![]() ![]() First, snakes use olfactory sensory cells in their nostrils to monitor their surroundings. However, they have an excellent sense of smell, powered by two different olfactory organs. Snakes are awake during brumation, though very sluggish, and their metabolism slows down, conserving energy and reducing the amount of oxygen needed to survive until spring.Ĭommon garter snakes have poor hearing, are nearsighted, and cannot sense infrared heat. The hibernaculum protects the snake from the deadly sub-freezing temperatures above ground. Safely inside its underground shelter, the snake will enter a state of brumation, typically in September or early November. As fall weather cools, it will take refuge below the frost line by occupying an abandoned mammal tunnel as a hibernaculum (garter snakes cannot dig tunnels). Shorter day lengths and lower temperatures trigger brumation in the common garter snake. The snake’s digestion slows down, and food in its digestive system may spoil, causing the snake to regurgitate the life-sustaining energy the meal provides. Garter snakes must maintain a body temperature above 32☌ (90☏) to digest their food because digestive enzymes do not work efficiently at colder temperatures. The heat thief gains an energy advantage over the competition and is often more successful in mating.Īs an ectotherm, the common garter snake’s body temperature is the same as the outside air. After producing the female pheromone, the newly emerged (and colder) male is engulfed by other already-warmed males and “steals” some of their heat without tapping into his energy reserves, a behavior known as kleptothermy. Some males emerging late from their winter den will use chemical deception to trick other males into giving up some of their heat energy. At some den sites, there may be 100 males writhing around a single female forming a “snake ball,” with each male hoping to be the one that mates with her. As each female garter snake emerges, they are besieged by every male who detects the female’s pheromones. In spring, male garter snakes leave their den first, and even though they have not eaten in months, the urge to breed overcomes the need to feed. Garter snakes may come out to bask for a few hours on warm days before returning to the hibernaculum. Sluggish but not asleep, they will move farther underground if severe winter temperatures and a lack of insulating snow cover drive the frost line deeper. ![]() Garter snakes will spend the entire winter below the frost line in a state of brumation. As the temperature drops below 16☌ (60☏), garter snakes enter a state of inactivity called brumation. After 2 to 3 months, 10 to 80 precocial young are born between late July and October.Ĭhanges in day length and temperature trigger a search for a suitable underground winter shelter. The eggs of the garter snake remain inside the female until they hatch ( ovoviviparous). ![]() A female garter snake can store sperm in its reproductive tract for several years, so she can still reproduce if she does not find a suitable mate. Males release pheromones that attract the females, and if she finds a suitable male, they will mate, and the female will leave the area. Mating begins as soon as the females emerge from the hibernaculum. The male common garter snake comes out of brumation as spring temperatures warm up. ![]()
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