Ground Snake vs. Western Milksnake

Both are small, smooth, glossy snakes that can be banded black and orange. A: the Western Milksnake has full rings of red, black and white or yellow, each red ring bordered by black on both sides, going right around the body; the banded Ground Snake has black bands or saddles on orange or tan, with no separate white or yellow rings, and the bands often stop short of the belly. The Ground Snake's pale scales often have dark front edges. B: many Ground Snakes are plain brown or orange, or striped; the Milksnake is always ringed. The Ground Snake is small (8 to 19 in) with a head barely wider than the neck. Their ranges overlap from Kansas and Colorado south (in Idaho only the Ground Snake).

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