California names an official state snake

Conservationists are hopeful the recognition will save the humble giant garter from extinction

- BY KATERINA PORTELA

Save the Snakes THE GIANT garter snake, a semiaquatic species nonvenomous to humans, can grow up to 64 inches.

Amid the slew of bills moving through the California Legislature, one that slithered across Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk was different from the others.

The way the grizzly bear has long been associated with California—its likeness is the central emblem on the state flag — with Newsom's signature on Senate Bill 765, another animal can now claim to also be an official part of the state identity: the giant garter snake.

A semiaquatic species that is considered one of North America’s largest native snakes, the striped snake nonvenomous to humans with a maximum length of 64 inches has historically thrived in natural wetlands along California's Central Valley, from Chico down to Fresno.

Photographs by Save the Snakes A SEMIAQUATIC species and one of North America's largest native serpents,the giant garter snake has been endangered since 1993.

Unfortunately, the giant garter snake is becoming a casualty of California’s brutal cycle of droughts and habitat destruction as much of the Central Valley converts to agriculture or infrastructure development, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.