valley garter snakeThamnophis sirtalis fitchi
(ssp. of common garter snake)
This swimming snake was a fun find. It amazes me they can use a similar serpentine movement to swim as moving across ground. It was good to revisit garter snake ID, because I found an error in a previous post that I had originally identified as a coast garter snake.
ps 04/01/14 - I had briefly changed the ID to Diablo Range garter snake (Thamnophis atratus zaxanthus), an aquatic garter snake. However, Diablo do not have red on their sides like this one shows.
4 comments:
Garters are amazing in water. I think they inflate different sections of their extra long lung to help their buoyancy dynamics while maneuvering in water. Just a guess. Yours look like it has a swollen midbody although it might just be the way water refracts light.
Yep, I read somewhere that snakes can "hold their breath" just like I was taught in swim class to help me float. This one did have a swollen midbody. Now, I want to look up snake anatomy. Cindy, you're a wealth of information.
I found this book at Phoenix second hand books in San Luis Obispo and it is really good about explaining snake biology in general.: Snakes in Question, The Smithsonian Answer Book, Carl H. Ernst, George R. Zug.
Thanks. I'm adding it to my list of recommended books: http://othernatureid.blogspot.com/2011/08/recommended-id-books-and-sites-part-2_29.html
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