www abdopublishing com Published by Abdo Publishing a division of ABDO PO Box 398166 Minneapolis Minnesota 55439 Copyright 2015 by Abdo Consulting Group Inc International copyrights reserved in all countries No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher Checkerboard Library is a trademark and logo of Abdo Publishing Printed in the United States of America North Mankato Minnesota 102014 012015 Cover Photos iStockphoto Science Source Interior Photos Alamy pp 1 14 24 29 Glow Images pp 6 12 17 19 iStockphoto pp 5 9 15 25 JIM BRANDENBURG MINDEN PICTURES National Geographic Creative p 13 NORBERT ROSING National Geographic Creative pp 20 21 Science Source pp 10 11 22 26 27 Series Coordinator Megan M Gunderson Editor Rochelle Baltzer Art Direction Neil Klinepier Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Petrie Kristin 1970 author Garter snakes Kristin Petrie pages cm Backyard animals Audience Ages 8-12 Includes index ISBN 978-1-62403-660-6 1 Garter snakes Juvenile literature I Title QL666 O636P48 2015 597 96’2 dc23 2014024642
table of Contents Garter Snakes 4 Where They Live 6 Head to Tail 8 Seeking a Meal 12 How They Act 16 Senses Communication 18 Baby Snakes 20 Enemies Defenses 24 Snakes at Risk 28 Glossary 30 Websites 31 Index 32
4 Garter snakes What slithering creature is feared by countless humans This reptile lacks arms and legs Yet it moves quickly and it causes people to run even faster This creature is the snake One type of snake is the garter snake These snakes are from the scientific family Colubridae They make up the genus Thamnophis which includes more than 30 different species These include the plains garter snake the western terrestrial garter snake the blackneck garter snake and the Butler’s garter snake There are also longnose shorthead and giant garter snakes The common garter snake is the species sirtalis There are several subspecies within this group These include Texas Chicago red-sided and blue-stripe garter snakes Garter snakes are cold-blooded vertebrate reptiles They live in wooded areas wetlands gardens and of course backyards Keep reading to learn more about the slithering widespread garter snake Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Reptilia Order Squamata Family Colubridae Genus Thamnophis SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION
5 Garter snakes belong to the genus Thamnophis This word is from Greek Thamn means shrub or bush and ophis means snake WHAT’S IN A NAME More than half of all snake species belong to the family Colubridae
