White and brown with 33 – 46 red or brown spots outlined in black
Wetlands, fields and rocky, wooded hillsides
Small rodents, birds, lizards and snakes
Eastern milk snake (Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum)
Black with yellow stripes; grayish-green belly; only trained eye can tell the three species (eastern plains, common and Chicago) apart
Forests, vacant lots, fields, pastures, wet meadows and marshes; tolerates cold and active year-round but spends most of winter hibernating
Fish, amphibians, young birds, earthworms, slugs and invertebrates
Common garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis)
Brown or dark olive; yellow or off-white belly; scales along back form a keel
Still waters in prairies and along soft-bottomed, heavily vegetated lakes, ponds, streams, sloughs and ditches; not seen in DuPage in several years
Crayfish, fish and frogs
Graham’s crawfish snake (Regina grahamii) Image by John Williams/CC BY-NC 4.0
Red and orange belly with black spots
Crayfish burrows, wet prairies and meadows, and grassy edges of creeks, ditches and ponds; threatened in Illinois and not seen in DuPage in several years
Earthworms, leeches and slugs
Kirtland’s snake (Clonophis kirtlandii) Image by Andrew Hoffman/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Small; brownish-gray with dark blotches on sides of neck and under eyes; two rows of dark blotches down back; light-pink belly
Forests, prairies, floodplains, uplands, forest edges, fields and vacant lots
Earthworms and slugs
Midland brown snake (Storeria dekayi wrightorum) Image by Jeff Skrentny/CC BY-NC 4.0
Small and slender; black, brown or gray with one to four reddish-brown stripes; deep-red to orange belly
Forests, moist woodlands, pastures, bogs and wet meadows
Earthworms and slugs
Northern red-bellied snake (Storeria occipitomaculata occipitomaculata) Image by Fyn Kynd/CC BY-NC 4.0
Light-brown or gray with dark reddish bands; light-yellow belly; often mistaken for venomous cottonmouth or copperhead, although neither live in DuPage
Streams, lakes, ponds, rivers and ditches
Small mammals, salamanders, small turtles, crustaceans, amphibians, and minnows and other small fish
Northern water snake (Nerodia sipedon)
Brown or dark olive; yellow or off-white belly with two brown stripes down center and each side
Banks of relatively unpolluted, rocky woodland streams with abundant crayfish
Crayfish
Queen snake (Regina septemvittata) Image by Matt Tillett/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Small and slender; green; off-white belly
Prairies, savannas, bogs, marshes, wet meadows, old fields and vacant lots
Spiders, centipedes, millipedes, slugs, snails and insects
Smooth green snake (Opheodrys vernalis)
Yellow to bronze back with brown blotches throughout; often mistaken for venomous eastern massasugas, which hasn't been seen in DuPage for over 20 years
Prairies, fields and pastures
Small mammals, birds, eggs and nestlings
Western fox snake (Elaphe vulpine)
Eastern Milk Snake
Garter Snakes
Graham’s Crawfish Snake
Kirtland’s Snake
Midland Brown Snake
Northern Red-Bellied Snake
Northern Water Snake
Queen Snake
Smooth Green Snake
Western Fox Snake
3S580 Naperville Road
Wheaton, IL 60189
630-933-7200
forest@dupageforest.org
Monday – Friday
8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
The Forest Preserve District is committed to making its facilities accessible to all visitors. Contact 630-933-7683 or TTY 800-526-0857.