Identifying Garden Snakes

Garden snakes, or grass snakes, are often seen as mysterious and elusive creatures that slink through tall grass, underbrush, or along garden fences. While their presence may cause some people to recoil in fear, these fascinating reptiles are beneficial. They play a crucial role in controlling the populations of pests like rodents, insects, and small amphibians. Still, they also contribute to a healthy, balanced ecosystem by acting as predator and prey. Despite their sometimes-intimidating appearance, garden snakes are typically harmless to humans and are an essential part of the natural world that many gardeners may not even realize they're hosting.

In this blog, we'll explore the various species of garden snakes, their behavior, their positive impact on your garden, and how you can create a snake-friendly environment while ensuring everyone's safety. Whether you're dealing with an occasional slither or a regular visitor, understanding these creatures can help you appreciate their role in your backyard.

What Are Garden Snakes?

Garden snakes are typically non-venomous and belong to the colubrid family, known for their harmlessness to humans. They come in various shapes, sizes, and colors, from the familiar greenish or brown garden snake to striped varieties. These snakes are commonly found in gardens, fields, and wooded areas where they can easily blend into the environment.

Why Garden Snakes Are Beneficial

Natural Pest Control One of the most significant benefits of having garden snakes around is their role as natural pest controllers. Snakes feed on various garden pests, including rodents, insects, and other smaller reptiles.

Biodiversity Snakes, like many other animals, are part of the food chain. They play a key role in regulating populations of smaller creatures, ensuring that no one species dominates and creates an imbalance in the ecosystem. This encourages a healthy, biodiverse environment where different plants and animals can thrive.

Indicator Species Garden snakes can also indicate a healthy ecosystem. These reptiles are sensitive to environmental changes, and their presence often signals a balanced and thriving ecosystem

Identifying Garden Snakes

It is an immensely variable species. Even the most experienced herpetologists need help to identify it. Garden snakes are medium-sized snakes, usually 18-40 inches, that pose no threat to humans. If you try to handle a garden snake, it will probably release a foul-smelling fluid from its tail and may even strike you.

Garden snakes, also known as garter snakes because of the stripe that goes down the length of many of these (Thamnophis elegans) snakes. Most western terrestrial garter snakes have a yellow, light orange or white dorsal stripe accompanied by two stripes of the same color, one on each side.

Some varieties have red or black spots between the dorsal and side stripes. Their bodies are commonly reddish-brown, and their bellies are often pale green or yellow. Checkered garden snakes are found in Texas but are usually only seen at night.

Where Can You Find Garden Snakes

These snakes can be found in the western United States, as far east as Nebraska and Oklahoma, and then again in Florida, where you might see blue garden snakes. They are found in British Columbia, Alberta, and southwestern Manitoba in Canada. And in Mexico, they can show up in northern Baja. Interestingly, these snakes are also common in Central America. Their preferred habitats are backyard gardens, woodlands, grasslands, and coniferous forests from sea level to heights up to 12,000 feet. Some garden snakes in the Rocky Mountains are semi-aquatic and prefer locating near streams.

The garden snake's population includes far more males than females. When snakes come out of hibernation, the males generally emerge first to be ready when the females wake up. Some males use a fake pheromone to lure the other male snakes away from the burrow. The male that has led the others away then turns around and returns to the den to be the first to mate. This method also serves to help warm up males by tricking other males into surrounding and heating the male. This is particularly useful in colder climates. These deceptive males have been found to mate with females significantly more often than males who do not exhibit this mimicry.

Garden snakes are common in North America and Central America. Usually small at 2-3 feet in length, they often hide near your garden under leaves, logs, or rocks. They are only active during the daytime unless the weather is extremely hot, which is when you might see them at night. Western garden snakes are reddish brown with dorsal stripes down their length. Consider them an ally in your vegetable garden, as they will look to eat rodents that may damage your well-tended vegetables.

How to Deal with Garden Snakes

Snakes are shy creatures that won't harm you unless provoked. If you spot one in your garden, give it space to slither away. The more you respect their boundaries, the less likely they become a problem.

Sharing your knowledge about garden snakes with friends, family, and neighbors can help reduce fear and misconceptions about these creatures. The more people understand their benefits, the more likely we are to create a supportive environment for them to thrive.

What do Garden Snakes Eat?

A garden snake's diet consists mainly of amphibians, earthworms, small birds, and rodents. If its habitat is near a pond or stream, common garden snakes are effective at catching fast-moving creatures such as fish and tadpoles.

Ways to Help Garden Snakes

To help garden snakes, you can create a suitable environment for them by leaving areas of dense vegetation, providing access to water sources like shallow dishes, avoiding harmful chemicals like pesticides and maintaining a great working ecosystem. Practice organic gardening methods and let them naturally control pest populations in your garden.

Conclusion

In many ways, garden snakes are the silent helpers of our garden. They act as natural pest control and maintain the balance of local ecosystems. While they may seem intimidating at first, they do not threaten us. So, next time you spot a garden snake in your yard, consider it a helpful garden friend.

At DripWorks we offer everything you need for your garden, including raised metal beds, gardening tools, containers, drip irrigation and more.

To read more about gardening, check out more articles on DripWorks. Happy Gardening.