The numbers
Thermal gradient
Day: a real gradient, 29–32°C warm against 23–27°C cool, so the animal chooses. Night: 18–24°C.
Why
Same scale on every sheet here, so two species compare by eye.
The sheet stateswarm 29-32 °C / cool 23-27 °C / night 18-24 °C
Humidity
The sheet states35-60 %
UVB
The sheet statesZoo Med T5 HO Reptisun 5.0 or Arcadia T5 HO Forest 6%; achieve a UVI of 2.0-3.0 in the basking area; With mesh obstruction: 9-12" / Without mesh obstruction: 12-14"
Identity
Enclosure and conditions
Enclosure
Drawn from the stated numbers. Only what the sheet states is drawn inside.
Why
The rectangle carries the exact width-to-height ratio of the figures above it, and the ruler under it places that width on the 0–250 cm scale every sheet here shares, so two species still compare at a glance. Nothing is added that the sheet does not name: a lamp drawn on a sheet that never mentions one would be invented equipment. What the sheet leaves out is listed rather than left blank, because an empty tank reads as « none needed ».
The sheet states48"L x 24"W x 24"H / 120 x 60 x 60cm
What your climate adds
This sheet states a range to hold. Your local climate decides how much work holding it is. Pick the nearest city: nothing is sent anywhere, the choice stays in this browser.
Diet
Feeding rhythm
Twenty-eight days, one row. Each band is a meal window. The sheet gives several ages on one line; this is the adult figure.
Why
The windows widen as they go because the interval is a range: four meals after a 10–14 day cycle land anywhere between day 40 and day 56.
The sheet statesearthworms, leeches, fish, tadpoles, newts, frogs, young birds, and small mammals; earthworms (chopped as needed), guppies, platies, mice, button quail, quail eggs, Reptilinks; Newborns — every other day / Juveniles — every 3-5 days / Adults — every 4-7 days
Common questions
Can I handle it?
Only a little. It is the most nervous of the garter group and prefers to be watched rather than held.
What does it eat?
Fish, tadpoles and earthworms. Most refuse rodents entirely, so plan your food supply first.
How big does it get?
Around 60 to 90 centimetres, but very slim with a very long tail.
Is it difficult?
More delicate than other garter snakes. It needs a water area, clean conditions and a steady fish supply.
What it needs
Every line above is deduced from a value this sheet states, and names which one. Nothing here is a general recommendation.
Sources
Others in this group
What this sheet states
This sheet states 5 of 7 of the fields this product runs on. What is missing turns something off: day/night engine and awake count on the globe, the diet section. We show the gap rather than fill it with a plausible number.
UVB is measured but does not count: it is absent from 421 of 678 sheets, and on most of them that is not a gap, since a nocturnal snake's sheet has no reason to state a UV index. Counting it would call the library incomplete without cause.