98 THE AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 



Range. — Extreme western New York and western Pennsylvania, through 

 Ohio and Indiana to southern Michigan and Wisconsin. 



Butler's garter snake has been collected only in the glaciated part of Ohio 

 (Map 23). Its preference for moist or wet, more or less open habitats, as 

 described below, would indicate that it is not apt to occur in unglaciated Ohio. 

 The lack of records in the extreme western and the northeastern counties may 

 be due to its rarity in those areas or the fact that collectors have not yet 

 chanced upon any colonies. The records are: 



Champaign County: Brush Lake, Rush Twp. (OSM 369). Crawford County: 

 Cranberry Twp. (TZS 995-6, 1506). Cuyahoga County: East Rockport, Berea 

 (MCZ 219). Erie County: (SHS; UMMZ 41949); Sandusky (TZS 73-4; 

 UMMZ 31612-4, 31713-4, 31717. 31719). Franklin County: Columbus (OSM 

 56). Greene County: Clifton Gorge, Miami Twp. (OSM 450.1-.5); 4 mi. N of 

 Xenia (TZS 2299). Hardin County: 3 mi. E of Mt. Victory (TZS 774). Huron 

 County: Greenfield Twp. (TZS 1308); Richmond Twp. (OSM 424.1; TZS 

 1173-8). Lucas County: Bono; Reno Beach, Jerusalem Twp. (TZS 225. 1312); 

 East Toledo; North Toledo (CSNH 1263; OSM 284.1 -.3. 285.1 -.6; TZS 4-5. 178, 

 200, 213-24. 813-4, 849-61, 923); Pt. Place, Toledo (TZS 941). Montgomery 

 County: Dayton (Ruthven, 1908). Ottawa County: E of Bono (TZS 231. 897); 

 Erie Twp. (TZS 944); Port Clinton. PoRTAGE CoUNTY: Hiram (NU 19). RlCH- 

 land County: Jackson Twp. (TZS 1250); Plymouth Twp. (TZS 1202-3). Seneca 

 County: Venice Twp. (TZS 996A-997. 1217-8). Wayne County: Wooster (WC). 



Habitat and Habits. — Butler's garter snake is locally common and shows a 

 tendency to form large colonies in favorable habitats. In certain parks and 

 marsh lands in and near Toledo it was very abundant and as many as 62 

 were collected in a single day. Other sizable colonies were discovered at Bono, 

 Lucas County, and the New Haven marsh which lies partially in Seneca, 

 Huron, Crawford and Richland Counties. It was also common at Wooster, 

 Wayne County, but all other localities were for the most part represented by 

 only one or two specimens. 



Open situations with more or less moisture appeared to be preferred. In- 

 dividuals were taken along streams and ditches, in fields, meadows, pastures 

 and along the edges of the extensive marshes at the western end of Lake Erie. 

 Two very small ones were discovered beneath a small heap of grass washed 

 ashore by the waves in Sandusky Bay. 



Specimens were mild tempered and none of the many handled made any 

 effort to bite. The secretion of the musk glands was found to have a sweet 

 odor. 



When crawling slowly, locomotion is similar to the sinuous movements 

 often employed by other snakes, but when a specimen is excited and endeavors 

 to travel with any speed, its progress is out of all proportion to the energy 

 expended (see Ruthven, 1908, 90). The body is wriggled from side to side 

 and movement in a forward direction is relatively slight. The action might 

 be compared to that imparted to a rope, one end of which is shaken rapidly 

 to the right and left. 



Specimens were collected in every month except December. There was a 

 decided peak of abundance in April, during which month over ten times as 



