Easterns that I have met

[ssssnakeluvr]

I can't say I've noticed that, Sjoerd. Mine are good eaters, but not excessively so.
What I have noticed with them is their strength..... they hold on when handled almost (but not quite) like a constrictor. They seem a lot more muscular than my other Garters, whereas my Florida Blues are less so, quite 'baggy' to handle, almost like a vipers body.
Has any body else noticed differences in the musculature between species/sub-species?

guess you haven't met my florida blue girl!!!! very thick and strong, very much like my melanistic eastern...she actually feels more muscular than the melanistic.

[ssssnakeluvr]

here's my melanistic female....all 43 inches of her!!



here's my florida blue female...33 inches of attitude!

[Zephyr]

Hmm... Odd.
One of my regular eastern females looks similar to that one... Maybe it's just a different color gene that was isolated in Florida...

[Zephyr]

Beautiful snakes by the way. XD
I'm thinking of either buying or finding a melanistic. :P

[Zephyr]

Well, another day of herping. Today's was the most productive. Around 40 garters caught, only a handful got a way, and I even found a flame! I was tempted to keep him, but I adhered to the rules of the area and let him go. However, after we'd left the protected area my girlfriend found a red brown snake! So, of course, I kept her. Also, we herped a bit in the garden plots and found 2 garters! This means that the garters that fill the plots in the summer must migrate the 2 miles distance from the falls to get there! But why...

[drache]

I don't think I've ever posted a picture of Boyfriend
well, he just shed and he looks pretty good
too bad the lighting is crappy

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

very pretty rhea, has some nice orange under his chin

[Zephyr]

Looks almost part silver to me.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

What interests me, is that my melanistics are just Eastern sirtalis sirtalis, are all Easterns this way?
They are, of course, the same sub-species as my 'floppy bodied' Florida Blues.

from my experience, yes. The easterns tend to hold onto you with an iron grip!

[drache]

very pretty rhea, has some nice orange under his chin

the photo is still a tad too yellow and while he does have that lovely orangey yellow at his throat, what these pics don't show, is that his dorsal stripe is distinctly lime coloured after the shed - totally surprised me