Photo: Plains garter snake, Thamnophis radix [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]
The Wyoming Natural Diversity Database and the Biodiversity Institute, both located on the UW campus, are asking citizen scientists to help researchers better understand garter snakes in Wyoming.
There are 38 different species of garter snake in North America and four of those live in Wyoming: The Plains garter snake, the Wandering garter snake, the Red-sided garter snake, and the Valley garter snake.
But, according to UW researchers, even though garter snakes are common in Wyoming, they don’t know exactly where each of the four different kinds live in the state.
Here’s how you can help. Find a garter snake and take a photo of it. Use the information below to identify the kind of garter snake, email your photo, your identification, and a description of the snake’s location to: wyndd@uwyo.edu. Good location information is key.
For more information on garter snakes, check out the Wyoming amphibian and reptile guide at wyomingnaturalist.com.