Snakes in Minnesota
Minnesota has 15 snake species on record, each with at least 10 GBIF records in the state, and 921 licensed records in all. The most recorded are the common garter snake, the red-bellied snake and the plains garter snake. One of them is venomous.
Rattlesnakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the timber rattlesnake, with 11 records (1% of the state's snake records).
Water snakes and swamp snakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the northern water snake, with 18 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes in Minnesota
Garter snakes and ribbon snakes dominate the snake record of Minnesota: two species and 53% of all records. The most recorded is the common garter snake (428), ahead of the plains garter snake (58).
Observation records of the common garter snake in Minnesota run mostly April through October, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Hennepin County, Lake County and St. Louis County. Observation records of the plains garter snake in Minnesota run mostly June through October, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Dakota County, Hennepin County and Anoka County.
Rat snakes and corn snakes in Minnesota
Rat snakes and corn snakes: two species are listed for Minnesota, with 33 records (4% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the western foxsnake (23), ahead of the eastern fox snake (10).
Kingsnakes and milksnakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the eastern milksnake, with 23 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Racers, whipsnakes and indigo snakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the eastern racer, with 1 record (0.1% of the state's snake records).
Gopher snakes, bullsnakes and pine snakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the gopher snake, with 31 records (3% of the state's snake records).
Most licensed records of the gopher snake in Minnesota come from Anoka County, Sherburne County and Hennepin County.
Hognose snakes in Minnesota
Hognose snakes: two species are listed for Minnesota, with 39 records (4% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the eastern hog-nosed snake (25), ahead of the plains hog-nosed snake (14).
Green snakes in Minnesota
One species of this group is listed for Minnesota: the smooth green snake, with 16 records (2% of the state's snake records).
Small woodland and burrowing snakes in Minnesota
Small woodland and burrowing snakes: three species are listed for Minnesota, with 195 records (21% of the state's snake records). The most recorded is the red-bellied snake (141), ahead of the DeKay's brown snake (29).
Observation records of the red-bellied snake in Minnesota run mostly May through October, peaking in October; most licensed records come from Crow Wing County, Rice County and St. Louis County.
Where in Minnesota are snakes recorded most?
Hennepin County leads with 132 records (14%), followed by Crow Wing County and Dakota County; the top five counties hold 38% of the total. 74 of Minnesota's 87 counties have at least one licensed snake record.
| # | County | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hennepin County | 132 | 14.3% |
| 2 | Crow Wing County | 59 | 6.4% |
| 3 | Dakota County | 57 | 6.2% |
| 4 | Lake County | 53 | 5.8% |
| 5 | Anoka County | 50 | 5.4% |
| 6 | Winona County | 43 | 4.7% |
| 7 | St. Louis County | 34 | 3.7% |
| 8 | Rice County | 33 | 3.6% |
| 9 | Wright County | 26 | 2.8% |
| 10 | Cook County | 25 | 2.7% |
| 11 | Sherburne County | 23 | 2.5% |
| 12 | Washington County | 23 | 2.5% |
When do snakes come out in Minnesota?
Observation records of snakes in Minnesota run mostly April through October, peaking in May with 20% of them. December through February together hold under 2% of the records, so snakes in Minnesota are rarely recorded in winter. The sharpest rise comes from April to May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 0% | 1% | 11% | 20% | 15% | 11% | 11% | 16% | 13% | 2% | 0% |
Snakes: Minnesota compared with its neighbors
Minnesota ranks 36th of 50 states by the number of snake species listed; Texas leads with 86 species.
Of the four states bordering Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota and Wisconsin list more snake species (Minnesota: 15 species; Iowa 22, South Dakota 16, Wisconsin 16, North Dakota 8).
What snakes are in Minnesota? All 15 species
Ranked by licensed records in Minnesota. Species with a profile page are linked.
| # | Species | Family | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Common garter snake Thamnophis sirtalis | Colubridae | 428 | 46.5% |
| 2 | Red-bellied snake Storeria occipitomaculata | Colubridae | 141 | 15.3% |
| 3 | Plains garter snake Thamnophis radix | Colubridae | 58 | 6.3% |
| 4 | Gopher snake Pituophis catenifer | Colubridae | 31 | 3.4% |
| 5 | DeKay's brown snake Storeria dekayi | Colubridae | 29 | 3.1% |
| 6 | Eastern hog-nosed snake Heterodon platirhinos | Colubridae | 25 | 2.7% |
| 7 | Ring-necked snake Diadophis punctatus | Colubridae | 25 | 2.7% |
| 8 | Eastern milksnake Lampropeltis triangulum | Colubridae | 23 | 2.5% |
| 9 | Western foxsnake Pantherophis ramspotti | Colubridae | 23 | 2.5% |
| 10 | Northern water snake Nerodia sipedon | Colubridae | 18 | 2.0% |
| 11 | Smooth green snake Opheodrys vernalis | Colubridae | 16 | 1.7% |
| 12 | Plains hog-nosed snake Heterodon nasicus | Colubridae | 14 | 1.5% |
| 13 | Timber rattlesnake venomous Crotalus horridus | Viperidae | 11 | 1.2% |
| 14 | Eastern fox snake Pantherophis vulpinus | Colubridae | 10 | 1.1% |
| 15 | Eastern racer Coluber constrictor | Colubridae | 1 | 0.1% |
Also recorded in Minnesota, fewer than 10 times
Beyond the main list, three snake species are known from Minnesota by only 3 to 9 records each. Some are genuine rarities at the edge of their range; others may be strays, released pets or old misidentifications, so treat them as unconfirmed.
Related pages
GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.