Checkered Garters Attempting to Mate?

[kcl]

I got up this morning to my two (both ~2yrs old) checkered garter snakes trying to mate. Supposedly they are both male (sold to me as male, tails look the same to me, will post pictures of the tails tonight for further verification). The one was very determinedly riding around on the other and has returned to doing so after being separated. The one on the bottom just shed sometime during the night or early morning and did not seem particularly amused. Assuming they truly are both male, do I need to separate them?

They have not been brumated, and have never stopped eating.

[Zdravko092368]

It is likely they are both male if you were sold them as male and tails look the same because it is not incredibly uncommon for males to try to court each other after a shed, I can't remember the exact reason why but I'm sure someone knows.

[Albert Clark]

Well, it's certainly possible if you are housing them together (communal) one male will try and dominate the other male by attempting to breed with him. The sexes of both needs to be confirmed for sure. However there may also be the possibility the inferior male may secrete female pheromones.

[kcl]

They are housed communally and have been since I got them. I can separate them if needed for any reason, including if one male is now stressing out the other with this behavior. I don't have anything on-hand to put one in because they outgrew my original backup, but I can pick a tank up within a day and have basically everything else needed. The below is the best picture I have on-hand, which is of their mating behavior. I'll get individual pictures of each tail when I get home.

I did see about after the shed. From what I read, the pheromones are in the lipids in the skin. Tests done with tubes of shed skin from males, females, and female-attracting males put on the snakes changed courting behavior accordingly.

Capture.jpg

[kcl]

Did my best to get tail pictures, but there was wiggling. I can try again if these aren't good enough. Some of them are quite blurry. Can someone please confirm gender?

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[kcl]

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[BUSHSNAKE]

I see tails that say male. Dont have a clue if thats one snake or 2. Theres no point taking a pic from the top

[kcl]

Thanks!

Here's a few better ones:

Snake 1
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snake 2
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They seem to have stopped

[Eddie]

i think you might have a pair there

[kcl]

i think you might have a pair there

Which one looks female?