Come on out where ever you are

[Snakers]

Hey does any know when the garter snakes will be coming out in New york? Im staring to miss the snakes in my garden

[Faunaofthenorth]

well it depends on the year, and the temperature, i kno way up here in minnesota, on average they come out around the end of april or may, but this year its the beginning of march and the snow is already melting and its around 56+ degrees out which is a rarity up here in northern minnesota, so i would suspect them to be out at the end of march to mid april

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Hey does any know when the garter snakes will be coming out in New york? Im staring to miss the snakes in my garden

well I live in PA and i expect to see my first garter in april.... good luck!!!

[MasSalvaje]

Hey does any know when the garter snakes will be coming out in New york? Im staring to miss the snakes in my garden

I saw my first Garter of the year this past week! We had been having very mild weather for a couple of weeks then I woke up on Fri to 8" of snow on the lawn.

From what I hear New York has had one of the heaviest winters ever recorded so I can't imagine it being anytime soon.

-Thomas

[Faunaofthenorth]

exactly

[ConcinusMan]

The heavy snowfall actually helps the garters. IF it melts slowly that is.

We had a snowy winter of '08 that beat many different records set in 1902. We had most of the month of DEC at or well below freezing and nearly 2 feet of snow on the ground at one point during that month. Over a foot fell in one day. I have to tell you, it's better to have a foot or more snow cover. It was 13 - 22 degrees for more than 2 weeks. Yet, just 18 inches below that fine powder, the temperature was steady at 32 degrees. Snow makes a great insulator. It goes both ways, it protects snakes brumating below ground. It also takes much more warm weather for longer time, to get them to come out.

This past winter has been very mild and dry. FEB was very dry and above average temperatures. The tulips are blooming about 3 weeks early. I've already seen a garter in late FEB. I'm sure they were out this weekend too but I had to work. It was sunny 66 F.

I guess my point is, it's the ground temperature that matters and the snakes are brumating in a location that is insulated. It's going to take time for them to feel the warmth and emerge.

even in the hard-hit east U.S. surely it can't be more than 6-8 weeks before garters will be out in numbers.

[Faunaofthenorth]

true, but here in minnesota, last year i observed three males sitting in the sun with half their bodies submerged under almost a foot of snow, so its not impossible, although they still looked partially frozen, but that was at a hibernacula, which was an old well, that i found so they can be out almost any time, although normally not while there is still snowcover

[Holly]

I saw a big one today! It was 16C and he was just chilling, soaking up the sun!

[ConcinusMan]

Awesome! That temperature is about when they start emerging here too. Unfortunately, the warm hours of the day are brief so they stay right at the dens. Fine if you know where a den is. Anyway, today I was looking in concinnus habitat where I can find ordinoides too. If I go to the known ordinoides den site right when it's about 60 F they can be sighted.

I just wish that other guy (can't remember his name) that found a concinnus den site in Beaverton, OR would tell me where it is. That would be cool to film in April when they are breeding!

[Faunaofthenorth]

oh man most def for sure, that's be awesome. I'ver never seen any other garter breeding balls other than, sirtalis, sirtalis sirtalis, and sirtalis parietalis, and elegans vagrans, i think it's be cool to see such beautiful creatures as concinnus in a breedinf frenzy for sure