120 HERPETOLOGY OF MICHIGAN. 



Description: A medimu sized snake attainino' a length of one 

 and a half to two or three feet. Head generally Avell elevated be- 

 hind, elongate, high and straight on sides, concave in preocular 

 region. Cephalic plates normal. Two nasals and one loreal; nos- 

 tril lateral and between the two nasals. 



Dorsal scales 19-17, supralabials 7, occasionally 8, much more 

 rarely 6; infralabials 10, occasionally 8, or 11. A single preocnlar 

 and usually 3 postoculars. A single anterior temporal. Ventral 

 plates 141-108; subcaudals 51-84. Anal plate single. 



The coloration consists of three light stripes on a darker ground, 

 the lateral stripes on the second and third rows, the dorsal on the 

 median and halves of the adjacent rows. The first row of scales 

 much lighter than the ground color above, usually greenish or 

 yellowish, at least the upper half. The color between the stripes 

 may be uniformly black or broAvn, or olivaceous with two rows of 

 alternating, usually poorly defined, black spots. Kegardless of the 

 color of the scales between the stripes, however, there may nearly 

 always be seen, on stretching the skin, two rows of prominent black 

 spots separated by pale interspaces. Along the lateral stripes the 

 interspaces may occasionally be red. The stripes may be yellowish, 

 greenish or bluish, and the laterals when greenish or bluish fre- 

 quently blend with the first row. The dorsal stripe sometimes 

 wanting. The ventral surface usually pale and free from promi- 

 nent markings, except for a black spot on each end of the ventrals. 



Hahits and Hahitdt: Ruthven (1908, 177-179) has summarized 

 the habits of this species as follows : ''The experience of the writer 

 indicates that it is quite generally distributed in the Eastern forest 

 region, for Avhile it is found most commonlv in the vicinitv of 

 water, it is not uncommon in the clearings, woods, and thickets on 

 the neighboring hills. 



"The food consists principally of frogs, toads, salamanders, earth- 

 worms, and various insects. Whether or not it feeds to anv great 

 extent upon tadpoles and fish is undetermined. Garman (1892, 

 268) states that they eat these animals, and I have observed them to 

 "capture fish in captivity, but since in the wild state they are not 

 particularly aquatic, the truth of the matter is probably that they 

 capture these forms when they encounter them in small pools, but 

 that this is comparatively seldom. The number and kinds of insects 

 eaten is also ji (piestionable point. It is true that many species are 

 found in the stomachs examined, but, as Surface (1906, 149) says, 

 many of these are 'taken inside of the toads and other batrachians 

 which the garter-snake had eaten.' However, both adults and young 



