First wild ones of the year!

[MasSalvaje]

I found these two while netting some frogs today. I need help with the sexes and your opinions on the odd color of one of them. I apologize before hand of the quality and give anyone mega props that can get a good vent shot.

First:




Second:




The second one was one of the lightest I have seen in this area, it also had a very atractive Coral colored belly that extended around the neck. These next shots is what I am use to seeing for this area, the second is the pinkish beauty.

Normal:


New to Me:


Let me know what you think!

Thanks everyone!

-Thomas

[MasSalvaje]

Here are the whole body shots of the two.

First:




Second:




Group shots:




Thanks again!

-Thomas

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

Garter bellies come in all flavors. Tan, cream, green, pink, red, orange...wow, look at all the black on their bellies!!! The garters I find don't ever have any black on their bellies, what species are these?

They are both males by the way

I do however find a LOT of them with salmon pink bellies! Especially on the farm! I have a female I decided to keep that is brick red with a dark maroon belly, and red labial markings instead of the black you see so often!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

nevermind asking the species, I see now they are vagrans!!

[MasSalvaje]

I have seen a lot ot these guys in the area with really varrying amounts of black, white, cream, but this Coral color was a first for me.

-Thomas

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

every locale is different, and when you are used to the typical snakes of a certain area, and you find something that's not typical it makes you double take!! The easterns I find in my yard are what I call the picture-book eastern. Dark, dark brown with creamy yellow dorsal and side stripes, and a dark neck border and cream belly. This is the snake that many people visualize when they hear the word 'garter snake". So last year it was shocking for me to flip over a board and find an eastern I normally only see in potter county, which are normally an attractive pale green or tan with light red spots and no dorsal stripe whatsoever! I am confident that this was probably a descendant of some babies of a potter country eastern that I released in my creek when I was around 12. Because you just don't see those kind of eastern in these parts!!!

[guidofatherof5]

I would agree with Shannon on both of them being males.
Thanks for posting some pictures.

[ssssnakeluvr]

definitely males....the females usually come out a few days after the males... still waiting to find my first ones!!!! I have found a few with orange bellies....and orange on the sides too!!

[TwistidMutations]

they look like males to as well

[Seere121]

Garter bellies come in all flavors. Tan, cream, green, pink, red, orange...wow, look at all the black on their bellies!!! The garters I find don't ever have any black on their bellies, what species are these?

They are both males by the way

I do however find a LOT of them with salmon pink bellies! Especially on the farm! I have a female I decided to keep that is brick red with a dark maroon belly, and red labial markings instead of the black you see so often!!

I have a Garter that I caught in Kitsap County, WA with a tan belly at her head that gradually turns completely black by her midsection and all the way to her tail! She has a bright orange stripe on her back and a yellow stripe on either side and right after she sheds you can see checkering but it dulls shortly after. I would put up a pic, but my camera does'nt work anymore.