San Francisco Garter Snake
Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia
The San Franciso garter snake is arguably the most attractive of all garter snakes.
It has a narrow distribution in the San Francisco peninsula, and it is estimated that the total wild population consists of only around 1,500 animals. It is federally protected and it is therefore illegal to keep in the USA.
The San Francisco garter snake is now bred widely in captivity, mainly in Europe but also in Canada, although there are concerns about in-breeding, as the entire captive-bred population has originated from only a small number of specimens originally released to private breeders by zoos in Europe.
In the wild this snake is largely a frog-eater, but in captivity will adapt to the same sorts of diets as most other garter snakes, in particular fish.
I have endeavoured to minimise risks of in-breeding by sourcing my breeding stock from as varied collections as possible.
The San Franciso garter snake is arguably the most attractive of all garter snakes.
It has a narrow distribution in the San Francisco peninsula, and it is estimated that the total wild population consists of only around 1,500 animals. It is federally protected and it is therefore illegal to keep in the USA.
The San Francisco garter snake is now bred widely in captivity, mainly in Europe but also in Canada, although there are concerns about in-breeding, as the entire captive-bred population has originated from only a small number of specimens originally released to private breeders by zoos in Europe.
In the wild this snake is largely a frog-eater, but in captivity will adapt to the same sorts of diets as most other garter snakes, in particular fish.
I have endeavoured to minimise risks of in-breeding by sourcing my breeding stock from as varied collections as possible.
