Quote Originally Posted by Kantar View Post
just trying to get less confused here.

So what is the difference between a Thamnophis Sirtalis and a Thamnophis Sirtalis-Sirtalis?

Garters with subspecies always have the 2nd name twice? I'd just like to know the difference

Google images don't help because if I search Plains garter sname and eastern garter snake they come up with the same images. Is there some sort of difference I'm not noticing?

I tried googling Thamnophis Marcianus Albino and every 2nd or 3rd result comes up with Thamnophis Marcianus Marcianus

How can you tell the difference between the garters and all their subspecies if there is very little to distinguish between them?
Sirtalis is "common garter snakes". Thamnophis sirtalis concinnus (red spot) thamnophis sirtalis parietalis (redsided) and all others with sirtalis are all sirtlalis. Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis (eastern) is a sirtalis like the rest.

I know. I can't explain it well...

The ones without sirtlalis, like thamnophis Radix, I don't think ever double like t. radix radix. (doesn't exist btw)

T.s. Means thamnophis sirtlalis. So you could write T.s parietlalis for redsided. T.Radix. (without "s.") for plains. It's more like the word thamnophis than the actuall subspecies. It's still a parietalis, but it's a sirtalis , just like it's a tjnophis...

Here's all the sirtalis subspecies. Out of 70 these are thamnophis sirtalis.

T. s. sirtalis (Linnaeus, 1758) – Eastern Garter Snake
T. s. parietalis Say, 1823 – Red-sided Garter Snake (has also been introduced to northern Halland in Sweden)
T. s. infernalis Blainville, 1835 – California Red-sided Garter Snake
T. s. concinnus Hallowell, 1852 – Red-spotted Garter Snake
T. s. dorsalis Baird & Girard, 1853 – New Mexico Garter Snake
T. s. pickeringii Baird and Girard, 1853 – Puget Sound Garter Snake
T. s. tetrataenia Cope, 1875 – San Francisco Garter Snake (endangered)
T. s. semifasciatus Cope, 1892 – Chicago Garter Snake
T. s. pallidulus Allen, 1899 – Maritime Garter Snake
T. s. annectens Brown, 1950 – Texas Garter Snake
T. s. fitchi Fox, 1951 – Valley Garter Snake
T. s. similis Rossman, 1965 – Blue-striped Garter Snake
T. s. lowei Tanner, 1988[2]