‹ Compare two snakes
Common Gartersnake vs Eastern Ribbonsnake
Tap a part to see it on both. Tap it again to turn it off.
Matt Kenne, no rights reserved
Common Gartersnake
Thamnophis sirtalis
Mildly venomous(c) Matt Pelikan, some rights reserved (CC BY)
Eastern Ribbonsnake
Thamnophis saurita
Non-venomousThe quick way to tell
Look just in front of the eye. The ribbonsnake has a pale bar there, and a much longer, thinner tail. The Common Gartersnake doesn't.
Head ★ This settles it
Small head barely wider than the neck; often with pale jaw markings.
Small narrow head with a white or yellow bar just in front of the eye.
Pattern
Three pale stripes - spine and low on each side - often with red flecks between.
Three bright yellow stripes on dark brown or black, with no flecking between them.
Eyes
Round pupil, fairly large dark eye; no heat-sensing pit.
Round pupil, with a pale bar in front of the eye; no heat-sensing pit.
Pits
None. There is no pit between the eye and the nostril.
None. There is no pit between the eye and the nostril.
Tail
Fairly short, about a quarter of its length; no rattle.
Very long - about a third of its total length; no rattle.
What it does
Flees for cover; musks and may give a scratchy bite if held.
Races across the water surface and into thick plants.
Where it lives
Nearly all of the United States and southern Canada, except the driest Southwest.
Eastern North America: Nova Scotia, Maine and Ontario south through Florida, west to Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and the Mississippi River in Louisiana.