How Big Can Garden Snakes Get

The garden snake is common in the state of Kentucky, and you can hear many local legends about oversized poisonous snakes. While the majority of them are not true, the question How Big Can Garden Snakes Get remains. Let’s try to answer to that question.

How Big Can Garden Snakes Get: the Black Rat Snake
 
The Back Rat Snake can be found near barns and in the backyards, as even if this is a harmless snake for humans, it likes to feed on mice and rats. This snake can easily reach the length of 72 inches, although snakes from this specie with a length of 100 inches and more were found. It is also the biggest snake that can be found in the state, and it also makes a great pet.

Milk Snake

One of the most common garden snakes found in the Kentucky backyards is the milk snake. In fact, its name comes from a legend claiming that this snake is able to suck milk from cows. While this is only a legend, the milk snake is a common appearance in barns and cellars because of the huge appetite of this snake for mice. The smallest milk snakes have a length of 6 inches, and the mature exemplars could reach 36 inches. Some people claim that they have seen milk snakes with a length of 100 inches, but as we are talking about a “legendary” snake, we can’t consider this as a suited answer for the question How Big Can Garden Snakes Get.

Eastern Garter Snake

The Eastern Garter Snake is a relatively small reptile that can be found in the urban areas. It is a small specie with a minimum length of 5 inches, and with a maximum of 26. This is one of the most common species of snakes, as it adapts well to the urban environment, and it can be commonly found in the backyards of the town houses.

Smooth Earth Snake

While the Black Rat Snake could grow to a length of 100 inches, the Smooth Earth Snake would never have more than 10. It is the smallest snake that you can find in the garden, and it is also a harmless one. It can easily be mistaken with an earthworm, but its characteristics make it a snake.

The Southeastern Crowned Snake

The Southeastern Crowned Snake is also a small specie that could easily adapt to any kind of environment. Besides the forests and the rocky areas, this snake can also be found in the backyards, so it can be considered a garden snake. This specie can also grow at a length of maximum 10 inches.  
As you can see, the answer to the question How Big Can Garden Snakes Get is different. While the smallest garden snakes could have 5 inches or less, the biggest exemplars of the black rat snake could easily go over 100 inches. The venomous snakes can also reach impressive sizes, but those are not garden snakes, so they are not the subjects of this debate.    

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Are Garter Snakes Dangerous

The Garter Snake is a part of the small snake’s families, being a common snake in Kentucky. It has three yellow stripes on the back, with varied colors. however, its shape and the combination of colors are unique, so you will be able to recognize a snake of this kind. The stripes might have other colors also, and they could also miss completely. in this case, they are replaced with some spots of a dark yellow or brown. Those dark spots can also be found on the belly of the garter snake, and they usually have a light green or a yellow color.

The garter snake is a common snake in the urban areas, and this is why people developed a fascination for it. it is understandable: as long as you see a snake around your house, you might wonder if it is dangerous.

Good news, the garter snake is not poisonous, but it releases a smelly musk if threatened, and some people might find it offensive. In some rare cases, allergies to this musk were reported, so you might check yourself about this matter if you are living in a Kentucky area where this snake is common.

the legends about the garter snake being dangerous appeared because of its resemblance with the copperhead, which is a venomous snake living approximate in the same areas. however, the simplest method to identify a non-poisonous snake is to look at its eyes. The garter snake has horizontal pupils, while all the poisonous snakes have a vertical pupil.

While the garter snake is harmless and sometimes even beneficial, especially for farms where the snakes kill a large number of rats and mice, some people might not want them around. while the deterrents and naphthalene were used commonly to eliminate the snakes, those substances might be harmful for the environment and for you. This is why you should get rid of the garter snake by making the environment less friendly. Eliminate all the piles where they could hide. It is not a guaranteed method, but it will surely decrease the number of snakes on your yard. the snakes might hide in the basement or in the cellar, although the cold dark places are not so comfortable for them. it is also a good idea to cover all the wholes larger than ¼ inch. This way, the snakes will not be able to get in.

The average length of the garter snake is 4 to 26 inches, but the majority of adults have about 20 inches. This is the main difference from the copperhead that could easily reach 42 inches. Look for the shape of the head. All the poisonous snakes have a resembling head with the venom bags placed on the sides, while the non-poisonous spices have a sharp head and usually a slippery aspect. if you want to be certain about a snake, look at its tail. The anal plate is continued on one row to the top of the tail for the venomous snake, while the other species will only have one row. 

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Garter Snakes, poison, snake, snakes,

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