Guessing ages?

[Lexa]

I took in my boy last October. He was being re-homed with another, female garter, which my friend took. The guy we got them from said that they were both a year old.

The female (a florida blue) was at least twice the size of Archie, who's red-sided. We were told that was because she was a female, and they get bigger anyway. When I got him, Archie was - or looked to me - very small. About a foot and a half long, and the thickness of a pencil. Now, his shed skin measures at 23.5 inches, and he's as thick as my little finger.

Does this sound consistent for a year-old snake? He's a good feeder, a good weight, but the female is so huge compared to him that I'm beginning to wonder if he really is just under two years old, or if he's actually much younger.

I have no ideas how fast garters grow, so can anyone shed some light?

[zooplan]

Between 20" and 30" is a normal size for an adult male garter. As a rough guide measure the wieght and see an adult less than 100 gr. of weight might be a male heavier specimens should be females.
The latter can reach a maxyimum weight of 500 gr.

[anji1971]

It's very possible that they are indeed the same age.
Males are often quite a bit smaller than females. I usually go out in early spring and get to watch the mating pairs, and the difference is very dramatic between the two. The boys look like little kids next to the girls!