This is Blood!

[azrael]

Blood is a yearling, quite a surprise. We have not decided if blood is female, but is showing traits of female behaviour with males.

She is the largest of last years litter from two brown Wandering Garters.

I saved her back to see how she developes as she was the only one in the brood. The rest where straight brown Wandering.

We did however find the mother, the chance is she could have bred with another male before the mother was placed with our male Brown NW Wandering. Although the two did copulate so to speak as soon as they had been place together.

What do you guys and girls think happened?

[ssssnakeluvr]

looks like a northwestern garter, not a wandering...nice looking one tho!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

that's not a t. elegans vagrans (wandering)... that's a northwestern garter, t. ordinoes!!!

[k2l3d4]

do not know about species and sub species,.... but she is really pretty.

[prattypus]

See, all my red striped ribbons have changed their name to northwesterns! I know they haven't but I am smitten with the red dorsals.

[azrael]

Hmmm... I see so she's a NW... Thank You... Mystery solved!

[Repfanatic]

I have a few T. ordinoides and found a site with a few pictures to show how much they can vary. Thamnophis ordinoides - Northwestern Gartersnake
There are some brown adults shown so maybe the parents were Northwesterns also? Just a thought.

[prattypus]

I have a few T. ordinoides and found a site with a few pictures to show how much they can vary. Thamnophis ordinoides - Northwestern Gartersnake
There are some brown adults shown so maybe the parents were Northwesterns also? Just a thought.

If she's a Northwestern, her parents had to be as well. Unless I am mistaken, the intergrades are the only way to get offspring that is a differing sub species than the parents.

[Snake lover 3-25]

ooo whatever she is she's beautiful!!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

If she's a Northwestern, her parents had to be as well. Unless I am mistaken, the intergrades are the only way to get offspring that is a differing sub species than the parents.

well, yes and no, they wouldn't be a subspecies at all, just an "intergrade"... but I know what you were getting at! That definitely looks like a pure northwestern, and yes ordinoes are VERY variable and the do come in plain brown, so I am sure this snakes parents were just brown ones that threw a red striped baby. That is certainly a beautiful snake!