Beautiful infernalis! So. Humboldt CA Red-sided Garters do not have the clean-cut pattern borders that the Bay Area has! Further north (beginning at south of the Klamath River) we have fitchis with fat black heads with just a touch of red on the cheeks. Partial hybridization is also suspected with the elegans clade (ordinoides may be suspect, but chances are not likely), as many of our sirtalis have ventral red flecking and diffused patterns.

Here's a few of our sirtalis!



T. s. fitchi (Fern Canyon, Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park) July 19, 2008


T. s. fitchi (Tolowa Dunes near Lake Earl, Crescent City, CA) Aug. 31, 2008


T. s. fitchi (Hidden Beach, Del Norte County) Aug. 23, 2007


T. s. fitchi / infernalis intergrade (Fern Canyon) April 26, 2008

I have a few more examples following this. Hope to have more examples soon. The SIGHTINGS page on the THAMNOPHIS page linked from the NATIVES page which you get to from the main index of HumboldtHerps has globs of local garter pics! Aw heck... Just go straight there!

Thamnophis - Sightings

Adios!

Steve