It's interesting to me to hear about Checkered Gartersnakes being kept in other countries! This species was first described scientifically in 1853 based on a specimen that was collected in my home state (Oklahoma) in 1852 by Captain Randolph Marcy during a military expedition to find the headwaters of the Red River (the river the separates the states of Texas and Oklahoma). The specific epithet "marcianus" commemorates Randolph Marcy; although I'm sure that the Kiowa, Caddo, and Wichita Indian tribes knew about this snake long before the Marcy Expedition! A very beautiful little gartersnake - I've had the chance to see half a dozen in the wild.
