Pickering's Garter Snake

Eutaenia sirtalis, variety pickeringii, (B. & G.)

Dimensions: Total Length . . . . .291/2 inches.
Distribution: Western Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Washington.

Pickering's Garter Snake represents a phase of variation from the ancestral form in the direction of the variety parietalis, but carried to an extreme degree. The black, represented by square, tessellated markings on most of the forms, has suffused the entire upper surface, obliterating all traces of a ground-colour and restricting the stripe on the back to a very narrow, broken streak of greenish or yellow; the stripes of the sides are wider and of the same colour as the central stripe. Beneath them is a jet-black area, which fuses into the slate colour or dark olive of the abdomen. The chin is whitish.

The black of the upper surface is usually intense-although some specimens are very dark brown-and has a soft, velvety effect upon individuals that have freshly shed the epidermis.

Length of Tail . . . . .71/8 inches.

Greatest Diameter . . . . .5/8 inches.

Width of Head . . . . .9/16 inches.

Length of Head . . . . .1 1/16 inches.