THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY


Reptilia    Squamata (part)    Natricidae  

Giant Gartersnake
Thamnophis gigas Fitch, 1940

SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
Wood et al. (2015, Conservation Genetics 16: 1025–1039) using microsatellite data identified lineages within this species.

Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2023.04.10.13.42.10)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 1 MB

Province/State Distribution:
USA: California

First instance(s) of published English names:
Giant Garter Snake (Thamnophis ordinoides gigas: Schmidt, Karl Peterson and D. D. Davis. 1941. Field Book of Snakes of the United States and Canada. C.P. Putnam and Sons, New York. 365pp.); Giant Garter Snake (Thamnophis elegans gigas: Schmidt, Karl P. 1953. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. 6th Edition. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois. 280pp.);

Taxon Links:

  
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
  
The Reptile Database
  
NatureServe
  
iNaturalist
  
GenBank
  
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database

Selected References:
1908 Ruthven, Alexander G. Variations and genetic relationships of the garter-snakes. Bulletin of the United States National Museum (61):1-201
1940 Fitch, Henry S. A biogeographical study of the ordinoides artenkreis of garter snakes (genus Thamnophis). University of California Publications in Zoology 44:1-150
1987 Rossman, Douglas A. and G. R. Stewart. Taxonomic reevaluation of Thamnophis couchii (Serpentes: Colubridae). Occaisional Papers of the Museum of Zoology, Louisiana State University (63):1-25
1991 Collins, Joseph T. Viewpoint: A new taxonomic arrangement for some North American amphibins and reptiles Herpetological Review 22(2):42-43
1994 De Queiroz, Alan and Robin Lawson. Phylogenetic relationships of the garter snakes based on DNA sequence and allozyme variation. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 53:209-229
2002 de Queiroz, Alan, Robin Lawson, and Julio A. Lemos-Espinal. Phylogenetic relationships of North American garter snakes (Thamnophis) based on four mitochondrial genes: How much DNA sequence is enough?. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 22(2):315-329
2014 Crother, Brian I. The bold taxonomic hypotheses of Collins (1991): 23 years later. Herpetological Review 45(2):268-272
2015 Wood, Dustin A., Brian J. Halstead, Michael L. Casazza, Eric C. Hansen, Glenn D. Wylie, and Amy G. Vandergast. Defining population structure and genetic signatures of decline in the Giant Gartersnake (Thamnophis gigas): Implications for conserving threatened species within highly altered landscapes. Conservation Genetics 16:1025-1039

THE CENTER FOR NORTH AMERICAN HERPETOLOGY — Accessed: Monday 19 May 2025 19:18 CT