Two-striped garter snake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Two-striped garter snake |
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| Conservation status | |
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| Genus: |
Thamnophis
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| Species: |
hammondii
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The two-striped garter snake (Thamnophis hammondii) is a type of water snake. It belongs to a group of snakes called Colubridae. This snake lives only in western North America.
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What's in a Name? The Two-Striped Garter Snake's Story
The scientific name for this snake is Thamnophis hammondii. The second part, hammondii, honors a person. It was named after William A. Hammond. He was an army surgeon from the U.S. who found the first snakes of this kind.
How to Spot a Two-Striped Garter Snake
This snake is a medium-sized snake. It usually grows to be about 18 to 30 inches (45 to 76 cm) long. Its head is only a little bit wider than its neck.
You can find two main color patterns in these snakes. One type has stripes. It has a yellowish stripe along each side of its body. The top of its body is mostly one color.
The other type has a checkered pattern. This one does not have the side stripes. Instead, it has two rows of small, dark spots on each side.
Where Two-Striped Garter Snakes Live and What They Eat
The two-striped garter snake lives in western North America. Its home range stretches from central California down to Baja California, Mexico.
These snakes love water. They prefer to live near water that is always there or stays for a long time. This includes rivers, streams, and ponds.
Their main food sources are fish and amphibians. This means they often eat small fish or creatures like frogs and salamanders.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
The two-striped garter snake has a special way of having babies. It is called ovoviviparous. This means the mother snake keeps the eggs inside her body. The eggs hatch inside her, and then she gives birth to live baby snakes.
