it. The closest way i can describe it is as being somewhat like a peach or flame phase, but darker than the former and less red than the latter. If someone tells me how to send photos, ill send a couple of the pics i took before releasing it.

I don't find it that strange. A snake will be more likely to take the food item if it recognizes it, which might be why it ignored goldfish and guppies. Overall, many of my Thamnophis have showed a fondness for amphibians, whether it be frogs or toads (sometimes when collecting and short on bags, I double up and lose most of my amphibian catch) even over fish. Just like many of my rat snakes I have caught refuse white mice over wild color mice, or will only take rats and not mice at all. Andy
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Andy Maddox
AIM: SurfAndSkimTx04
MSN: Poloboy32486@hotmail.com
Houston Herp Key
The Reptizone

Burgundy baby, With your blue eyed soul, You play the hits and I'm on that roll, Capricorn sister, Freddie Mercury, Jupiter Child cry