Tips/Opinions

[Martinz21]

So I've been out in the field now for roughly a month and only found one garter snake. I am wondering if anyone would be willing to help with some tips that have worked for them in the past finding these guys. (Note: I'm in Virginia)

[guidofatherof5]

Early morning, late evenings are good times to find them. The heat of the day they are hiding.

[d_virginiana]

I always have better luck during the 'hiding' times. It's always been easier for me to pick out where they may be hiding and lift it up than finding them wandering about.

I'm in central NC, and I've probably seen two wild garters there in my whole life. I find ratsnakes, black racers, and water snakes pretty often though. At my old house I think the low garter numbers were due to how many water snakes we had, since as fish-eating water lovers they're basically competing for the same habitat and food source.

You can also put down large pieces of plastic or plywood in the corner of your yard; leave it for a week or so, and it'll become the local snakes' favorite place to hang out.

[Zdravko092368]

Get plywood, particle board, aluminum sheets and set them up in good edge habitat(fields inside or alongside forests), check at the hottest times of the day for wood and the colder parts of the day/night for aluminum.

[joeysgreen]

Particle board sucks as it deteriorates rapidly. Great if it's in an area that might be forgotten and you don't want to leave littered, but a poor choice if you want a regular hiding place to check.

Ian

[Zdravko092368]

I've had some last 2-4 years... I wouldn't consider that rapidly.

[Albert Clark]

I think your chances are better in the early morning by the water and early evening under driftwood and rocky outcrops and under stones. Get a good flashlight too. These guys blend into the environment so well. Do you have a hunting partner?

[Herp Derp]

environment plays a big factor into it as well as time of day(and season). little tricks i use are: in the mornings i tend to look at the south side of water edges or woodsy areas(as they seem to want to heat up early) also under rocks; midday anywhere at the edges where they can sun and hide fast, and late afternoons i look around the north side edges. walk on paths quickly and near the edges dont over focus just look for movement , sometimes if you listen really well you can hear them move the leaf litter or reeds that is when i will stop and look, most of the time they freeze if they think they've been detected. they will try to slowly and quietly get away at this point. the best time to catch them i find is early spring when nothing is green.

[joeysgreen]

I've had some last 2-4 years... I wouldn't consider that rapidly. It's all relative I suppose. I was considering that quick decomp.

[d_virginiana]

For a long time my dog was my herping partner. She lives with my parents and is getting too old to do a lot of hiking now, but she figured out I was looking for reptiles and amphibians, and she'd just go sniff them out and point to rocks and logs they were hiding under and wait for me to pull them out and show her. She knew not to chase them or try and dig them out before I got there too.

lol Needless to say, I don't have nearly the luck I used to without a dog to sniff them out for me.