what species do you recommend?

[duh duh duh]

as stated in the T. Gigas thread, my jurisdiction has restrictions on what types of garters I can posess, or import.

Basically, the following are "no no":

Butler's Garter Snake Thamnophis butleri
Eastern Ribbon Snakes Thamnophis sauritus

Thamnophis sirtalis (Red‑sided Garter Snake)

Thamnophis radix (Plains Garter Snake)

Thamnophis elegans (Wandering Garter Snake)


What sucks about this is that there are some tremendous morphs of Sirtalis that I have seen on the site. You guys who are breeding them are doing a wicked job. Unfortunately, I can't import any! I'd even have looked at getting a pair of San Frans, but, darnit, they are sirtalis as well.


so what do the expert minds on this site recommend? I have fairly good experience in herps and have had garters and dekay in the past (as a kid).

I have a bunch of space as well, so I think I could properly house whatever is suggested.

Post links to photos as well

[count dewclaw]

How about:

Thamnophis atratus (Santa Cruz garters)
http://www.thamnophis.com/caresheets/index.php?title=Pacific_Coast_Aquatic_Garter_Snake
Thamnophis proximus (Western ribbons)
http://www.thamnophis.com/caresheets/index.php?title=Western_Ribbon_Snake
Thamnophis ordinoides (Northwestern garters)
http://www.thamnophis.com/caresheets/index.php?title=Northwestern_Garter_Snake

There are probably others as well. I don't know if any of these are available in Canada, but it would be worth looking into.

[thinkmore]

The Red-Sided Garter Snake is Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis. That leaves a lot of other T. sirtalis perfectly legal, including the Eastern (T. sirtalis sirtalis), Red-spotted (T. sirtalis concinnus), and many more.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

The Red-Sided Garter Snake is Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis. That leaves a lot of other T. sirtalis perfectly legal, including the Eastern (T. sirtalis sirtalis), Red-spotted (T. sirtalis concinnus), and many more.


Unless the law says No sirtalis period!

what about marcianus? the checkered garter?

[duh duh duh]

Help me out here.

Is the genus and species, Thamnophis Sirtalis, and then the pariertalis the sub-species? or

Is sirtalis the genus and parietalis the sub-species?

in any event, unless I get an opinion from a fish and wildlife officer that I can keep a sirtalis sirtalis, I think I have to err on the side of caution when importing. There is a certain stigma if an unknowing customs officer or official charges one with "importing illegal reptiles".

[guidofatherof5]

Family: Colubridea
Genus: Thamnophis
Species: Sirtalis
Sub Species: s.parientalis
Here's a link. Hope this helps. It does get confusing ITIS Standard Report Page: Thamnophis sirtalis (http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=174136)

[mustang]

Unless the law says No sirtalis period!

what about marcianus? the checkered garter?
checkers are cool ul love them they get big and i caught a 2.5ft one and never attemted to bite nor has my wc baby

[wolfpacksved]

no radix? wth. the only one i can see making some sense is Butler's.

[duh duh duh]

Thanks everyone, keep it going!

I think the reason Radix is a no no is that they occur naturally here. You can go and catch one and keep it, but you can't import it. I would have been interested in a morph radix, because I can view the regular radix in nature without a whole lot of effort.

[duh duh duh]

anyone working with Northwesterns? Those are neet. I bet the morphs on those can be pretty fantastic.

[thinkmore]

I would still check personally to find out what exactly the current regulations are. Sometimes they change and you only find out by accident when you check again.

In Saskatchewan the law turns out not to be as scary as it appears at first sight. The bigger problem is the difficulty of US export regulations, and the severe lack of garter morphs available in Canada at all. The US has become much pickier of late, so might as well forget about flying anything in directly from there. Try driving and putting lots of time and effort into it.

We've been snake hunting for a couple of years, and after all that effort eventually managed to get a checkered from Florida flown to Vermont and picked up by an importer in Montreal and then flown here. Very little to pick from though.

And just to really screw with you, every Canadian province has different laws.

[charles parenteau]

In my book of Reptiles and Amphibiens from Quebec and Maritimes its say 10 eastern garter snake maximum if you want more or other protected species you can ask for a licence .
But I think its 10 thamnophis whatever is the species Im not sure about san francisco garter .

But I'M 95/100 sure that its illegal to sell thamnophis all over Canada....

[duh duh duh]

The restrictions in the first post are taken from the Alberta regs.

You can possess but not import the sirtalis and radix.

I've seen checkered come through a few times, but I'd like a morph or two or three rather than a "normal"

[thinkmore]

In my book of Reptiles and Amphibiens from Quebec and Maritimes its say 10 eastern garter snake maximum if you want more or other protected species you can ask for a licence .
But I think its 10 thamnophis whatever is the species Im not sure about san francisco garter .

But I'M 95/100 sure that its illegal to sell thamnophis all over Canada....

Wildlife is a provincial responsibility in Canada, so each province has its own regulations. It's illegal to sell WC animals, so that's why it's important to get an import permit so you have the paperwork to prove you're not selling wild thamnophis (if you decide to sell later).