This northern Pacific rattlesnake was photographed at the BC Wildlife Park in Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Jamie R D Pearce
May 03, 2024 - 6:00 AM
Several species of snakes have been spotted sunning themselves in Kamloops and the Okanagan this spring including the common garter, northern Pacific rattlesnake, rubber boa and great basin gopher snake.
While snakes give some people the willies, their long, slender bodies and patterned scaly skin are admired by many nature lovers.
The northern Pacific rattlesnake is the only species of rattlesnake in the province and is found mostly in the southern Interior, according to WildSafeBC.
The snakes grow to over a metre in length and come in a variety of colours with dark spots on their backs. They're the only snakes in BC that have a real rattle, although gopher snakes will mimic the sound.
The snakes are shy and very few people get bitten by them, but bites can be fatal if they are not treated right away.
A rubber boa slithers along a path in the Similkameen Valley.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Tuilelaigh Dunnigan
Rubber boas are a smooth snake with small scales and loose skin, giving them a rubbery appearance. The thick-bodied snakes are found from southern BC and further south across the United States border, according to Nature Companion.
These snakes have an interesting cap on their tails that can make it tricky to tell which end is which.
Rubber boas don’t like the heat as much as other snakes preferring moist areas and sandy soils they can burrow into. The snakes are nocturnal so they aren’t easy to find. When a rubber boa is threatened it rolls into a ball and tucks its head in, raising its tail up as a decoy.
This great basin gopher snake was spotted in Kamloops.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Taylor Sonier
Great basin gopher snakes are between 70 and 200 centimetres long, a brown or yellowish brown colour with black square spots running from the head to the tail.
These snakes are found in the southern Interior of BC and western United States, with the highest populations in the Thompson and Okanagan valleys, according to the provincial government.
In the spring, gopher snakes emerge from hibernating in dens in rocky outcrops, and disperse to summer foraging and egg-laying habitats. They lay eggs in abandoned rodent burrows and forage in open grasslands.
A common garter snake sunbathes in Osoyoos.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Sandra Gulin
The most widespread snake species in North America is the common garter snake, which is also one of the most northern groups of reptiles in the world, according to the Northwest Wildlife Preservation Society.
These snakes have blackish green coloured bodies with three stripes running down their backs and sides. They are non-aggressive and will help gardeners by eating slugs.
READ MORE: iN PHOTOS: Warty, wet and web-toed amphibians busy breeding in Kamloops, Okanagan
Garter snakes hibernate in underground dens called hibernaculas during the winter with up to thousands denning together. They emerge in the spring to mate before heading to summer hunting grounds to feed and find good spots to have young.
If you have photos of snakes you want to share, send them to news@infonews.ca.
This long gopher snake was spotted on a doormat in the south Okanagan.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Michael J Pllng
A rattlesnake was photographed warming in the sun in the Similkameen Valley.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ George Thomas
Two gopher snakes slither into the brush in Oliver.
Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Jo Anne Mitchell
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