Snakes on the Brain

I found the largest snake in Utah. This is Great Basin Gopher Snake. Despite being the most common snake in Utah, they play a major role in maintaining a healthy ecosystem.

This is the valley garter snake. This subspecies of the common garter snake is in my opinion, one of the prettiest. And despite its name, you can actually find them in the foothills that line the Wasatch mountains in northern Utah.

The most bizarre snake in the United States just might be the Northern Rubber Boa: My name Ethan Fineshriber and this is my favorite snake I've seen out in the field as of posting this video because they are bizarre and quite frankly adorable. While the average snake can live upwards of 20-30 years, this snake can live up to 50 years. This is one of the most primitive snakes that can be found in the state of Utah. And if you have a fear of snakes, trust me when I say that this is the friendliest snake you could come across in Utah. If you've seen one out in the wild before, I'd love to hear about it. So comment below telling me your stories of finding these bizarre snakes.

This is the Western Yellow-Bellied Racer. It is one of the fastest snakes native to Utah. Catching one isn't always easy because of their speed. It's also one of the most common species of snake that I see when out in the field in Utah. I can't count how many times I've been bitten by this snake but thankfully it's completely harmless.

This is the Coachwhip, the fastest snake not just in Utah, but in the entire United States. After filming this video, I saw a second one that was almost a foot longer than this one and was too fast for me to catch. These snakes can be incredibly variable in appearance and the ones in Utah in my opinion, are rather unique.

Ethan discusses the Variable Gound Snake.

The Wandering Garter Snake is the most common species to encounter in northern Utah. Lots of people see them not knowing what they are and fear that they're dangerous however they're completely harmless.

This is the California Kingsnake. This is Utah's most prolific kingsnake species and like all kings, they indeed eat other snakes including venomous snakes, and other kingsnake's.

This is the Striped Whipsnake. The fastest species of snake in northern Utah. Despite that it's quite common among Utah's deserts, it took me over a year of constant searching in many different locations until my hard work paid off. This in my opinion is a highly underrated species and unfortunately I had to find 4 individuals that had been hit by cars before seeing my first one alive.