My Snakes Are Awake!


Silly Snake
On the first warm days in April, with the afternoon temperatures rising to the mid-70's, my daughter spotted two of the garter snakes that live in our yard. They were in the flower bed near her front door, and they moved very slowly, for they were still feeling the chill of winter. They were drawn out to sunny spots where they could soak up some warmth. Before we moved in, this big corner lot was paradise for garter snakes, with a big old barn-like structure filled with trash and junk, surrounded by an unkempt yard. Downed limbs and high grass provided shelter and lots of insects, worms and mice to eat.

In summer of 1998, a contractor bought the property and cleaned up the mess, then made the old house part livable and finished the barn-like two story wing where my daughter now has her photography studio. It became good space for people, but not for snakes. Still, when we moved in that September, I saw a few garter snakes around the yard. But the weather got cold and I forgot about the snakes until the first spring day when I was mowing the grass with my electric mower. Suddenly, a garter snake slithered swiftly right out from under the front of the mower. I was so surprised and so concerned that it might be injured, that I reached down and picked it up with my gloved hands.

"Are you O.K.?" I heard myself asking as I examined its wriggling body. I didn't see any cuts on it and it was certainly active. I didn't hold it very tight, but let it move from one leather glove to another. It was a pretty snake, gray and a little black, with yellow-orange stripes the length of its body, one down the back and one on each side. I took it to an area that was already mowed and released it into the grass. It raced off to some better cover in a flower bed.

As we worked around the yard, we found more snakes. There was still some debris from the construction, and when my daughter lifted one piece of plywood, she discovered six or eight that were so entwined it was hard to count heads. We carefully replaced their cover and left them in peace. Garter snakes are not poisonous, of course. The books say that they will bite when captured and will release a strong anal scent when handled, but obviously they don't always do that.

The copyright of the article My Snakes Are Awake! in Colorado is owned by B. J. Barton. Permission to republish My Snakes Are Awake! in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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