Checkered garter snake

Description:

This snake has a thin yellow stripe on its back and a checkerboard pattern. Generally they measure 2-3 feet in length. Can be greenish or brown in color.

Habitat:

This snake was found in a shady, leafy and mulched area in my back yard.

Notes:

What brought my attention to this snake was a family of blue jays that was hanging around the low areas within the trees, and some potted plants. They seemed relatively calm at the time. There were five birds. Two appeared to be adults and three young jays. There were also cardinals and wrens hopping around the same area. I was curious about their behavior so continued watching. That is when I spotted the snake. I grabbed the camera and started taking pictures. It was at that time I noticed that the snake had just ingested something. Whatever it was seemed to be almost half the size of the snake. Most of the pictures I was able to take were taken from inside the house looking out the window. I managed to get a few from outside, but did not want to distrub the snake. I am guessing that it ingested a bird, or perhaps a small squirrel. It was very interesting to watch its body undulate as whatever it ate moved through its body. Pretty cool!