Narcisse Snake Pits
Encyclopedia
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
. The dens are the winter home of tens of thousands of Red-sided Garter Snakes
Garter snake
The Garter snake is a Colubrid snake genus common across North America, ranging from Alaska and Canada to Central America. It is the single most widely distributed genus of reptile in North America. The garter snake is also the Massachusettsstate reptile.There is no real consensus on the...
(Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis). These pits are the largest concentration in the world of this
particular type of snake. Their winter dens are subterranean caverns formed by the area's water-worn limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
bedrock
Bedrock
In stratigraphy, bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet, usually the Earth. Above the bedrock is usually an area of broken and weathered unconsolidated rock in the basal subsoil...
. In the spring, they come up from their dens to the snake pits, where they engage in mating rituals. Then they disperse into the nearby marshes for the summer.
Conservation
The population of red-sided garter snakes around Narcisse was roughly 70,000 until terrible weather in 1999 killed tens of thousands of them before they could reach their winter dens. http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/1999/06/16/16061999_snakes.html This tragedy triggered concern about the snakes' bi-annual migratory path, which cuts right across Highway 17Manitoba Provincial Highway 17
Provincial Trunk Highway 17 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It runs from an intersection with PR 325 near Hodgson to an intersection with PTH 9 near Gimli....
. Every year, ten thousand snakes trying to get to or from their winter dens had been crushed under the wheels of vehicles. This hadn't been a problem before, because the vast population compensated for the losses. After the winter of 1999, however, the population of garter snakes was dangerously low, causing Manitoba Hydro
Manitoba Hydro
Manitoba Hydro is the electric power and natural gas utility in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1961, it is a provincial Crown Corporation, governed by the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board and the Manitoba Hydro Act. Today the company operates 15 interconnected generating stations. It has...
and volunteers to intervene.
Foot-high snow fence
Snow fence
A snow fence is a structure, similar to a sand fence, that forces drifting snow to accumulate in a desired place. They are primarily employed to minimize the amount of snowdrift on roadways and railways. Farmers and ranchers may use temporary snow fences to create large drifts in basins for a...
s were built to force snakes into 15-centimeter tunnels that went under Highway 17. Since some snakes still managed to squeeze under the fence and onto the road, signs were put up during the migratory season urging motorists to slow down to avoid accidentally driving over snakes. These measures worked, and now less than a thousand snakes per season are killed on the highway.
Visiting
The best time to visit the Narcisse Snake Pits is late April to early May, which is the mating season. Another good time to go is early September, when the snakes slither back down to their winter dens.Directions
The dens, on Highway #17, six kilometers north of Narcisse, are marked with a large sign. If traveling from WinnipegWinnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, allow 2 hours from Perimeter Highway and Highway #7
Manitoba Provincial Highway 7
Provincial Trunk Highway 7 is a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It runs from the north limit of the city of Winnipeg north to Arborg, Manitoba where it intersects with PTH 68. The highway is twinned from Winnipeg to just north of PTH 67, an east-west route that provides...
.Heading north on Hwy 7, in Teulon
Teulon, Manitoba
Teulon is a community located approximately 60 kilometers north of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, on Provincial Truck Highway 7. Located between Stonewall and Gimli, Teulon is commonly referred to as "The Gateway to the Interlake" and "The Petunia Capital of Manitoba"...
turn left (west) on Hwy 17. In Inwood, Hwy 17 goes North. The dens are off of Hwy. 17 40 km N of Inwood.
See also
- Rae BridgmanRae BridgmanRae Bridgman is a Canadian anthropologist, and the author/illustrator of The MiddleGate Books, a series of fantasy books for children inspired by the Narcisse Snake Pits of Narcisse, Manitoba -- The Serpent’s Spell , Amber Ambrosia and Fish and Sphinx...
(author of The MiddleGate Books, which feature the snakes of Narcisse, Manitoba)
External links
- The Snakes of Narcisse | Wildlife and Ecosystem Protection (Province of Manitoba)
- Snakes Alive! (Nature North Zine)
- Video on Youtube