There are two subspecies of the common garter snake that are found in Iowa. The similarly marked plains garter snake and western ribbon snake have the lateral stripes on rows three and four. The scales are keeled and the anal plate is single. The head is brown or black with one or two small yellow dots near the parietal scales atop the head (these may be absent) and none or very few dark black bars on the labial scales. A specimen from Ringgold County had red pigment on the underside of the tail. The belly may be white, yellowish, or bluish. A red-sided garter snake, Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis, from Monroe County, Iowa. Lateral stripe is on the second and third rows of scales. Common garter snake, Thamnophis sirtalis, from Linn County, Iowa. There is usually a row of black spots below the lateral stripes. The lateral stripes are cream to yellow and are located on the second and third scale rows. Some specimens have a lighter brown background color in which the spots stand out especially well. The ground color is light brown to black with two alternating rows of black spots. The common garter snake is a medium sized Iowa snake measuring 14 – 48 inches in length (Conant and Collins, 1991). Common garter snakes are found statewide. Garter snakes are afforded no protection in Iowa. Common Garter Snake ( Thamnophis sirtalis)īy Jeff LeClere A red-sided garter snake, Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis, from Decatur County, Iowa.
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