So, I guess I'm starting a collection? :D

[Sherrie]

Got two red sideds in yesterday.:D I was told they were about 4 months old, but one is about 14 inches long and the other is about 12 inches long, so I'm not sure if the age is right. I'll post some pics. They look pretty skinny to me, what do y'all think? I'm not sure of the genders either. I'm thinking maybe male on the bigger one and female on the smaller one, but I'm definitely no expert. Maybe y'all can help out with that. I do like them and they seem to be pretty easy going.

Here's the bigger one.
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And the smaller one.
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[Sherrie]

And a couple more for fun.
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[BLUESIRTALIS]

I am no expert on parietalis, but do you know the locale of these guys because these look like they might could be valley garters! Maybe some others will chime in! They are very nice congrats!

[Sherrie]

Hmmm? Well, the guy said red sided and I surely don't know the difference. The guy I got them from is in Modesto, CA and he said they were 2nd or 3rd generation captive bred. That's all I know.

[Sherrie]

Huh! Well, I looked up pics and they certainly do look like valley garters.

[BLUESIRTALIS]

I wonder if the great grand parents were wild caught in ca?
hmmm? Well, the guy said red sided and i surely don't know the difference. The guy i got them from is in modesto, ca and he said they were 2nd or 3rd generation captive bred. That's all i know.

[chris-uk]

Wouldn't T. s. fitchi be illegal to sell in California? I thought all reptiles native to CA couldn't be sold there, or is it just tetrataenia, infernalis and gigas? The cynic in me says that if seller knows what they are he sells them as parietalis because that would be legal.

The first of the two I thought was a parietalis, the second one (before I read Bluesirtalis' comments) I thought looked different. But I wouldn't be confident to say whether that's just simple polymorphism.

[CrazyHedgehog]

I have 6 parietalis, some are very high red from reptile paradise, others are like the first one with limited red, but on second look I can see the blocks of red ...that is different..

[BLUESIRTALIS]

It would be illegal to sell them so that could be the sellers way around it since they look so much alike! This kind of thing happens all the time and that's what causes hybrids in the hobby because all it takes is a little wrong information for someone to think they have a parietalis and start breeding it to albinos, anerys, or other morphs and they look so much alike it is hard for the eye alone to tell. They really do look like fitchi to me though! Maybe richard will chime in! I'm not saying that they are not parietalis, but something just looks a little odd to me!

[BUSHSNAKE]

those sure do look like fitchi

[reptileparadise]

Would not say those are parietalis at first glance.......

[Tarzier]

Those are some beautiful snakes. I don't really know much about different species, but I think the red dots are pretty cool, and a nice contrast with the yellow.

[Sherrie]

Those are some beautiful snakes. I don't really know much about different species, but I think the red dots are pretty cool, and a nice contrast with the yellow.

Thanks! I do like them regardless of which species they are. It would be nice to know though.

[Tarzier]

Always is, I was surprised as hell to find out my 'Indonesian Garter' I bought from PetCo wasn't exactly a Garter snake, and that was within my first few hours of joining this Forum. Don't regret the purchase though, he's a beautiful snake.

[Tarzier]

By the way, do you think they'll change in color as they get older? If so, what do you think they might look like?

[BLUESIRTALIS]

I say they are fitchi. Bushsnake says they look like fitchi as well so if we can get richard to chime in maybe he can help because he finds fitchi in the wild, but im about 90% sure they are valley garters!

[Sherrie]

They do look like the pics of valley garters I've seen, but as CrazyHedgeHog said, he has some parietalis that look very similar, so how exactly do you tell the two species apart?

I'm also curious if their color will change or get darker/brighter as they get older.

[BLUESIRTALIS]

Since they look like valley garters and they came from a guy in california i would say they are most likely valley garters. This is fine though because valley garters are very nice and are not that often bred and worked with! The color could change a little as they grow, but i can't say whether they will brighten up or darken up! They are very nice looking little valleys though!

[Sonya610]

I can't offer an opinion on what they are but they are VERY beautiful!