# I found this little guy at the entrance to my garage.



## Ruth n Jersey (Sep 13, 2021)

I went out to water my flowers and this little snake was in the entrance to my garage, I guess it is a type of garter snake but looking online I couldn't find the exact markings on the pictured snakes.
I managed to get him in a bucket.

He was a nasty little thing and would coil up if I got to close with the camera.
But I guess I'd coil up if somebody put me in a bucket.

I took him down our street to where there is a lot of brush, trees and a pond. He can chose his living space as long as he stays out of my garage.


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## Murrmurr (Sep 13, 2021)

Looks like a King Snake but I don't know if you have King Snakes in Jersey.


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## RadishRose (Sep 13, 2021)

Ruth n Jersey said:


> I went out to water my flowers and this little snake was in the entrance to my garage, I guess it is a type of garter snake but looking online I couldn't find the exact markings on the pictured snakes.
> I managed to get him in a bucket.
> View attachment 183766
> He was a nasty little thing and would coil up if I got to close with the camera.
> ...


So brave Ruth! I would have run screaming into the street.


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## caroln (Sep 13, 2021)

Looks like a corn snake or milk snake.  At first I thought coral snake but I don't see any black on him.


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## Tish (Sep 13, 2021)

Looks like a California kingsnake, they are not venomous.


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## Gemma (Sep 13, 2021)

It's an Eastern Milk snake.  Can tell by the white V on its head and the very slender tail.  They are non venomous.  They eat rodents and other small snakes.


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## Jules (Sep 13, 2021)

RadishRose said:


> So brave Ruth! I would have run screaming into the street.


I would have been right behind you.  I’m pretty slow but I sure can scream.


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## Irwin (Sep 13, 2021)

I find garter snakes occasionally in the yard and sometimes they get in the house somehow. I'm somewhat tolerant of them, even though I hate snakes, because they keep the mouse population under control. The neighborhood cat and falcons help with the effort. There's a big field down the street where I guess the mice immigrate from. Damn immigrants!


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## PamfromTx (Sep 13, 2021)

I found one inside and about had a heart attack.  Non venomous!  I ran outside screaming!   lol  Ruth, you are so brave.


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## CAKCy (Sep 13, 2021)

(Glasses off) Wow! What a weird looking cat!
(Glasses on) Oh... it's a racoon!!!!


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## Lara (Sep 13, 2021)

I agree with those who say California King Snake. It's endemic to the west so if you have it there in New Jersey, it must be a pet that got loose. They are popular as pets because they come in a variety of colors and are not poisonous. He also sounds fairly tame which might mean he's been handled alot by the pet's owner. You said he's nasty but he's not striking out at you.


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## Gary O' (Sep 13, 2021)

Ruth n Jersey said:


> I went out to water my flowers and this little snake was in the entrance to my garage, I guess it is a type of garter snake but looking online I couldn't find the exact markings on the pictured snakes.
> I managed to get him in a bucket.


My mind went to the possibility of it being a coral snake






No matter

I woulda ran down the road, screaming 

snakes, any, give me the creeps


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## Lara (Sep 13, 2021)

My mind first went there too but the coral snake is from the south and she's way north (NJ). 
Venomous rules out the likelihood of a lost pet.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Sep 13, 2021)

@Tish and @Lara my son got back from doing work out in California. I am thinking this snake hitched a ride back in his truck. He has been home for about 3 weeks and it isn't far from where he parks his truck in out driveway. Maybe he has been in our yard since then. 
Gives me the creeps.


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## win231 (Sep 13, 2021)

Looks like this harmless one:
New Jersey also hosts two Milk Snakes (Lampropeltis triangulum) subspecies. The picture shows their colorful bodies. They are habitat adaptable, living in fields, forests, farms and residential areas. Finding Milk Snakes can be as easy as taking a hike and flipping over a few big rocks or logs. The can grow up to on average about three feet in length and the red to orange to dull rust color of the bands makes them easy to spot.


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## win231 (Sep 13, 2021)

Gary O' said:


> My mind went to the possibility of it being a coral snake
> 
> View attachment 183808
> 
> ...


Several little poems were designed to recognize the two:
_"Red, Yellow - Kill a Fellow.  Red, Black - Venom Lack."  _ (The Coral snake always has Red & Yellow bands touching.  The Scarlet King Snake's Red bands are always touching Black).


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## Gary O' (Sep 13, 2021)

win231 said:


> Several little poems were designed to recognize the two:
> _"Red, Yellow - Kill a Fellow. Red, Black - Venom Lack." _ (The Coral snake always has Red & Yellow bands touching. The Scarlet King Snake's Red bands are always touching Black).


Yeah, somehow the poem doesn't come racing to mind when I see one.


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## win231 (Sep 13, 2021)

Gary O' said:


> Yeah, somehow the poem doesn't come racing to mind when I see one.


And you might not want to get close enough to check coloration........


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## WheatenLover (Sep 13, 2021)

Gemma said:


> It's an Eastern Milk snake.  Can tell by the white V on its head and the very slender tail.  They are non venomous.  They eat rodents and other small snakes.


I like snakes like that. They are helpful.


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## Alligatorob (Sep 13, 2021)

win231 said:


> "Red, Yellow - Kill a Fellow. Red, Black - Venom Lack."


I learned it as "Red then yellow kill a fellow.  Red then black friend of Jack"  

I have seen a few coral snakes and at the critical times never can remember if it's "Red then yellow friend of a fellow..." or "Red then yellow friend of Jack..".


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## Butterfly (Sep 13, 2021)

Jules said:


> I would have been right behind you.  I’m pretty slow but I sure can scream.



Me, too.  I am not a fan of snakes!


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## Tish (Sep 14, 2021)

Ruth n Jersey said:


> @Tish and @Lara my son got back from doing work out in California. I am thinking this snake hitched a ride back in his truck. He has been home for about 3 weeks and it isn't far from where he parks his truck in out driveway. Maybe he has been in our yard since then.
> Gives me the creeps.


Aha! The mystery is solved lol it's a hitchhiking snake, I don't blame you for being creeped out by it, I certainly would be.


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## timoc (Sep 14, 2021)

Ruth n Jersey said:


> I went out to water my flowers and this little snake was in the entrance to my garage, I guess it is a type of garter snake but looking online I couldn't find the exact markings on the pictured snakes.
> I managed to get him in a bucket.
> View attachment 183766
> He was a nasty little thing and would coil up if I got to close with the camera.
> ...


Well done, Ruth, it may be a good idea to put a little sign (about 6" off the floor) in your garage entrance saying:

*Snakes prohibited.   *


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## Ken N Tx (Sep 14, 2021)

Harmless.......Does that mean they will not strike if accidentally stepped on or cornered ??


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## Judycat (Sep 14, 2021)

Baby corn snake. 
Thank you for not killing it.


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## RadishRose (Sep 14, 2021)

Jules said:


> I would have been right behind you.  I’m pretty slow but I sure can scream.


I'm not so fast myself Jules.


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## PamfromTx (Sep 14, 2021)

Gary O' said:


> My mind went to the possibility of it being a coral snake
> 
> View attachment 183808
> 
> ...


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## Jules (Sep 14, 2021)

RadishRose said:


> I'm not so fast myself Jules.


We’d be quite the sight.


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## WheatenLover (Sep 14, 2021)

A long time ago, we had a yard man who looked exactly like Mr. Clean. He was at our house one day when I stepped over a really long snake to get to back yard. He about had a heart attack on the spot. It was worse when I stepped back over the snake to find out what all the fuss was about. 

Turned out Mr. Clean thought the snake was venomous. I didn't - I already knew that there were only 3 venomous snakes in our state, and that this was not one of them. The herpetologist at the Science Museum told me that, and that I'd be really super lucky if I ever saw one. That is not the kind of luck I'm shooting for!

The snake turned out to be nonvenomous. But it did have the exactly opposite markings and colors of the snake Mr. Clean was thinking of. He just hadn't been to the science museum and encountered the herpetologist.


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## Gary O' (Sep 14, 2021)

That's the fear, the nightmare 
Nothing becoming about snakes
Even how they move *'slither' *(shudder)


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## HarryHawk (Sep 14, 2021)

You did good!!!


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## RadishRose (Sep 14, 2021)

So that's me Jules and Gary'O screaming in the street!


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## PamfromTx (Sep 14, 2021)

Gary O' said:


> That's the fear, the nightmare
> Nothing becoming about snakes
> Even how they move *'slither' *(shudder)


I hate the way snakes, 'slither' too.  When I found the snake inside our home, the more I screamed, the faster it slithered to find a hiding place.  OMG, I don't like snakes!


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## win231 (Sep 14, 2021)

ROFLOL!  Snakes are shy & don't want any part of humans.  That's why the first thing they do when someone gets close to them is try to escape.  There is NO animal that has more myths about it than snakes.


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## win231 (Sep 14, 2021)

As for snakes "chasing" people:


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## win231 (Sep 15, 2021)

PamfromTx said:


> I hate the way snakes, 'slither' too.  When I found the snake inside our home, the more I screamed, the faster it slithered to find a hiding place.  OMG, I don't like snakes!


They have to slither.  God made them without legs.
And they have to wrap around things so they don't fall.  God made them without arms.
So.......it's all God's fault.


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## Remy (Sep 15, 2021)

@Ruth n Jersey You were very kind to relocate the snake.


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## caroln (Sep 16, 2021)

PamfromTx said:


> My mind went to the possibility of it being a coral snake
> 
> View attachment 183808
> 
> ...


The only snake I know of that will "chase" you is a black racer. (Non-venomous)


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## Butterfly (Sep 16, 2021)

RadishRose said:


> So that's me Jules and Gary'O screaming in the street!


And me!


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## oldpop (Sep 16, 2021)

We have coral snakes around here. I cannot ever remember the standard rhyme for them. The one I use is "black on the nose away I goes". Not very good grammar but easy to remember.


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## HoneyNut (Sep 18, 2021)

win231 said:


> And you might not want to get close enough to check coloration....



I particularly would not want to get close enough to check this helpful advice found on the web:


*Poisonous Snake Eyes Pupils are Elliptical*​ 
Instead of having round pupils, a venomous snake has slit-like elliptical eyes that resemble cat ’s eyes.


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## win231 (Sep 18, 2021)

HoneyNut said:


> I particularly would not want to get close enough to check this helpful advice found on the web:
> 
> 
> *Poisonous Snake Eyes Pupils are Elliptical*​
> Instead of having round pupils, a venomous snake has slit-like elliptical eyes that resemble cat ’s eyes.


If you just explain to the snake that you're only trying to check.........


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## win231 (Sep 18, 2021)

Butterfly said:


> Me, too.  I am not a fan of snakes!


Watch how friendly this snake gets with Johnny Carson:


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## win231 (Sep 18, 2021)

Interesting timing.
I just found a cute baby Gopher Snake on my walk this evening.  I picked him up & he immediately calmed down.  I took him on the rest of my walk & let anyone who wasn't scared pet him.  I was surprised at how many woman & kids wanted to touch him.  Well, one woman actually asked me if he was venomous.    
This one:


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